Thursday August 3rd 2006
AFL
The Saints will take on the Eagles in a cracking match
on Friday night. West Coast will be backing up after
their easy win over competition leaders Adelaide whilst
the Saints are coming off a thumping victory against
the hapless Tigers. The Eagles mid field worked a
treat last week in an ominous sign for the remainder
of the season. The Saints are fast becoming the Victorian
pick to challenge for the flag and if Fraser Gehrig
can manage to score at will like last week they are
serious contenders.
On Saturday night the first placed Adelaide outfit will take on the fourth placed Collingwood. The Crows showed last week that they can be vulnerable, especially against a strong midfield, with inaccurate kicking also contributing to the Crows large loss. For the Pies their last up win against the Hawks will have been good for team morale which they will need this week as the Crows will bounce back hard in front of their home crowd.
NRL
The fast finishing Eels will take on the Dragons in
Friday night NRL action. The Eels have won their last
six matches and a home win this week could see them
inside the top eight. The Dragons went down in a close
match to the competition leaders Storm last weekend
and will be looking to atone for that loss. The Dragons
will have to come to terms with the fact that they
will not have Mark Gasnier in the team. Momentum is
certainly with the Eels at the moment.
The Roosters had a very promising win over the struggling Cowboys last week, turning around a 16 point deficit. This week they will take on the unpredictable Knights at Central Coast Stadium. The Roosters looked a different team when the forwards made good yards. With the extra room to operate, Brett Finch had his game of the season so far. The Knights have had an up and down run of form lately and will be looking to put back to back wins together as well. Both teams have very good play makers so the team that dominates up front should win the match.
Tri Nations Rugby
Last week's much hyped clash between the All
Blacks and the Wallabies at times did not live up
to expectations. The All Blacks dominated at the break
down and the Aussie scrum still looks highly suspect.
The Aussie forwards did win the line out contest though
which will give the pack something to build on. John
Connolly is opting for yet more size in the forwards,
bringing in West Australian Tia McIsaac at hooker
and New South Welshman Wycliff Palu at number 8. South
Africa will be smarting after their last loss to the
Wallabies and will come out this Saturday night with
plenty to play for. The Springbok pack will not want
another repeat performance. Aussie supporters will
hope that the Australian pack has learnt some lessons
out of last week's loss.
Golf
The Buick Open Golf tournament kicks off tonight in
an event that should see some low scoring golf. Tiger
Woods is the current pick to take out the event, he
is currently quoted as a $3.00 favourite. Past winners
Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk follow in the betting. Australian
Geoff Ogilvy is currently quoted at $17.00.
Thursday August 10th 2006
AFL
On Saturday the match between the Demons and the Swans
could almost be the start of their finals campaign.
The teams are sitting at third and fourth respectively
on the table. There is a lot of pressure from lower
placed teams, so a win this weekend could mean the
difference between a top eight spot and the all important
home semi final. The Swans team is slowly finding
the form that won them the flag last year with the
Swans defence back to their best. The Demons have
lost some key personnel and with their disastrous
loss to Carlton last week, the team will really need
to lift if they are to be a force in September.
This Sunday, Premiership leaders the Adelaide Crows will take on the eighth placed Dockers. The Dockers have been in great form lately winning their last five matches. The Dockers squad will be almost back to full strength this week which is just as well when taking on the Crows. The Crows have been less than convincing in the last two rounds. In round 16 they were beaten soundly by the Eagles and then last week they just snuck home against Collingwood. Out of last weeks win there have been two key injuries to the Crows with the loss of Brett Burton and Ben Hart. This week the Dockers could achieve another upset over the competition leaders.
NRL
Premiership Season On Friday night the Knights will
host the Sea Eagles. This match is important for both
teams as they are sitting at fourth and fifth on the
ladder and a slip up by either team could see them
at the bottom half of the final eight. This week,
the Sea Eagles start a difficult run with both the
Bulldogs and Storm to be played before the end of
the season. The Knights have found a bit of form and
are looking good to make the finals this year and
with a relatively easy run home a win this round will
set them up.
On Sunday the grudge match between the Bulldogs and the Dragons will be played at Telstra Stadium. The Dogs are coming off the back of a very strong win over the Cowboys and are looking in premiership winning form. For the Dragons they have slumped to a four game losing streak and with an uncertain run home they will need to start finding some wins to stay in the top eight.
Tennis
The US Open kicks off this month. In the men's draw
World number one Roger Federer will start the tournament
as favorite. His nemesis Rafael Nadal is on the next
line of betting even though the hard American courts
will favour other players. The Americans Blake and
Roddick will be well fancied as their form has been
good leading into the tournament. The inconsistent
Safin and the out of sorts Hewitt are also ranked
highly in the betting.
In the Women's draw World number 2 Kim Clijsters will head into the event as favourite followed by Justine Henin-Hardenne, Maria Sharapova and World number one Amelie Mauresmo.
Thursday August 24th 2006
Soccer
For the 2006-07 A-League season Sydney FC is once
again favourites heading into the competition with
last years minor premiers Adelaide United on the next
line of betting. Last years runner-up Central Coast
Mariners are rated third pick and they have history
of being there at finals time. Back the Winner and
get a Free $10 Bet. Place a minimum $20 bet on the
A-League winners market now and we will give you a
free $10 bet to place on any available Soccer market.
AFL
The South Australian showdown could appear a mis-match
on paper with the Crows 32 competition points ahead
of the Power. However, all this could go out the window
as neither team will want to lose this local derby.
These two teams last met in round 6 this year with
the Crows winning convincingly. Over the last month
the Crows, who were highly fancied for the flag, have
dropped off the pace losing three of their last four
matches. Port are not travelling much better, getting
their first win since round 13 against the Bulldogs
a couple of weeks ago. The Crows will head into this
match as favourites, though if they have an off night
Port will pounce.
One of the greatest rivalries in AFL will take place this weekend when the West Coast Eagles host the Fremantle Dockers at Subiaco Oval. This game should be one of the biggest Western Derby matches played as there is so much at stake. The Eagles are sitting first on the ladder while the Dockers have moved into fourth after their seventh win in a row. A win by either team will go a long way to cementing their position on the ladder while a loss could see them drop a spot. The Dockers task will be made difficult due to the strength of the Eagles midfield, there is so much talent there for the Eagles that it will be hard for the Dockers to shut down this area of play. For the Eagles it will be a priority to stem the goals scored by the Dockers as they have scored a least 95 points in their last seven games.
NRL
Friday night NRL action will see the Bulldogs take
on the Eagles at Brookvale Oval. The teams are sitting
at second and third place on the table so this match
will be a good measure for both teams heading into
finals footy. The Dogs were looking great until their
match last week when the team fell apart in their
loss to Brisbane. The match was also terrible for
the Dogs fans as they lost Willie Tonga and Roy Asotasi
to injury while prop Willie Mason is out through suspension.
The Sea Eagles are travelling well winning five of their last six matches. The Sea Eagles haven't lost to the Dogs at home since 1996 and this match will go right down to the wire, though Manly are in with a great chance of maintaining that record. On Sunday the resurgent Eels will host the Broncos. The Broncos spectacularly snapped their losing streak with a 30-0 win over the Dogs last week. This week the Broncos have the opportunity to move into outright fourth position on the ladder if they can halt the Eels run. It is hard to believe that the Eels were sitting second last on the ladder after round 17 as they are now fighting for a home semifinal appearance. The loss of Nathan Cayless is a blow to the Eels especially since the Broncos boast some exceptional forwards.
Golf
After Tiger Woods won the US PGA last week, it is
hard to see anyone challenging him when he is in top
form. He will head into the Bridgestone Invitational
as the clear favourite. He is followed in the betting
by Jim Furyk and Phil Mickelson. Australian Adam Scott
is currently quoted at $26.00 after his fourth position
at the US PGA.
Tennis
The US Open kicks off this month. In the men's draw
World number one Roger Federer will start the tournament
as favourite. His nemesis Rafael Nadal is on the next
line of betting even though the hard American courts
will favour other players better. The Americans Blake
and Roddick will be will fancied outsiders as their
form has been good leading into the tournament. In
the Women's draw the field is wide open with any number
of players capable of taking out the event. Maria
Sharapova is the current pick with Justine Henin-Hardenne
and Amelie Mauresmo following in the betting.
Thursday 31st August 2006
AFL
The Eagles were looking like the team to beat heading
into the AFL finals series, even though their four
game winning streak was ended when the Dockers beat
them last week. The Eagles will play the Tigers this
week and while the Tigers can't make the finals, early
money suggests they could prove a headache for the
Eagles. The Eagles have struggled to score goals for
parts of this season relying on their strong mid-field
to protect this weakness. If the Eagles stumble again
this week, they could potentially meet the Dockers
in the first week of the finals and with the Dockers
already winning both games against them this season
the Eagles will have plenty to play for this weekend.
A win for the Crows could see them win back the minor premier position from the Eagles, though after losing four of their past five matches and some of their best players to injury, this may be a hard task. The Demons are sitting in fourth position on the ladder at the moment. A loss for them this week will see them slip out of the top four and into a sudden death situation in the finals. The injury plagued Crows will be looking to find some form heading into the finals though the Demons have much more to play for at the moment and should be too good on the day.
NRL
Before last weeks loss to Brisbane the Eels were sitting
in fourth place and looking forward to a home game
in the first week of the finals. Now, even if they
win against the Cowboys they will still face a sudden
death match. The question in the win or loss will
be who they will play. After a intense nine week winning
run the Eels went down 23-0 last week whilst their
opponents this week, the Cowboys, snapped a four-match
losing streak to beat Souths 34-12. Interestingly,
it was the Cowboys who ended the Eels 2005 campaign
and this year they can seriously dent the Eels 2006
title aspirations.
For Manly the chance of playing a home semi-final will come down to them beating minor-premiers Melbourne this Saturday. Manly won last week with a great 78th minute field goal to beat the second placed Dogs and they are also one of the four teams who have beaten the Storm this year with a 34-12 point win in round 11. The Storm beat the eight placed Raiders last week by four points, so they will need to be on their game in this match which could be considered a finals match come a week early.
Tri Nations Rugby
When the Springboks and All Blacks take the field
in Rustenburg this Saturday night both teams will
have a number of changes in their line-ups. For the
Boks these changes are an attempt to end a five game
losing streak, while for the Blacks it is a chance
to give players a run while resting some of their
big names.
Golf
Tiger Woods has clearly been the dominate Golf player
this year. This weekend he will head into the Deutsche
Bank Championship as a strong favourite. Australian
Adam Scott, who has performed well at his last two
appearances, is on the next line of betting along
with world number four Vijay Singh. Will anybody be
able to challenge the consistency of Woods this weekend?