Saturday Night’s Alright… For Betting (So is Sunday!) Plus The Horses!
The Footy
There were only four goals in the Holland Park Hawks game which was a bit of a surprise considering their games tend to have 6+. I’m not sure if any of the Estonian cup matches from Saturday were in play, but there were 18-0 and 12-0 scorelines. Monday night’s game was in play and finished 8-1 with the goal line set at over 6.5 I believe.
Liverpool won 6-0 in their opening friendly, but there were also disappointing performances from Premier League sides as anticipated. In any case, let’s see what this weekend holds for us.
1 – Germany Regional Cup Fun
Sunday sees a few German amateur cup games which are ostensibly pre-season friendlies for low-grade teams. TB Uphusen aren’t a great Oberliga side but the fifth-tier outfit might do well against Brake FC who finished bottom of division six last season.
Perhaps of greater interest is Eintracht Northeim versus HSC BW Schwalbe Tundern at 2 pm on Sunday. The former side lost a playoff to get into the fourth division last season and are up against a side in the Lower Saxony Kriesliga; which is the eighth tier in German football.
The main trouble here is trying to find these games in play. Bet365 is the most likely candidate, but no odds are available at the time of writing. If you see early domination from one of the favoured sides, a hiding could be on the cards.
2 – Still Feeling Friendly
Don’t worry; I will stop banging on about friendlies in due course. The season will be starting in most European leagues in the next couple of weeks. Some of the German lower leagues have begun a full month before others; which is just odd. In looking for friendlies worth backing, I came across a couple of potential hits.
Victoria Rosport of the Luxembourg first division against TUS RW Koblenz, a German side newly promoted to the fourth tier Regionalliga, at 3 pm on Saturday, could be one worth looking out for. Rosport lost 7-1 to German fourth-tier side Elversberg in February, so there is clearly a huge gap in quality.
There is the usual cavalcade of friendlies, and anyone who read the Summer Lovin’ series will know what to look for at this stage.
3 – Don’t Forget the Ladies
Weekends, where there is a lack of major European league action, are always likely to see the in-play status of women’s football games restored. Games you seldom see during the year are covered in ‘slow’ weekends, so bear this in mind during the interminable international breaks during the season.
There are women’s games in leagues such as Brazil, Finland, Iceland, Uruguay, and many more besides. There are also some cup games which always provide an opportunity for profit. CSKA Moscow ladies play lower league opposition at 3 pm on Sunday in what could be a double-figure scoreline. Once again, the biggest obstacle is getting games in-play.
Check your bookmakers’ daily offerings to find out more. Even if it isn’t available, bookies have a habit of putting such games in-play at the last minute. Marathon Bet is a last-ditch option. As I keep saying, it offers tons of games but is infuriating to use.
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The Horses
1 – Is Horse Racing On The Way Out?
With the recent cuts on stakes on FOBT's in betting shops, focus has now turned to how this reduction has impeded on horse racing. An interesting looks at this comes from Greg Wood of the Guardian who looks at how the industry should be regulated…
Talking Horses: does horse racing really face an ‘existential threat'?
2 – Last Orders For Scotbet
To continue on a negative thread, it's sad news this morning as Scottish independent chain, Scotbet, sadly close their doors. The business has gone into receivership and this has been blamed on the reduction in FOBT stakes. A problem that is likely to cause continuing issues across the industry…
More betting shops close as Scotbet go into receivership
3 – The Stats
Bit of a mixed bag today and no certain trainer really stands out at any course. However, a trainer I'll be having a “few quid” on is Ed Walker and he runs four horses over several tracks. They will certainly be worth a few quid each way 😉
17:20 Newbury – George William
18:00 Haydock – Stormbomber
18:15 Doncaster – Divine Summer
19:45 Doncaster – Came From The Dark
We'll be back next week with more insights into the footy and the horse's world and let us know what you're backing in the comments 🙂
Patrick & Eddie for the Football Advisor
