Scotland look to build on strong start

Scotland will this weekend host an out of form Wales at Murrayfield, looking to build on the battling performance they produced in Paris last week. Despite losing the game 34-21 the Scots can be proud of their display and Andy Robinson will be pleased to have seen his side score three tries in the intimidating Stade de France.

After going behind after just three minutes the Scots were always chasing the game but came out of the opening game with their heads held high. The backs looked inventive and direct and the three touchdowns were thoroughly deserved by Scotland. Alistair Kellock lead the side by example and the new skipper covered every blade of grass as well as scoring a try. The latest Six Nations betting odds now suggest Scotland will be able to give the other sides a real run for their money.

The only major concern for Robinson and his coaching staff will be the way the forwards were dominated by the French in the scrum, conceding a penalty try to the French set-piece, despite the visitors boasting the heavier pack. Tight-head prop Euan Murray came in for some bashing by the press following the loss but his captain Kellock has come out to make it clear the whole pack were to blame rather than just the prop.

“We were disappointed with our scrum – we’ve got to fix that, Euan can only play as well as the rest of the pack. They’re going to put pressure through the tighthead – every team will try to,” he said.

The signs of improvement throughout the side were evident though and with Wales winless in eight tests the Scots will probably go into the match as favourites as long as the forwards can tweak a few things.

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NFL – Brett Favre didn’t make it to his 298th consecutive start

All good things must come to an end. That is one sorry reality, one unavoidable fate we all must have to accept, or at least learn how to live with it. And that must be the hardest part for the great Brett Favre. Let’s try to put it all into perspective. Brett Favre has started every single game his team has played since 1992. That is 297 games. That is 18 years of suiting up for one of the roughest and most physically demanding professional sports ever played. After 20 seasons as a professional player, Brett Favre, the quarterback that seemed made out of steel has come to a stop.

The 41-year-old quarterback has had a very rough 20th season with the Minnesota Vikings. He suffered a very rough hit against the Buffalo Bills last week when Arthur Moat hit him straight on his back and sent him straight to the ground very early in the game. Actually it was only the third play from scrimmage but it was good enough to send him away for the rest of the game.

But that was not the first beating that Brett Favre had taken this season. As a matter of fact, this one alone might rank among the roughest and most physically demanding seasons he has experienced as a professional player. He stayed in the field playing each of the games so far in the season, despite holding on an elbow tendinitis, 10 stitches on his chin and, two fractures in his left foot and constant aches in his neck, back and calf. That was before Arthur Moat hit him.

So, the bottom line is that Brett Favre’s body just simply gave up on him.  And that should perhaps be the end of his season. The Minnesota Vikings are 5-7 right now, and it seems as if there is little left for the team. The Vikings chances of making it to the playoffs this season are rather dim. And despite whatever happens at the end of the season, it is probably time for the great Brett Favre to take some time off and rest.

His career has been long, fruitful and to be sincere, there is very little left for him to prove the world. He has dominated most every possible statistic a quarterback could aim for. But this season, things have changed. He is now ranked as the 29th quarterback in the league. That is quite an inedited experience for a quarterback as Favre. He used to lead the league in passing yards and touchdown passes. Now he is toping the charts with his 18 interceptions.

On the sideline there is still the pending investigation by the NFL in regards to his alleged sexual harassment against the New York Jets pregame entertainer, Jenn Sterger. Sure there has been a lot to say in regards to the inappropriate messages he sent to her coworker, back when both worked for the Jets.

Tarvaris Jackson has started instead of Favre for the Minnesota Vikings in their game against the Jets. As of press time, there is very little chance for the Vikings to make it back from a 21-3 crushing by the Jets. With or without Favre, the Vikings are simply not having a very good season. And that’s a bit of a shame.

NBA – The San Antonio Spurs are having a brilliant start

The San Antonio Spurs are experiencing one of their best starts ever. At 17-3, the Spurs are first in the Southwest Conference, and as of press time, they hold the best record in the Nation. With a winning percentage of .850, the Spurs have had a stronger start than the National Title contender, Boston Celtics, at 16-4 and a .800 winning percentage, and the Defending Champions the LA Lakers, that have recorded 14 wins and 6 defeats so far this season.

But is this early success from the San Antonio Spurs legit? It’s a bit hard to say. Tony Parker, despite his personal problems and the filling of his divorce with tv-star Eva Longoria, has been quite fantastic in the Spurs last games. As a matter of fact, Parker was responsible for 19 points in the Spurs 109-84 bashing of the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday.

Their almost perfect record is not really fair to the fact that the Spurs are one heck of a fighting team. Their success so far this season could be defined by an overwhelming drive: they just won’t give up. Here is a fact: The Spurs have fallen behind by 15 or more points in 4 games this season, and yet, have found their way back into a winning game. The Spurs 25-point win over the Hornets is their largest winning margin of the season.

And they were quite brilliant later in the second quarter when shooting from outside the perimeter. It seems like this is a very good winning formula for the Spurs. San Antonio has won each and every of their last 7 games in which the team 10 or more 3 pointers. And it seems that both Spurs strongest players, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker are really hitting it off this season.

There is just one big issue when it comes to assessing the Spurs early success. They still have not played some of the strongest teams in the country, and it is hard to asses their game until they take a game against, let’s say, the LA Lakers with Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant on the starting 5, or the Boston Celtics with Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen on the floor. Sure enough, they defeated the Chicago Bulls 103-94 early in November, and defeated the Orlando Magic 106-97 at San Antonio, but it really is hard to predict whether the team is actually as good as it sounds.

Now, the Spurs have been quite brilliant playing straight up. Surprisingly enough, the team has also been quite successful when it comes to playing Against The Spread. As of press time, the Spurs ATS record sits at 12-7-1, for a very respectable 63.2 percent of success when taken on straight bets. The team is just slightly surpassed by the Dallas Mavericks when it comes to wagering against the spread among the best teams in the Southwest conference. As of press time, the Mavericks as 12-6-2.

The Spurs are 9-2 at home and 8-1 on the road. The Spurs have had a strong start and have had a good series of wins during the last 10 games. At 8-2, they are still very well off. Let’s just wait and see if they can keep up this rhythm into the postseason, where it matters most.

the analysts start to attack Betfair valuation

There was an article yesterday behind the FT paywall attacking the valuation of Betfair and its growth prospects. This essentially echoed my thoughts in various posts here and discussions with a couple of investment firms. I don't see the price crashing, but I do think that growth prospects are limited in the short-term. Their big upshot will be if one of the biggest nations in the world opens up, such as China, India or the US. Don't hold your breath though, that might take a while.

Betfair reply to analyst’s unfavourable share forecast

After picking up three awards at the eGR Awards on Wednesday night, narrowly missing out on the Operator of the Year award, it’s neigh-on definite that attending on behalf Betfair will have left you quite the hangover to deal with. This will have been made significantly worse by a news item published on FT.com yesterday morning – something that isn’t curable by a Bloody Mary.

After the founders floated it last month, Betfair’s stock was put on the market for £13-a-share and the company valued at around £1.3bn. It hasn’t impressed certain market professionals, which led Investec analyst Paul Leyland to comment: “Betfair is approaching maturity in the UK, faces significant regulatory threats elsewhere, and will gain little traction in financials.

“Betfair needs a liberal tax and regulatory approach to online gambling in order to operate, let alone to thrive. We see this as increasingly unlikely in any major market.”

Betfair, of course, refuted the argument but he makes perfect sense in my opinion....Posted byScott Fergusonat15:23

AUSTRALIA: Americain guaranteed Melbourne Cup start

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Rip Van Winkle to Start Coolmore Stud Career

Posted by Leigh on October 21, 2010 · Leave a Comment 

A slight setback has caused Rip Van Winkle to be withdrawn from having another shot at the Breeders’ Cup and he will now begin a stud career for Coolmore.

exchange betting in California doesn't guarantee Betfair a start

Much has been made this week of the Californian government passing legislation to allow exchange wagering on horse racing in the state. With Betfair already having a presence in California as owners of broadcast network and pari-mutuel operator TVG, and sponsoring the bill, the easy conclusion is that Betfair will start up in the USA. But a lot of water still has to pass under the bridge before a Betfair-run exchange can be licensed.

This bill also allowed pari-mutuel operators to raise takeout on Californian racing pools... so where is the logic in pushing rake up to over 20% on one hand, and bringing in a foreign company to run a business on 2-5% commission at the same time? Of course there's no guarantee Betfair would use (or be allowed to use) the same business model as they have in the UK, a market subject to far more competition.

Politicians have a history of making half-baked decisions, particularly when they are desperate for cash (the state of California is as financially healthy as Greece at the moment) and it involves gambling, a sector which invests obscene amounts into lobbying. Horsemen's groups have plenty of influence and are likely to demand either unviable rates of commission, or that a Californian racing exchange is operated by the local racing industry. That's despite Betfair having all the expertise in the industry, and access to solid liquidity from experienced exchange users. If you open an intra-state exchange only, where nobody has ever used an exchange before and there is no history of fixed-odds wagering, it will struggle. It's the chicken and egg thing - without liquidity, you can't get punters. Without punters, you can't get liquidity.

All this bill has done is opened the state up to the opportunity of exchange wagering on local racing. There's still a lot of debate and lobbying to go before punters can get excited. After all, they haven't even had the tired old debate about the ethics of laying horses to lose....Posted byScott Fergusonat12:02

Ascot Start for Lady Of The Desert

Posted by Leigh on September 14, 2010 · Leave a Comment 

Following her impressive performance at Haydock, Lady Of The Desert will return to the track with an attempt for sprinting prestige in the John Guest Diadem Stakes at Ascot.