Stan on Sport

Favourites Step it Up!

2011-09-24T12:04:00.000+01:00

A couple of cracking games of rugby this morning with England doing a good job, though still giving away too many penalties for my liking and the All Blacks totally outclassing France. At the moment it is looking highly likely that the draw will see the Northern Hemisphere sides in one half and the Southern Hemisphere sides occupying the other half once the tournament reaches the knockout stages in a fortnight.

As for my predictions, last week was distinctly average with only four correct resulting in a £4 loss and taking overall losses back up to £9.

This week my Rugby World Cup predictions focus on what should be tight competitive games. Firstly, I am predicting Samoa to triumph over their South Pacific counterparts Fiji and secondly for Scotland to upset the odds by defeating Argentina in England's group.

The Barclays Premier League has been exciting in it's first month of the season with lots of goals being scored, particularly from the Manchester based players and no reason why that should not continue this weekend. My predictions this week include both Red and Blue halves of Manchester as well as the the two North London teams. At the Etihad Manchester City should have little problem beating Everton, but at Stoke the red half of Manchester will find a sterner test but again I expect them to triumph and keep up their 100% record for the start to the season.

Tottenham travel to Wigan on the back of two wins including a demolition of Liverpool last weekend and I believe they'll continue this run, whilst at the Emirates with confidence low my prediction is for a draw between Arsenal and Bolton.

England's cricket team have been fairly unstoppable in all forms of the game this summer and I'm predicting they'll win again tomorrow against the West Indies in the T20 International.

Meanwhile, over in Singapore Sebastian Vettel can secure his second consecutive World Championship this weekend, and whilst I'm not sure he will, I do think it won't be through lack of effort and I'll think he'll win one, if not the most gruelling race of the season with the other in-form driver Jenson Button on the podium.

Finally, I was surprised by Wigan's Superleague play-off defeat at home to St. Helens last weekend but I think they'll put that right this weekend with a win over the Catalan Dragons.

In summary, the predictions are as follows:

Rugby World Cup

Samoa to beat Fiji at 4/11
Scotland to beat Argentina at 16/11

Barclays Premier League Football

Manchester City to beat Everton at 7/15
Mancheter United to win at Stoke at 11/17
Tottenham to triumph at Wigan at 11/13
Arsenal to draw with Bolton at 4/1

T20 International Cricket

England to beat West Indies at 1/4

Singapore Grand Prix

Vettel to win at 10/11
Button to podium at 6/5

Engage Superleague Play-Offs

Wigan to beat Catalans at 2/9

RWC Comes to Life and More

2011-09-17T12:07:00.000+01:00

The rugby world cup really came to life this morning with Ireland's epic win over the Australians and below I make some more RWC predictions as well as some from the sports of football, cricket, motorcycling and rugby league.

Last week was one of the most successful of the year with seven from ten correct predictions resulting in a £5.50 profit and reducing overall losses down to £5. For me the stand out performance of the week had to be Novak Djokovic's triumph in the US Open tennis and there should be no doubt he is the sportsman of 2011 now with his record for the season.

Starting with rugby union most of the next few games in the world cup are between the sports big guns against the second tier nations but there are a couple of games that should be tight. Wales should be too strong for Samoa tomorrow but it would not be the first time that the men in red lost to the Pacific Island nation in a world cup. However, I am predicting a win for the Welsh in what will be a bruising encounter. My second prediction for the week is for Tonga to get a win under their belt after two defeats by beating Japan.

The Manchester clubs in the Barclays Premier League have swept all before them in the first month of the season and if honest I don't see that changing again this weekend even though both are coming off the back of Champions League draws in the week. My forecasts for this weekend's games are Aston Villa to defeat Newcastle and Bolton to do the same to Norwich. Yet again a number of the league's big names are playing tomorrow with Spurs hosting Liverpoool in what I think will be a draw and league leaders Manchester United hosting Chelsea. Normally this latter match is one of the games of the season and still could be this year but I think the Manchester derbies may actually have something more than local pride riding on them this season. Like Fernando Torres I think the Chelsea team are looking old and therefore I'm predicting Alex Ferguson's latest team incarnation to triumph at Old Trafford, albeit more narrowly than when they defeated Arsenal a few weeks back.

Today sees the final of domestic cricket's CB40 competition between Somerset and Surrey, in this match I'm predicting a win for the men from the West Country.

Meanwhile the Moto GP season is moving slowly towards a conclusion and whilst I wouldn't bet against Casey Stoner taking his second championship for this weekend in Aragon I'm predicting his teammate Dani Pedrosa to take the win and compatriot Jorge Lorenzo to make the podium.

The final prediction this weekend is in the other form of rugby where the Superleague play-offs are well underway. This weekend's big match sees Wigan host St. Helens and my forecast is for a home win in this match.

To summarise the predictions for this weekend are:

Rugby World Cup

Wales to beat Samoa at 2/5
Tonga to defeat Japan at 18/35

Barclays Premier League Football

Aston Villa to defeat Newcastle at Evens
Bolton to win against Norwich at Evens
Spurs and Liverpool to draw at 12/5
Manchester United to defeat Chelsea at 10/11

CB40 Cricket

Somerset to triumph over Surrey at 63/100

Moto GP from Aragon

Pedrosa to win at 2/1
Lorenzo to podium at 1/3

Engage Superleague Play-Offs

Wigan to beat St. Helens at 2/5

Rugby World Cup has Started!

2011-09-10T12:28:00.000+01:00

Very quick today as off for first rugby match of season. Last time out was a loss of £2 with a 50% forecast success!

This week includes football, rugby union tennis and Formula 1.

Premier League Football

Everton to draw with Aston Villa at 12/5
Sunderland to draw with Chelsea at 56/19
Spurs to win at Wolves at 31/18
Manchester United to win at Bolton at 4/9

US Open Tennis

Djokovic to win Men's Title at 7/5
Serena Williams to Women's at 49/100

Italian Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 3/1
Vettel to podium at 2/5

Rugby World Cup

South Africa to beat Wales at 2/11
Canada to beat Tonga at 2/1

Saved by the Premier League!

2011-08-20T12:32:00.000+01:00

A small profit of £1 last week due to the draws I predicted in the Premier League, which was a common feature of the league last week! This resulted in overall losses on the blog reducing to £8.50.

Like last week there is a mixture of sports from around the world and a total of 12 predictions. I'll start with cricket where I'm going for the new world number one team to complete a series whitewash against India.

The friendly rugby matches in advance of the world cup continue this weekend and my forecasts are for Wales to beat Argentina at the Millennium stadium, France to triumph against Ireland and Scotland to beat the Italians.

Cycling's last grand tour of the year the Vuelta a Espana kicks off today with the team trial and I'm going for the soon to be defunct team of HTC-Highroad led my Cavendish to win this stage. Novak Djokovic has been this year's leading tennis player if not across all sports having lost only once and I'm predicting this run to continue in Cincinnati.

In the Engage Superleague as they play-offs draw ever closer it looks like being a successful weekend for the away teams and as such I'm forecasting Warrington to win at the Catalans and Hull FC to triumph at the Crusaders.

The final set of predictions are in the Premier League where after many draws last weekend I see the same being true again this weekend as I predict Arsenal and Liverpool to end in stalemate at the Emirates, last weekend's two big winners Bolton and Manchester City to draw in the North West and Manchester United to be held by Tottenham in the latter team's first league game of the season. Where I differ is in my forecast of Stoke to win at Norwich as the team from the Potteries have been quietly building a team that should be challenging for Europe again this season.

There may not be a blog for the next couple of weeks due to weddings and some holiday but watch this space anyway!

In summary this week's predictions are:

Test Cricket

England to beat India at the Oval at 15/8

Rugby Union

Wales to defeat Argentina at 2/7
France to win in Ireland at 5/3
Scotland to beat Italy at 1/3

Tour of Spain Stage 1

HTC Highroad to win team time trial at 5/4

Cincinnati Tennis

Djokovic to win tournament at 13/20

Engage Superleague

Warrington to win at the Catalans at 2/5
Hull FC to beat the Crusaders at 2/7

Barclays Premier League Football

Arsenal to draw with Liverpool at 9/4
Stoke to win at Norwich at 19/10
Bolton to draw with Manchester City at 13/5
Manchester United to draw with Tottenham at 3/1

Football's Back

2011-08-13T12:15:00.000+01:00

As England's cricket team look to confirm themselves as the Number One team in Tests the domestic football season starts in earnest again today as the Premier League kicks off. To me it almost feels that the season starts to early, lets not forget they have been playing in Scotland and European matches for a month or more now!

What of course this does do is provide plenty of options for me when it comes to making predictions so won't complain at that. There were no predictions last week but from the previous week I had a 60% success rate leading to a profit of £1 for the week and taking losses down to £9.50. This week with so much sport on around the world I will be making 12 predictions.

My first prediction this week is for the cricket where I expect the England bowlers to wrap up a win by the close of play today and become the World Number 1.

The final Golf major of the year will complete in Atlanta tomorrow and is highly likely to produce another first time major winner. To win the USPGA Championship I'm predicting Aussie Adam Scott to continue hs form from last week and England's Lee Westwood to finish in the Top 3.

The final Tennis major of the year will start in New York in a couple of weeks but in the meantime the best male players have been in Montreal with only one of them looking to have retained their form from the early part of the season - Novak Djokovic who I'm predicting to win the Rogers Cup.

In less than a month the Rugby World Cup will kick-off in New Zealand and today sees more warm-up games for the Northern Hemisphere sides and I'm predicting England to beat Wales in Cardiff and France to defeat Ireland.

The other form of Rugby (League) has continued through the summer and today's Superleague prediction is for Bradford to beat Hull KR.

In Brno in the Czech Republic the Moto GP season continues and whilst it would be great to see a competitive Ducati bike and Valentino with a chance of challenging for a win, realistically this isn't going to happen so I'm predicting his former team-mate Lorenzo to win and Dani Pedrosa to make the podium.

Finally, on to the football and the Premier League kick-off this weekend. Over the course of the season I can't see past Manchester United retaining their title but the race for Champions League places should be fascinating. For this week though I'm predicting draws between Liverpool & Sunderland and Fulham & Aston Villa as well as a win for Manchester United at West Brom.

In summary the predictions are:

Test Cricket

England to defeat India in Edgbaston Test at 1/20

USPGA Golf

Scott to win at 9/1
Westwood to make Top 3 at 5/2

Montreal Master's Tennis

Djokovic to win at 2/5

Rugby Union Internationals

England to defeat Wales at 4/7
France to beat Ireland at 2/9

Engage Superleague

Bradford to defeat Hull KR at 5/8

Moto GP in Brno

Lorenzo to win at 3/1
Pedrosa to podium at 1/5

Premier League Football

Liverpool to draw with Sunderland at 10/3
Fulham to draw with Aston Villa at 5/2
Manchester United to win at West Brom at 4/7

Form is Temporary!!

2011-07-30T14:27:00.000+01:00

After a rather long losing streak it was good to get back to winning ways last week with seven from ten correct predictions and two of the three Aussies I predicted to do well delivering! This has reduced losses down to £10.50 and with only five predictions this week I'm hopeful to reduce this further next week!

The three sports subject to my predictions are Formula 1 from Hungary, Rugby League's Superleague and Test cricket.

In the Formula 1 I'm predicting Lewis Hamilton to carry his form from last week into another win in Hungary and for Sebastian Vettel to get back on the podium after his non-visit for the first time this season in Germany.

After England's enthralling win in the first test versus India last week, I'm predicting a repeat at Trentbridge mainly based on the fact that the Indians will have to bat last on the wicket.

The final set of predictions is in the Engage Superleague where Wigan carried on their winning streak last night and are looking favourites for the title again this season. This week I'm predicting an away win for St. Helens at Castleford and home win for Wakefield who host the soon to be non-Super League side, the Crusaders.

In summary the predictions for the week are:

Hungarian Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 2/1
Vettel to podium at 3/16

Test Cricket

England to beat India at Trentbridge at 2/9

Engage Superleague

St. Helens to win at Castleford at 2/9
Wakefield to defeat the Crusaders at 2/5

Aussies to the Forefront?

2011-07-23T13:11:00.000+01:00

After another poor showing from my predictions last weekend I'm relying on some help from some Aussies and their wheels this weekend! Last week's predictions were some of the worst ever since this blog started with only two correct, both from the sport of Rugby League, but having said that my highlight was the great performance from Darren Clarke in winning the Open at Sandwich and keeping up Northern Ireland's run of winning majors in the last year and a bit.

As highlighted above in order to get back on track I'm selecting three Aussies, two using two wheels and one on four wheels this weekend. I'll start with the Tour de France which reaches it's climax in little over 24 hours time with the final time trial in Grenoble today and then the final stage finishing on Paris' Elyssian Fields tomorrow.

This year's tour has had everything so far and with the final two stages to go the podium is yet to be sorted, as are the Green and White Jerseys. Cadel Evans and Andy Schleck have been in and around the top of the race since it started three weeks ago and it looks like one of them will triumph in Paris tomorrow but what would be a delight to see is if they can be joined on the podium by the French sensation Thomas Voeckler who has been a distinguished leader of the tour for much of the last two weeks. My prediction though is for Evans to become the first Australian to win the Tour de France because of his superior time-trialling ability.

Before I move on there is also a prediction for the final stage tomorrow which unless there is only a couple of seconds between the overall contenders will come down to the sprinters, and of course there is only one realistic prediction, the current leader of the points jersey, the winner in Paris for the last two years and the first rider in 99 Tours de France to have won at least four stages in four consecutive races - Manxman Mark Cavendish. He may not be to everyone's taste - probably because he's a Brit who knows not just how to win, but how to do it continually and in the biggest events. In cycling they don't come any bigger than Le Tour and Cavendish's name is already up there with the greats of this fantastic race, even though he will never win the overall event. I will be shouting Go Cav at the screen tomorrow afternoon and hopefully so will every other Brit who loves their sport and British winners!

Back to the Aussies again now, as the GP circus moves to Germany where for a quarter of the drivers this year this will be their home GP, not least current World Champion, Sebastian Vettel who I am growing to like week by week for both his in and out of car persona. However, whilst he would dearly like to win his home race for the first time, has finished in the top two of every race this year, in my twisted mind and logic I'm not adding him to my predictions but going for his Aussie teammate Mark Webber to win and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso to make the podium.

Whilst on the Motorsport theme and Aussies the Moto GP season is at the mid-way point of the season and the last four races have produced four different winners with undoubtedly the greatest rider on the grid not in the mix on his uncompetitive Ducati. Aussie Casey Stoner leads the Championship going to Laguna Seca in the US and it's amazing corkscrew turn come hill! I'm prediction Stoner to win but on his "home" circuit, Ben Spies to make the podium.

Unbelievably, the football season kicks off in Scotland today - I checked the diary and it still is July for another week or more, and so whilst I may disagree with such an early start I will make a prediction and that is for current Premier League Champions, Rangers, under new manager Ally McCoist to win at home against Hearts.

At this time of year we expect the sound of leather on willow to be the main sound of sport in the UK and this week the first Test Match between England and India started at Lords. After Kevin Pietersen's fine performance with the bat and with England having the chance to become the number one rated country in the world if they can win this series by two tests I'm going for an England win.

Final predictions this weekend are back to where I've had some successes recently and that is the sport of Rugby League which features the quarter-finals of the Challenge Cup this weekend. I'm backing Wigan to win at Warrington in what is undoubtedly the big game of the weekend and St. Helens to triumph over Hull KR.

In summary, come on the Aussies:

Tour de France

Evans to win Le Tour at 11/17
Cavendish to win final stage at 6/11

German GP

Webber to win at 6/1
Alonso to podium at 12/25

Moto GP at Laguna Seca

Stoner to win at 5/2
Speies to podium at 15/8

Scottish Football

Rangers to defeat Hearts at 4/9

Test Cricket

England to beat India at Lords at 39/10

Challenge Cup Rugby League

Wigan to win at Warrington at 25/19
St. Helens to defeat Hull KR at 1/5

Close But No Cigar

2011-07-16T13:21:00.000+01:00

Some close predictions last week but ultimately they were wrong leaving only three correct forecasts and a loss of £5.50 taking accumulated losses to £10!

The big sporting highlight of this weekend is the Open Golf at Sandwich where I'm forecasting a win for the USPGA Champion Martin Kaymer and a top 4 finish for US Open winner Rory McIlroy.

In cycling the Tour de France continues in earnest and has reached the mountains with perhaps the big surprise being that Contador looks human and beatable. For today's stage 14 I'm predicting a win for Cunego and a top 3 finish for Cadel Evans who may just be assuming the mantle of favourite for this year's tour.

In Germany we have the Moto GP where I'm predicting a win for Honda's Championship leader Casey Stoner and a first podium finish for Simoncelli - not the first time I've made that prediction!

Superleague continues as well this weekend and my predictions are away wins for Castleford at the Crusaders and Huddersfield at Bradford, whilst a home win for Hull KR who host Salford.

My final forecast for this weekend relates to the women's football world cup from Germany where I'm going for a USA triumph over Japan.

In summary this weeks predictions are:

Open Golf

Kaymer to win at 13/2
McIlroy to finish in Top 4 at 12/5

Tour de France Stage 14

Cunego to win at 37/1
Evans to finish Top 3 at 5/2

German Moto GP

Stoner to win at 11/4
Simoncelli to podium at 4/5

Engage Superleague

Castleford to win at Crusaders at 7/11
Huddersfield to win at Bradford at 6/17
Hull KR to defeat Salford at 3/11

Women's Football World Cup Final

USA to beat Japan at 11/10

British GP Weekend

2011-07-09T13:05:00.000+01:00

The undoubted highlight of this weekend is the British GP which as usual has more than a whiff of controversy surrounding it, with disagreements on the use of blown diffusers.

Hopefully, my predictions will be better than last week's effort with only three correct forecasts led by Novak Djokovic's success at Wimbledon. This resulted in a loss of £4.50 on the week which also equates to the overall losses on the blog.

This will be the first GP at Silverstone since re-development began and so this is going to be a fairly new experience for all of the teams and drivers. Whilst I'd love to see a British team and driver win, realistically I can't see past the Red Bulls but I don't think Vettel's consistency and reliability will last for a ninth race so I'm going for his Aussie teammate Mark Webber to win with Lewis Hamilton to make the podium.

Meanwhile the Tour de France continues and it has been a mixed week for the Brits with Wiggins having to withdraw following his crash yesterday but Cavendish having won two stages in week one taking his overall tally of stage victories to 17 placing him in the Top 10 of all time - not bad in only his fourth tour! For today's eighth stage it looks like it is going to favour the strongmen and I'm predicting Gilbert to repeat his victory from last Saturday and Sanchez to make the top 3.

It is the last of the one day series cricket between England and Sri Lanka and all to play for so I'm going for a narrow England win. The women's World Football Cup has reached the quarter final stage in Germany and my predictions for today's games are England to defeat France with Germany beating Japan.

My final predictions are in the Engage Superleague where I'm forecasting Wigan to win at Harlequins, Catalans to beat Leeds in France and for Bradford to triumph at Castleford.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

British GP

Webber to win at 7/1
Hamilton to podium at Evens

Tour de France Stage 8

Gilbert to win at 8/1
Sanchez to make top 3 at 6/1

ODI Cricket

England to beat Sri Lanka in Game 5 at 8/11

Women's Football World Cup

England to beat France at 11/5
Germany to defeat Japan at 6/19

Engage Superleague

Wigan to win at Harlequins at 1/10
Catalans to beat Leeds at 4/7
Bradford to defeat Castleford at 9/11

Wimbledon Finals, Tour de France and More...

2011-07-02T13:00:00.000+01:00

Last week saw some hope from British tennis with Andy Murray through to the second week of Wimbledon and some better performances from the women but yet again there will be no British representation in the senior finals though Liam Broady from Stockport has made the Boys final.

My own set of predictions failed to set the world alight as well with five from ten and a loss of £2.50 on the week taking profits for the blog back to zero.

This weekend has a whole host of sporting action including the Wimbledon finals, Haye vs Klitschsko to unify most of the World Heavyweight boxing titles, ODI cricket, Moto GP from Italy, Superleague rugby and of course not forgetting the most gruelling sporting event on the calendar as the Tour de France begins it's three week journey.

In the Wimbledon finals I'm prediction Sharapova to win the ladies title, seven years after her last success in South West London and for Novak Djokovic to win his first Wimbledon crown.

One day cricket has moved to Lords for Sunday's match between England and Sri Lanka and my forecast is for a home win. In the much anticipated Boxing showdown I'm sticking with the patriotic theme and going for a Haye win in a match that is unlikely to match all of the build up hype.

Last week's MotoGP saw a new winner on the podium with Ben Spies taking the race but this week I'm predicting Casey Stoner to return to winning ways and for Marco Sioncelli to make his long awaited breakthrough on to the podium in his home race.

The Engage Superleague has been carrying on through the British summer and this weeks predictions are for the Dragons to win at Bradford and Hull KR to defeat Wakefield.

My final set of predictions this week are for the Tour de France which for a change this year has started in France and without a prologue time trial but a proper road stage. In other changes the points scoring systems for both the Green and Polka Dot Jerseys has changed this year in an effort to boost the chances of out and out sprinters for Green and the best climbers for the Polka Dot. Brits will should be challenging for two jerseys as Mark Cavendish has a team built to support him for Green as he looks to add to his fifteen previous stage wins whilst fresh from his recent success in the Dauphine Librere Bradley Wiggins is chasing at least a podium finish in Paris if not the ultimate prize of the Yellow Jersey. Realistically, this may be beyond him if Contador's form from the Giro d'Italia continues but in a three week race anything can happen.

Today's stage is not entirely suited to the sprinters so I'm predicting a win for Wiggins' Sky teammate Boasson Hagen and a top three finish for sprinter Pettachi who will probably better handle the climb at the end than most of his other Green Jersey rivals.

In summary the predictions are:

Wimbledon Tennis

Sharapova to win the Ladies Title at 8/13
Djokovioc to win the Mens at 13/9

ODI Cricket

England to win at Lords tomorrow at 4/5

Heavyweight Boxing

Haye to win at 7/4

Moto GP from Mugello

Stoner to win at 13/8
Simoncelli to podium at 81/100

Engage Superleague

Dragons to win at Bradford at 7/10
Hull KR to defeat Wakefield at 1/7

Tour de France Stage 1

Boasson Hagen to win at 16/1
Pettachi to make top 3 at 21/4

Motorsports and More...

2011-06-25T12:34:00.000+01:00

Back to profit last week with four out of six correct predictions led by McIlroy's win and Westwood's third place finish at the US Open golf.

These results mean that the blog has moved back into positive territory with a £2.50 profit!

This week I'm back to 10 predictions led by the F1 GP in Valencia and the Moto GP in Assen. Other sports this week include Wimbledon women's tennis, International T20 cricket and Superleague Rugby League.

The Moto GP circus has moved to Assen in The Netherlands this weekend and Simoncelli has bagged pole and I'm backing him for a podium position with run away leader Casey Stoner to win the race. F1 is back in Spain for the second time this season and whilst I don't expect as exciting or long a race as we had in Montreal it should be close. Lewis Hamilton hasn't had his greatest two races lately but he is my prediction to win with Mark Webber's Red Bull to make the podium.

After completing a Test series win against Sri Lanka, England have a one-off T20 match against them today being led by Stuart Broad for the first time and I'm predicting a home win.

Wimbledon is close to it's half-way stage and predictably only Andy Murray from the Brits will feature in the second week of the tournament. My predictions today are both from the women's singles third round matches with defending champion Serena Williams to beat Kirilenko and current world number one and top seed Wozniacki to Gajdosova.

My final set of predictions this weekend are in the Engage Superleague and for Harlequins to continue their upturn in fortunes last weekend by beating Hull KR, Wigan who are putting up a robust defence of their title to defeat Huddersfield and the Catalan Dragons to beat Castleford.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Assen Moto GP

Stoner to win at 5/4
Simoncelli to podium at 4/11

European F1 GP in Valencia

Hamilton to win at 17/4
Webber to podium at 6/4

T20 Cricket

England to beat Sri Lanka at 8/11

Wimbledon Tennis

Williams to beat Kirilenko at 2/9
Wozniacki to beat Gajdosova at 3/14

Engage Superleague Rugby

Harlequins to beat Hull KR at 13/8
Wigan to beat Huddersfield at 6/19
Catalan Dragons to beat Castleford at 3/10

Bits and Pieces

2011-06-18T13:29:00.000+01:00

Apologies for no posts for a couple of weeks due to other commitments but I have a few predictions for this week.

My last set of predictions has resulted me ending up with a small loss on the blog as the current balance is down to -50p as there was only 5 correct forecasts last time out!

The main sporting highlight of this weekend is the US Open which is currently being dominated by Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy and he is my prediction to hold his nerve and go on to win the tournament tomorrow. Lee Westwood improved in the second round and I'm forecasting this improvement to continue and for him to make the top 4.

Rugby League's Engage Superleague continues over the weekend and my two predictions for this are Harlequins to end their losing streak and beat Wakefield at The Stoop and then I'm going for another home win with Huddersfield to beat the Catalan Dragons.

England are half way through their final test match against Sri Lanka at the Rose Bowl and I'm predicting a home win, which may be slightly unwise considering the recent weather! The final prediction is from the world of Superbikes and I'm forecasting current championship leader Carlos Checa to win race 1 in Spain thereby keeping up his recent winning streak.

In summary the predictions for this week are:

US Open Golf

McIlroy to win at 41/100
Westwood to finish top 4 at 10/3

Engage Superleague Rugby League

Harlequins to beat Wakefield at 9/11
Huddersfield to beat Catalan Dragons at 4/9

Test Match Cricket

England to beat Sri Lanka at the Rose Bowl at 11/8

Superbikes in Spain

Checa to win race 1 at 4/5

European Cup Final 2

2011-05-28T13:22:00.000+01:00

Last weekend saw Rugby's European Cup Final and it was the ultimate game of two halves with Northampton dominating the first half and then being completely outclassed by Leinster in the second half. That was therefore one of five predictions I got wrong resulting in a loss of £2 on the week and taking the profits and loss of the blog predictions to £0!!

There are numerous highlights of this sporting weekend, for some it will be the Champions League final at Wembley, for others it will be a motorsport event whether in the glamorous surroundings of Monaco or the Indianapolis 500 at the Brickyard, then there is the final of the Aviva Premierships and Magners Leagues whilst not forgetting the football league playoffs! Meanwhile the French Open tennis is at it's midpoint and the Giro d'Italia reaches it's climax in Milan with Alberto Contador looking almost certain to be crowned champion as he potentially seeks to become the first rider to win all three Grand tours in one year, subject to not receiving the drug ban that his been hanging over him since last year's Tour de France.

I'll start the predictions with football and the Champions League final which has all the ingredients to be a superb match as the undoubted best footballing team Barcelona take on the Managerial nous of Sir Alex Ferguson in a repeat of the 2009 final. Whilst my head says Barcelona I'm going to predict a Manchester United win mainly because the match is taking place in England. My second football prediction is the Championship play-off final on Monday between Reading and Swansea, perhaps the richest game of football in the world because of the payments a team will gain from being in the Premier League. My prediction here is for a tight game but for the Welsh team to become the first from the Principality to play in the Premier League.

The British club rugby season reaches it's climax with the Aviva Premiership final at Twickenham where Leicester there for the seventh consecutive season take on Saracens in a repeat of last year's final. My prediction is for Saracens to reverse last year's result in what should be a close match. Meanwhile the Irish teams of Leinster and Munster meet in the Magners league final and if Leinster can motivate themselves after their Heineken Cup success last year I can't see them being beaten.

Two of the highlights of any motorsport season are the Monaco Grand Prix and the Indy 500 and both take place on Sunday. Whilst Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel in particular has dominated the season so far the nature of the Monaco circuit will help the other teams to close the gap and as such I'm predicting a Hamilton win and an Alonso podium. On the other side of the Atlantic the Indy 500 takes place at the famous Brickyard over the memorial weekend and my prediction is for a Scott Dixon win and last year's winner Dario Franchitti to make the podium.

Finally, Rugby League's Superleague continues and my predictions are for two home wins, Bradford to beat Salford and Wigan who host Hull KR.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Champions League Football Final

Manchester United to beat Barcelona at 3/1

Championship Play-Off Final

Swansea to beat Reading at 17/10

Aviva Premiership Final

Saracens to beat Leicester at 13/8

Magners League Final

Leinster to beat Munster at 8/11

Monaco Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 9/2
Alonso to podium at 4/6

Indy 500

Dixon to win at 4/1
Franchitti to Podium at 29/100

Rugby League Superleague

Bradford to beat Salford at 4/11
Wigan to beat Hull KR at 1/7

European Cup Final 1

2011-05-21T13:06:00.000+01:00

This weekend sees the climax of the Premier League football season and the Heineken Cup final in Rugby Union as well as golf's World Matchplay, a continuation of Rugby League's Challenge Cup not forgetting that the F1 Grand Prix circus is now firmly encamped in Europe at Barcelona.

Last weekend saw a better number of predictions with six correct but still resulted in a £1 loss for the weekend taking profits on the blog down to just £2. Yet again it was the unpredictability of the Premier League which was my downfall and if honest I don't hold out much hope for this weekend as five teams battle to avoid the remaining two relegation places with those teams points, goal difference and goals scored being evenly matched!

My first prediction of the week is for my own sport of Rugby Union as the Heineken Cup Final takes place this afternoon between Leinster and Northampton. The Irish team are justifiably favourites when you look at both their form and the world class international backs that they have in the team including perhaps the best player of the Millennium so far in Brian O'Driscoll. However, Northampton who were perhaps unlucky to lose their Aviva Premiership semi-final last weekend at Leicester, particularly as they should have only been playing 14 men for the majority of the game, have come together as a team this season and have some classy match winners of their own, not least the England pairing of Ashton and Foden. Therefore my prediction is for the East Midlanders to win a tight game.

Manchester may have had a successful weekend for both it's football clubs last weekend as United won the Premier League and their City neighbours won the FA Cup, but this weekend all eyes are on the relegation battle which is closer than I can ever remember. West Ham will be playing Championship football next season after throwing away a winning position at fellow strugglers Wigan last week and this week there are five clubs who battling to avoid being the two clubs to join them.

Blackpool undoubtedly have the toughest task as they travel to League champions Manchester United and I'm predicting the home side to win almost certainly condemning the Tangerines to relegation after just one entertaining season in the top flight. Wigan travel to Stoke in a game that I think may be a draw which may be just enough to stay up as I think Birmingham who have been in freefall for the last couple of months travel to Tottenham who will want to seal fifth place and European football next season. Finally, Wolves and Blackburn meet at Molineux and with both teams having beaten the 40 point mark would have hoped to have been safe before this weekend but depending on other results one of them can go down. My prediction is for Wolves to win but I think Blackburn may just survive though I wouldn't be disappointed if they did get relegated following what appears to have been an unwarranted sacking of their manager Sam Allardyce halve way through the season.

All I do know is that it will be an extraordinary couple of hours of football tomorrow afternoon and there will be many very nervous supporters in Lancashire and the West Midlands!

Golf's World Matchplay has been underway for a couple of days and is also looking difficult to predict but my forecast for this is for Englishman Luke Donald to triumph.

The Challenge Cup in Rugby League continues this weekend and the top teams are now meeting each other. My two predictions are for away wins with Castleford at Wakefield and Wigan at Bradford.

Finally, the qulaifying for the Spanish Grand Prix is about to get underway in Barcelona it is difficult to see past a Red Bull win. Whilst Vettel has been imperious through the season so far, his teammate Webber has been improving and I think it may be Vettel's turn for some bad luck this weekend so I'm predicting the Australian to win with Hamilton to get his McLaren into the top three.

My summary of predictions is therefore as follows:

Heineken Cup Rugby

Northampton to beat Leinster at 14/5

Barclays Premier League

Manchester United to beat Blackpool at 4/7
Stoke to draw with Wigan at 13/5
Spurs to beat Birmingham at 4/7
Wolves to beat Blackburn at 6/5

World Matchplay Golf

Luke Donald to win at 9/2

Rugby League Challenge Cup

Castleford to beat Wakefield at 11/17
Wigan to beat Bradford at 1/10

Spanish F1 Grand Prix

Webber to win at 7/2
Hamilton to podium at 18/19

FA Cup Final & Premier League Champions?

2011-05-14T11:05:00.000+01:00

In what has been another tragic week for sport with the death of Wouter Weylandt on Monday's stage of the Giro d'Italia, today could be a big day for Manchester's football clubs with the red half only requiring a draw at Blackburn to become Premier League Champions and the blue half having sealed Champions League football for next season looking to win the FA Cup for the first time in more than 40 years at Wembley.

Last week's predictions were probably the worst ever with only two from ten correct showing just how difficult it is to predict results in the world of sport! This meant a loss of £6.50 on the week and takes overall profits down to just £3 having been more than 10 times that amount a few weeks ago.

I will start with football today and the FA Cup which due to the Champions League final in a couple of weeks is taking place at Wembley before the end of the Premier League season and as such has lost some of it's charm once again. The final is between the moneybags of Manchester City and Stoke with the former being clear favourites. Even though I'd like to see Stoke win my prediction is for the Manchester team to triumph.

Following their defeat of Chelsea last weekend, Manchester United only need a point from their last two games of the season to wrap up a record breaking 19th League title and I think they will do that today by winning their lunchtime kick-off at Blackburn. Wolves who are one of six clubs in the relegation battle travel to Sunderland who have found some form again of late and I'm predicting a home win as I am for Liverpool who take on Tottenham tomorrow and by winning will seal fifth place and the Europa Cup spot for next season and leaving Spurs with a "what might have been" season!

In the Aviva Premiership the season has reached the play-off stage and I'm going for home wins for Leicester who play Northampton and Saracens who host Gloucester which will create a repeat of last year's final in two weeks.

Rugby League's Superleague continues in earnest and again I'm going for home wins for Huddersfield who entertain St Helens and Hull KR hosting Bradford.

Probably the undoubted sportsman of the year so far has been Novak Djokovic who has not lost a game of tennis in 2011 and last week ended Rafa Nadal's unbeaten run on clay. Djokovic faces Britain's Andy Murray in the semi-final of the Rome Masters and I'm not predicting the Scotsman to break the run.

My final prediction also takes place in Italy and is for today's eighth stage of the Giro d'Italia which should feature the sprinters. As such I'm predicting Mark Cavendish to win his first stage of this year's tour.

In summary the predictions are:

FA Cup Final

Manchester City to beat Stoke at Evens

Barclays Premier League

Manchester United to win at Blackburn at 13/16
Sunderland to beat Wolves at 17/9
Liverpool to beat Spurs at 4/5

Aviva Premiership Play-Offs

Leicester to beat Northampton at 6/13
Saracens to beat Gloucester at 10/29

Rugby League Superleague

Huddersfield to beat St. Helens at 7/12
Hull KR to beat Bradford at 6/17

Rome Masters Tennis

Djokovic to beat Murray at 1/6

Giro d'Italia (Stage 8)

Cavendish to win at 4/1

Premier League Could be Decided!

2011-05-07T12:57:00.000+01:00

I was saddened this morning to wake to the news of the death of Seve Ballesteros who was a great champion and the man who begun the renaissance of European golf. This follows the news of the passing of Sir Henry Cooper last weekend another who was a superb ambassador for his sport. Both men will be remembered for the courage and skill they showed both in and away from their respective sports.

A couple of weeks ago my predictions were short of the mark with only four correct forecasts resulting in a £3.50 loss and taking overall profits down to just £9.50 for the duration of the blog!

This week sees the Barclays Premier League reach if not it's climax but certainly what could be the defining weekend as the top 2 teams meet at Old Trafford. If Manchester United defeat Chelsea, as I'm predicting, they will almost certainly will the League for a record 19th time and they can concentrate on their Champions League final against Barcelona. Should they lose however, and the momentum and the race for the title will be with the West Londoners and the final couple of games will be eagerly watched by the neutral.

Of course there is still plenty to play for in the league for many teams with the relegation and European places yet to be sorted out. My second prediction features the blue half of Manchester who travel to Everton where a win could be enough to guarantee them a Champions League place for next season but I'm predicting a draw in this fixture. West Ham and Blackburn are both fighting relegation with the Lancashire side in a better position to avoid the drop but in their match today I'm predicting the Hammers to triumph. Blackpool who have entertained throughout the season travel to the team they last beat in the league, Spurs, who have only won once in their last eleven games in all competitions. This match is critical for both teams as Blackpool have a very real fear of being relegated and Spurs may not even make fifth this season and may therefore miss out on European football altogether next year. As both teams prefer attack to defence this should be an open game with a few goals and I'm predicting a narrow win for the North Londoners.

My final prediction features two of the teams who in the first half of the season looked like they would both end up in the top 10 of the league but have not performed so well since the turn of the year and with neither having much to play for than prize money based on final league position I'm predicting a draw at Bolton who host Sunderland.

The Aviva Premiership play-off places are almost certainly sorted though Bath could sneak in. The one issue that hasn't been sorted is relegation which is between Leeds and Newcastle and with both teams likely to lose today it will probably be the Yorkshire team who take the drop. My predictions for this week are Wasps to end a disappointing season with a win at Exeter who have been the surprise package of the year, and Harlequins to win the London derby with Saracens at The Stoop.

In Rugby League it is Challenge Cup weekend with most of the big boys avoiding each other and so my only prediction is for the Leeds Rhinos to defeat the Crusaders.

My final set of predictions are concerning the Turkish Grand Prix which is moving into final qualifying as I write this. My first hope is that the race is as exciting as the last one in China three weeks ago and my predictions are for Hamilton to follow up with another win and for Nico Rosberg's Mercedes to make the podium. This sport is becoming almost impossible to predict with the new regulations and that just makes it even more fascinating - certainly no bad thing!

In summary the predictions are:

Barclays Premier League

Bolton to draw with Sunderland at 11/4
Everton to draw with Manchester City at 23/10
West Ham to beat Blackburn at 13/12
Spurs to beat Blackpool at 10/29
Manchester United to beat Chelsea at 7/5

Aviva Premiership

Harlequins to beat Saracens at 13/10
Wasps to win at Exeter at 15/8

Challenge Cup Rugby League

Rhinos to defeat the Crusaders at 1/7

Turkish Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 21/5
Rosberg to podium at 7/2

A Domestic Easter

2011-04-23T12:39:00.000+01:00

As I will be at home over the Easter weekend with family my choices of predictions are all staying close to home with Premier League football, Aviva Premiership football and the second round of Rugby League's Superleague games over the weekend.

Last week again resulted in a £3 loss from 5 correct predictions taking overall profits down to £13 and continuing a losing run that started 3 months ago! Having said that I think many pundits have suffered similar fates as there has been a lot of unpredictability in English football and both rugby codes this season.

This week I'll start with the Barclay's Premier League football where none of the top teams have stood out for more than a few weeks at a time and has left Manchester United with the league to lose this season. They are my first prediction of the weekend and I'm forecasting they will beat Everton at Old Trafford. Second place Chelsea host West Ham who are fighting to avoid relegation and in this game I'm going for a draw. Arsenal travel to Bolton to try and get their title chase back on track and I think the Lancashire side will still be suffering from the hangover of their Wembley loss last weekend and so I'm predicting a win for Arsenal. Manchester City travel the short distance to Blackburn where I'm predicting a draw and finally the last of the teams chasing Champions League football next season are Spurs who host a rejuvenated West Brom following the arrival of Roy Hodgson as manager but I'm going for a win by the North Londoners.

The Aviva Premiership rugby has like it's football equivalent had no stand out team or teams this season, and it's unpredictability has been demonstrated by the 41 - 41 draw between Leicester and Gloucester last week as well as the mini resurgence by Leeds who looked all but relegated a few weeks ago. The most intriguing match of the weekend is between London Irish and Northampton and my prediction is for an away win. Wasps host Bath in what should be a close match and I'm going for an away win here. Finally, Harlequins still chasing a play-off spot travel to Leeds and in what should be another tight game I'm predicting the Londoners to triumph.

The Engage Superleague has already had a full round of fixtures this weekend and there will be more on Monday and Tuesday. The Catalans have been the most consistent team of the last few weeks and I'm predicting them to beat Bradford on Monday as I am Warrington who host Hull FC.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Barclays Premier League Football

Manchester United to defeat Everton at 6/11
Chelsea to draw with West Ham at 31/5
Arsenal to win at Bolton at 4/5
Manchester City to draw at Blackburn at 12/5
Spurs to beat West Brom at 3/5

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Northampton to win at London Irish at Evens
Wasps to beat Bath at 6/4
Harlequins to defeat Leeds at 4/7

Engage Superleague

Catalans to beat Bradford at 4/1
Warrington to defeat Hull FC at 1/6

FA Cup Semi Finals & Much More

2011-04-16T11:39:00.000+01:00

Grand National weekend was another disappointing one for my predictions with only three correct forecasts resulting in a £5 loss and taking overall profits down to £16!

This week sees a wide variety of sporting treats for the predictions with the Manchester derby for a place in the FA Cup final the main highlight.

The predictions will have to be kept brief today as off to play in a Rugby Cup final this afternoon.

FA Cup

Manchester United to beat Manchester City at 22/19
Bolton to beat Stoke at 20/13

Chinese Grand Prix

Button to win at 26/5
Hamilton to podium at 8/15

Monte Carlo Masters Tennis

Ferrer to beat Melzer at 4/9
Nadal to beat Murray at 1/10

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Leicester to beat Gloucester at 1/5
Wasps to beat Leeds at 1/3
Saracens to win at Exeter at 1/2

Rugby League Superleague

Bradford to win at Salford at 13/19

Summer's Here with a Fantastic Weekend of Sport

2011-04-09T12:09:00.000+01:00

After another disappointing set of predictions last week, mainly down to the complete unpredictability of the Barclays Premier League this season, a loss of £4.50 on the week was made taking overall profits down to £21.

This weekend the weather in the UK is very pleasant and with the Masters golf having started in Augusta it must mean that the summer is here!

As well as the golf there is the Grand National, Malaysian GP, Premiership football and not forgetting the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup.

The Masters has hit the third round stage and though Tiger Woods is looking ominous I'm predicting McIlroy to hold on to his lead and win and Westwood to finish in the Top 4. Like golf I know very little about horse racing but as it's Grand National weekend my predictions are Midnight Club to win and Niche Market to place in the Top 4.

With the Hispania's having qualified within the time limit we will have a full grid for the Malaysian Grand Prix tomorrow. The Red Bull of Vettel led the way in qualifying but the McLarens' appear to have closed the gap so I'm predicting a Hamilton win and Button to podium.

Rugby Union's Heineken Cup has reached the last eight stage and my predictions are for the two English clubs to progress with Leicester winning at Leinster and Northampton to defeat Ulster.

Finally, Manchester United seem to be strengthening their case to be Premier League champions and as such I'm predicting them to beat Fulham at Old Trafford this afternoon and for their City rivals to draw at Liverpool on Monday.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Masters Golf

McIlroy to win at 10/3
Westwood to make Top 4 at 9/4

Grand National

Midnight Club to win at 11/1
Niche Market each way at 26/1 (Top 4)

Malaysian Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 31/10
Button to podium at 5/4

Heineken Cup Rugby

Leicester to win at Leinster at 12/5
Northampton to beat Ulster at 1/4

Barclays Premier League

Manchester United to beat Fulham at 7/15
Liverpool to draw with Manchester City at 23/10

Leagues' Reaching The Sharp End

2011-04-02T13:33:00.000+01:00

Last week's predictions were the most accurate for some time with 8 from 10 correct forecasts leading to a profit of £3 and taking overall profits for the blog to £25.50 - not much after two years!

This week the main focus is on Premier League Football and Rugby Union as both leagues draw nearer to their conclusion. As I write this Manchester United are already two goals down in their fixture at West Ham who have turned their season around in the last few games to climb out of the relegation zone. This season there is no stand out team who have dominated the league and no-one wants to go down with as many as 10 teams still being in with a chance of being relegated and 40 points not going to be enough to stay up.

The league has therefore become fascinating but almost impossible to predict! This week I have selected four games starting with Everton to beat Aston Villa which could push the Villans into the bottom three, Chelsea who have got over their mid-season slump I'm predicting to win at Stoke, Liverpool to draw at West Brom which will see Roy Hodgson come up against his former charges and have been a different team since Dalglish stepped in as caretaker manager and finally Tottenham take on Wigan before their meeting with Real Madrid in the Champions League and I'm predicting a Spurs win even allowing for their lack of fit central defenders.

In the Aviva Premiership rugby Leicester and Saracens have been the top couple of teams for the last 18 months and this week I'm predicting the Tigers to triumph at Harlequins and Saracens to beat Bath on home turf.

The Rugby League season is well under way now and this week I'm going for two home wins with Bradford beating Harlequins and Salford to defeat the Crusaders who haven't really fired this season.

My final set of predictions are for the second Moto GP of the year in Spain. In normal circumstances I'd be predicting a Pedrosa win but because of the injury he is carrying I'm going for his team mate Stoner to win and last year's World Champion Lorenzo to make the podium. The Ducatis still look off the pace but I'm sure Rossi will get this sorted over the coming few weeks and will be back challenging for wins again soon.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Barclays Premier League

Everton to beat Aston Villa at 42/41
Chelsea to win at Stoke at 7/10
West Brom to draw with Liverpool at 12/5
Spurs to win at Wigan at 7/5

Aviva Premiership

Leicester to win at Harlequins at 8/13
Saracens to defeat Bath at 4/11

Superleague

Salford to beat the Crusaders at 2/7
Bradford to defeat Harlequins at 4/11

Moto GP in Jerez

Stoner to win at 11/8
Lorenzo to podium at 3/16

Hurray! F1 is Back

2011-03-26T10:08:00.000Z

After another poor performance on the predictions last week led by England's rather inept attempt to win the Grand Slam in Dublin my continued run of bad form has continued with a loss last week of £4.50 taking profits on the predictions down to £22.50.

This week the main highlight is the delayed start to the F1 season in Melbourne and following qualifying it looks like the Red Bulls are again going to be the class of the field with the McLarens and Ferraris as their main challengers though I also expect to see both the Mercedes and Renaults improve as the season progresses.

My prediction for this week is for Vettel to continue where he left off last season by winning in Australia and for Lewis Hamiton to make the podium.

There is of course plenty of other sport this weekend, not least for the Varisty Boat Race on the Thames this afternoon and in this peculiarly British event I am predicting a Cambridge triumph.

Football this week is dominated by Euro 2012 qualifiers and the big game for most Brits is the meeting of England and Wales in Cardiff. For this game I'm predicting an away win but it won't be easy. The other match I'm predicting takes place in Dublin where Ireland host Macedonia and in this game I'm going for the home side.

With the end of the Six Nations rugby the domestic club season continues with some spicy looking matches in this round of the Aviva Premiership. Even though away wins are pretty rare I'm predicting two with Leicester to win in Bath and Gloucester to beat the Harlequins at the Stoop. My final rugby union forecast is for Northampton to get their season back on track by defeating Wasps.

Rugby League's Superleague is now well underway and this week my predictions are for Castleford to beat the Crusaders and Huddersfield to win at Hull KR.

Of course there is one prediction that is missing because the game has already started and that is England to beat Sri Lanka in the quarter finals of the Cricket World Cup.

In summary and with the odds the predictions are as follows:

Australian Grand Prix

Vettel to win at 5/4
Hamilton to podium at 4/6

Boat Race

Cambridge to win at 4/7

International Football

England to beat Wales at 4/9
Ireland to beat Macedonia at 11/21

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Leicester to win at Bath at 11/10
Gloucester to win at Harlequins at 13/10
Northampton to beat Wasps at 2/7

Rugby League Superleague

Castleford to beat the Crusaders at 1/4
Huddersfield to win at Hull KR at 8/13

Six Nations Finale & Moto GP Returns

2011-03-19T12:54:00.000Z

Apologies for no post last weekend and a short one this weekend but currently being limited on time by new job! The previous week continued my losing streak as I ended up £1 down on the week and down to overall profit of £27.

This week the key sporting highlights are the finale of the Six Nations with England pushing for their first Grand Slam since their World Cup winning year of 2003 and the season beginning of the premier class Motor Cycling - Moto GP in Qatar. The predictions will be rounded off by the games being played in the Barclays Premier League involving the top six clubs.

The six nations has entertained and enthralled in equal measure this year and I see the last round of matches being no different with narrow home wins for Scotland against Italy and France who will bounce back from their defeat in Italy to beat the resurgent Welsh. The big game is in Dublin where the Irish will try to prevent a Grand Slam for the English, but I don't predict that happening.

Since the end of last season a number of top riders have changed machinery and I'm going for Stoner now on a Honda to win in Qatar and Rossi new to the Italian Ducati brand to make the podium.

Finally, in the football this week I'm predicting home wins for Spurs and Manchester United over West Ham and Bolton respectively, Arsenal to win at West Brom and for the games between Sunderland and Liverpool and Chelsea and Manchester City to result in draws.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Six Nations Rugby

Scotland to beat Italy at 1/3
England to win in Ireland at 8/13
France to beat Wales at 1/3

Moto GP

Stoner to win in Qatar at 8/13
Rossi to podium at 7/4

Barclays Premier League Football

Spurs to beat West Ham at 7/10
Manchester United to defeat Bolton at 4/9
Arsenal to win at West Brom at 11/12
Sunderland to draw with Liverpool at 23/10
Chelsea to draw with Manchester City at 14/5

A return to normality?

2011-03-03T22:04:00.000Z

This week's predictions is a bit of a return to normality with focus on the domestic premier leagues for football and both rugby codes, albeit with some world cup limited overs cricket thrown in for good measure.

February was a poor month on the prediction front with losses most weeks and the worst of the lot coming last week with only three correct forecasts led by England defeating France in the Six Nations rugby and a couple from the Barclays Premier League football. This resulted in a loss of £5 on the week and reduces overall profits down to £28 as we approach the second anniversary of the start of this blog!

The blurb this week will be short and sweet due to time constraints. In the football I have gone for recent form with predictions that Arsenal will beat Sunderland and West Ham to defeat Stoke and then based on league positions, as I expect Manchester United to bounce back from their defeat to Chelsea by winning against Liverpool and Spurs to get back to winning ways at Wolves.

In the Rugby Union my predictions are Gloucester to defeat Bath in the West Country derby and Harlequins to win at Newcastle. For Rugby League the forecast (or some may call it guess work) is for Harlequins 13 man side to defeat the Huddersfield Giants and Wigan to win at Salford.

Finally, the cricket world cup has provided plenty of excitement, drama and unexpected results, particularly for England fans and therefore making any prediction difficult but I'm staying patriotic by suggesting England will beat South Africa and the previous day Sri Lanka will defeat the Australians.

Here's looking forward to a successful start for the March predictions!

In summary the predictions are:

Barclays Premier League

Arsenal to beat Sunderland at 5/11
West Ham to defeat Stoke at 13/10
Manchester United to triumph over Liverpool at 48/29
Spurs to win at Wolves at 6/4

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Gloucester to beat Bath at 4/6
Harlequins to win at Newcastle at 6/5

Rugby League Superleague

Harlequins to beat the Giants at 23/10
Wigan to win at Salford at 3/14

Cricket World Cup

Sri Lanka to beat Australia at 11/12
England to defeat South Africa at 17/10

Carling Cup, Six Nations and Motorsport is Back!

2011-02-26T12:57:00.000Z

My game of may have been cruelly called off this morning as Barnet 2s were undoubtedly frightened by the front row I was going to be putting out against them but nevertheless this weekend has plenty of other sport to keep me going.

For many the highlight will be the Carling Cup final tomorrow when Arsenal go for their first piece of silverware in six years but for me the big event is the rugby at Twickenham where England host France in what should be the Six Nations Championship decider.

Before I start with this week's predictions however, we need to tidy up the results from last week where even though I made six correct forecasts the week resulted in a 50p loss (mainly due to my lack of success with the FA Cup predictions) and this means overall profit for the blog is down to £33.

This week's predictions will start with football and as I mentioned above the main event will be taking place at Wembley where Arsenal play Birmingham in the Carling Cup final. Though it pains me to say Arsenal under Arsene Wenger do play good football and even if they are missing a couple of their stars as seems likely due to injury I think they will have too much for Birmingham and should win relatively easily. Meanwhile the Barclays Premier League continues towards the final quarter of the season and my predictions for this week are the unpredictable Everton to win at home against Sunderland, Manchester United to win at Wigan and strengthen their grip at the top of the table and finally the rejuvenated Liverpool under Dalglish to draw at West Ham who have also had a bit of a renaissance since Christmas.

The action I'm most looking forward to this weekend is the third round of Six Nations rugby which kicks off with Wales visiting Italy who had contrasting fortunes a couple of weeks ago. Whilst the Italians were thoroughly trounced at Twickenham the Welsh beat a very uninspiring Scotland team in Edinburgh. However, I'm going to ignore those results and I'm predicting the Italians to bounce back from their thrashing and win narrowly against the Welsh. That game is just the appetiser and the match that really catches the imagination is England v France which could determine not just the Six Nations Championship but also a possible Grand Slam. The two protagonists are the only unbeaten teams after two rounds of matches and probably the only two teams from the Northern Hemisphere who can challenge for the World Cup later this year in New Zealand. With so much at stake I would normally predict a tight, feisty game but with the way both team play I think it will be an open high-scoring game with England triumphing based as much on home advantage as patriotism!

The final game of the weekend tomorrow will be at Murrayfield where Scotland who were so dire against Wales a fortnight ago host Ireland, a team I believe on the decline. Sticking with my home advantage philosophy I'm predicting a narrow win by the Scots in a game that will not be much to get excited about.

Of course there is more for the sporting enthusiast this weekend than Rugby Union and Football and my final predictions reflect this. In Rugby League the World Club Challenge between Wigan and the Illawara Dragons is the big event and whilst I may have predicted the town's football team to lose I think their rugby team will triumph.

The cricket World Cup continues in earnest in the sub-continent and a recently unimpressive England play hosts India tomorrow. Again, slightly based on patriotism and ignoring recent form I'm going for an England win as the players are good enough and I think they will get better as the tournament progresses so why not tomorrow!

My final prediction is in the world of motorsport. The undoubted big news of the week was the indefinite postponement of the F1 opening race in Bahrain due to the recent civil unrest in the Principality. For me this is a pity for two reasons, but nevertheless the right decision. Firstly, because I believe this season has the promise to be as good if not better than last year in F1 with all the new technical regulation changes but secondly because I have an affection for Bahrain having lived there and being the birthplace of my sister, and by hosting an F1 race it helped put the country on the map for the right reasons.

However, the F1 season will not now get underway for another month which should help the teams better develop and prepare their cars for Australia. In the meantime the same country, albeit a different circuit, hosts the opening races of the World Superbikes, a sport in which British riders have traditionally enjoyed much success in recent years with the likes of Fogarty and Toseland. Whilst admittedly I am more of a Moto GP follower, and therefore no expert on this series I do enjoy the racing and am looking forward to more British success this year and am therefore predicting a Leon Haslam win in the opening race.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Carling Cup Final

Arsenal to beat Birmingham at 4/7

Barclays Premier League

Everton to defeat Sunderland at 3/4
Manchester United to win at Wigan at 7/12
West Ham to draw with Liverpool at 23/10

Six Nations Rugby

Italy to beat Wales at 31/5
England to defeat France at 1/2
Scotland to win against Ireland at 2/1

Rugby League World Club Challenge

Wigan to beat Illawara Dragons at 13/11

Cricket World Cup

England to beat India at 2/1

World Superbikes

Leon Haslam to win Race 1 at Phillip Island at 13/1

FA Cup and Both Rugby Codes

2011-02-19T10:05:00.000Z

Not a great set of predictions last week with only a 40% success rate leading to a loss of £2 and reducing overall profits to £33.50.

This weeks predictions include FA Cup football featuring both the fifth round and some fourth round replays, Aviva Premiership Rugby and the second round of rugby league's Superleague.

In the football my predictions are predominantly biased towards the home team as I'm predicting wins for Chelsea against Everton, Birmingham over Sheffield Wednesday and West Ham who host Burnley. The two contradictions to this policy are I'm forecasting a draw between premier league sides Fulham and Bolton at Craven Cottage and for Arsenal, buoyant after their mid-week success against Barcelona to prevail over League One Leyton Orient.

The Aviva Premiership Rugby teams are mainly stripped of their international players which makes my predictions more of a lottery than usual so I'm using form as my main guide by predicting Northampton to win in Bath, Harlequins to defeat Sale at The Stoop and Leicester to triumph in what could be a feisty encounter with Wasps.

My final set of predictions this week relate to rugby's other code and as I got neither prediction correct last week I'm hoping my luck improves this time. I've selected Harlequins to beat the Crusaders and Wigan to win at Bradford.

I did consider some cricket predictions but as the World Cup will still be running when the next football season starts (or at least that's what it will feel like) I thought I'd save those predictions for the future!

In summary this week's forecast is:

FA Cup Football

Chelsea to defeat Everton at 4/7
Birmingham to beat Sheffield Wednesday at 4/6
Fulham and Bolton to draw at 12/5
Arsenal to win at Leyton Orient at 3/10
West Ham to beat Burnley at Evens

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Northampton to win at Bath at 18/11
Harlequins to defeat Sale at 2/9
Leicester to beat Wasps at 2/9

Superleague Rugby League

Harlequins to beat the Crusaders at 11/10
Wigan to win at Bradford Bulls at 1/2

Superleague Magic Weekend, More Six Nations & A Manchester Derby

2011-02-11T18:05:00.000Z

It was a profitable week again on this blog following my last set of predictions resulting in a gain of £1.50 on the week and up to £35.50 over the course of the blog.

Successes came from five sources with Green Bay winning the Superbowl, England's triumph over Wales and Ireland's narrow win over Italy in the Six Nations as well as correct predictions for both of North London's premier league football teams.

This week features the beginning of Rugby League's Superleague for 2011 with all seven matches taking place at Cardiff's Millennium stadium and a number of local derbies. My forecasts for the first weekend of the season are Wigan to triumph over St. Helens and Hull FC to defeat Hull KR.

The Six Nations Rugby Union continues this weekend and after a thrilling round of matches last week I'm hoping for more of the same this time round. First off England host Italy and even with the loss of Andrew Sheridan from the side today I'm predicting a win by England by more than 12 points. The other two games are more difficult to call, but in both cases I'm going for the teams that have performed the best over the last twelve months, therefore I'm predicting Scotland to beat Wales at Murrayfield and the French to triumph in Ireland.

After some strange results in the premier league last week it demonstrates just how tough it can be to predict. This week the stand out game is the Manchester derby when United host City and I'm going for a home win. Liverpool are the current form team, revitalised by King Kenny and I'm predicting another win for them this weekend over Wigan. Former Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson has taken the reins at West Brom today who have been sucked into the relegation battle in recent weeks and in a "six pointer" they host West Ham who I'm forecasting to win.

My final two predictions are both for draws between Blackburn and Newcastle and Bolton who host Everton. I know that last prediction won't please all my readers but I've found Everton notoriously difficult to predict this season!

In summary the predictions are:

Superleague

Wigan to defeat St. Helens at 11/17
Hull FC to beat Hull KR at 22/23

Six Nations Rugby

England to beat Italy by more than 12 points at 7/25
Scotland to defeat Wales at 4/6
France to win in Ireland at 4/6

Barclays Premier League Football

Manchester United to beat Manchester City at 4/5
Liverpool to defeat Wigan at 2/5
West Ham to win at West Brom at 3/1
Blackburn and Newcastle to draw at 12/5
Bolton to draw with Everton at 23/10

A Need for Speed

2011-02-11T14:03:00.000Z

Robert Kubica's serious accident in a rally on Sunday has brought to the forefront some thoughts on why certain sportsmen and especially those involved in motorsport are such adrenaline junkies.

Apart from the physical injuries that Kubica has received, there will be a big impact felt across Formula One for the upcoming season. Firstly, Kubica is widely regarded as one of the best drivers of the current generation and potentially had the opportunity to be challenging or at least influencing the outcome of this year's championship. This is based on his performances last year in an uncompetitive car and along with Kobyashi of Sauber he was the best of the rest after those drivers challenging for the championship. His potential was first demonstrated in 2008 when he finished third in the driver's championship and could have seriously challenged had his team (BMW) decided to continue focusing on that years car as opposed to their development for the following season.

Secondly, after the first test session of the season last week Kubica in his new Renault had topped the time sheets. Whilst it is far to early to be making predictions for the season after one test it is much better to head the timesheets than be at the bottom. This leads me to the conclusion that Kubica could have been a serious challenger this year. It also has a serious impact on the Renault team as their remaining contracted drivers are fairly inexperienced with none having more than a season in F1. This will mean that the team will be at a disadvantage when it comes to the development of the car which as I have already mentioned looks as it could be competitive this season, and as importantly will in all possibility lead to them not performing as well in the constructor's championship and thereby lose out on prize money that will be vital as the team goes forward.

I therefore wouldn't be surprised if Renault do hire an experienced driver to cover for Kubica's absence and it looks as if his former BMW teammate Nick Heidfeld could be the driver to benefit.

However, what has happened to Kubica is not a new phenomenon and goes back to the very beginning of the sport. In the early fifties Ascari and Fangio were the two dominant drivers in the sport but most people are far more familiar with the Argentinean than the Italian as Fangio went on to win five world championships. This is because Ascari (a double world champion) who at one stage won 13 from 16 F1 races he entered, was killed in a sports car on what was supposed to be a weekend off. He wasn't even racing but had gone along to watch his friend test a new Ferrari but his competitive instincts got the better of him, he asked if he could have a go and within a few laps, crashed and was killed.

Another double world champion was also killed a decade later, Jim Clark. Widely regarded as the best driver of his era he was killed in a minor Formula 2 event in Germany robbing the world the chance to see which of two Scotsmen was the greatest driver as by that time Jackie Stewart's star was on the rise. Clark wasn't the first British F1 world champion to be killed outside of the sport as Mike Hawthorn died on the A3 in Surrey when having what appeared to be a race with Rob Walker.

There are plenty of other similar instances when F1 drivers have been killed or seriously injured away from the sport when for many you'd think that the dangers associated with F1 itself should satisfy the adrenaline requirements for any normal person. The sport itself has suffered from many tragedies where drivers have been killed in their prime Peter Collins, Jochen Rindt, Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve and Ayrton Senna to name but a few.

Of course Kubica is not the only current crop of drivers to have this adrenaline requirement as Mark Webber has seriously compromised his ability to win World Championships in the last two seasons with mountain bike accidents he has suffered (compound leg fracture before the 2009 season and breaking his shoulder whilst leading the championship last year!) Michael Schumacher was unable to return to the sport in 2009 after Massa was injured because of a motorbike accident earlier that year and in MotoGP Valentino Rossi seriously injured his shoulder in a Moto Cross accident before the beginning of last season and one wonders if that contributed to his serious accident when he broke his leg last year.

In conclusion, it becomes clear that in order to become an F1 driver talent is not just enough but there is something deeper - A Need for Speed - and unless that exists, we the public would not get to see such an exciting sport, but this gene, if that is what it is, has also robbed us of some fascinating racing as well.

Superbowl, Six Nations Predictions & More...

2011-02-04T10:28:00.000Z

Coming up to my favourite time of the year as the first hints of Spring are in the air and of course the beginning of the Six Nations rugby tournament.

Last week was fairly poor in terms of predictions with only four correct resulting in a £3 loss and taking overall profits for the blog down to £34. This was mainly due to the complete unpredictability of the FA Cup which I guess has always been it's charm and attraction. It is superb for Non-League Crawley town to have moved through to the fifth round of this prestigious competition and to have gained the ultimate prize of taking on Manchester United at Old Trafford.

This week in addition to the beginning of the RBS Six Nations there is the Superbowl taking place in Dallas. The two teams competing for the top prize in the NFL are two of the best supported across the US - the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers. I am predicting a narrow win for the Packers which will be a truly remarkable result as they were only the sixth seed from the NFC.

With the Rugby World Cup on the horizon later in the year this Six Nations championship is the last real chance for the top European teams to show they have what it takes to triumph in New Zealand and for players on the fringes of their national teams to prove they have what it takes to be involved later in the year. A number of the sides are having to contend with injuries to key players, not least Wales and England who meet tonight at the Millennium stadium. France are so mercurial that it is impossible to know which team will turn up on any given day, my belief is that Irish are probably 18 months past their best and are also plagued with injuries, the Scots have had some very good form in their last few matches (excluding the thrashing they received from the All Blacks) and the Italians just don't have the strength in depth needed to be successful.

As a patriotic Englishman I am keen to see them do well but have two concerns, firstly that with the injuries in the pack their lineout may suffer and the ability to win quick ball in broken play, and secondly I am still not convinced they have the right centre partnership to release an exciting back three. Having said that I think they will grind out wins over the course of the championship and therefore predict them to win the tournament but perhaps not with the elusive Grand Slam. I think the French will be their closest challengers and will probably play the most exciting rugby these next few weeks. After that it is hard to call but I'm going for the Scots in third place, the Irish fourth, the Welsh fifth and finally the Italians to pick up the Wooden Spoon.

As for this weekend's predictions my forecasts are England to triumph in Wales, Ireland to win but by less than 12 points in Italy and for France to similarly win by less than 12 against the Scots.

Injuries also seem to be the name of the game when it comes to England's cricket team with literally their whole bowling attack suffering from one niggle or another. It has been a long tour down under and I'm sure all of the team are looking forward to completing the ODI series in Perth on Sunday and getting back to the UK for a few days R&R. This series has dragged on a bit but I'm predicting England to finish on a high by triumphing on the ground where they were thoroughly outplayed in the Ashes, their only blip in that stage of the tour. What ever the outcome of the game the tour will be viewed as a huge success because of the performance in the Test matches and I'm not sure their failures in the One Day series will have too much of an effect on their capability to do well in the upcoming World Cup.

My final set of predictions relate to Barclays Premier League football. A few short weeks ago the title race was wide open with five clubs all with a shout of winning, but looking at the table it looks like that it is fast becoming a two horse race between the unbeaten Manchester United and Arsenal. It is well known that this is the time of the season when United make a surge and this season has been no different and to make it worse for the opposition their main striker, Wayne Rooney appears to be finding some form as well. Manchester City and Chelsea occupy the other two Champions League slots and unless Spurs start converting draws into wins they are going to struggle to match their fourth place finish of last season, especially as their injury woes are worsening by the day.

Before Christmas most pundits had West Ham written off as relegation certainties but over the last few weeks they have improved, made a couple of what look like being significant signings in the transfer window and therefore could get out of trouble between now and the end of the season.

Based on this information my predictions for this weekend are for Aston Villa to defeat Fulham in Birmingham, Newcastle to draw with Arsenal, Spurs to defeat Bolton at White Hart Lane, West Ham to beat Birmingham and finally in the big game of the weekend for Chelsea to draw with Liverpool, Chelsea either with or without their new record signing from Liverpool - Fernando Torres!

In summary my weekend predictions are as follows:

Superbowl

Packers to defeat the Steelers at 8/11

RBS Six Nations

England to win in Wales at 8/13
Ireland to beat Italy by 12 points or less at 7/4
France to defeat Scotland by 12 points or less at 2/1

ODI Cricket in Perth

England to beat Australia at 11/10

Barclays Premier League Football

Aston Villa to beat Fulham at Evens
Newcastle to draw with Arsenal at 3/1
Spurs to beat Bolton at 5/8
West Ham to beat Birmingham at 11/10
Chelsea to draw with Liverpool at 16/5

Australian Open Finals, FA Cup & More...

2011-01-28T16:59:00.000Z

Last weekend turned out to be another profitable one on the prediction front with seven from ten correct forecasts providing a £4 profit and taking overall profits for the blog to £37.

The main successes were three from four premier league football predictions as well as identifying the Superbowl finalists from the Championship finals.

This weekend the main highlight for most Scots if not most Brits will be Andy Murray's attempt to win his first Grand Slam from his third such final and second consecutive in the Australian Open. Standing in his was is Novak Djokovic the Serb who won the title in 2008. In his previous two Grand Slam final appearances Murray has had to face the might of Roger Federer and the fact that he has avoided the Swiss as well as World Number 1 Rafael Nadal I think may be just the luck he needs to break his duck and am therefore predicting a win for the Scotsman.

The women's final features Belgian Kim Clijsters against the first Chinese woman (or man) to make a Grand Slam singles final Li Na. In this match I am going with experience and predicting a Clijsters win.

In English football the FA Cup fourth round will be the highlight of the weekend and I have made predictions for four of the games. There are a number of all premier league clashes this weekend and in the first of them at Everton I am predicting a win for Chelsea who appear to have found some form of late. In Birmingham Aston Villa host Blackburn and I'm going for a home win in this game, with my final all premiership prediction being the game at Craven Cottage where Fulham host Spurs and in this game I'm going for the away team - something to do with the ones in the year makes me think they could all the way!

My final FA Cup prediction is the game at Watford flying high in the Championship who host Brighton who are atop of the league below, and because of the league positions I'm going for a Watford win.

In Rugby Union the LV Cup continues and features the first game between English professional teams in Abu Dhabi when Wasps play Harlequins. Most of the top teams will be short of full strength as with the six nations only a week away their best players are with their respective national squads and this makes making predictions fairly difficult. However, for the London derby taking place in the Emirate I'm predicting a Quins win and for the game in Sale who host the Dragons, a team that has today suspended their head coach Paul Turner, I'm predicting a win for the team from the North West of England.

Back to Australia and the ODI cricket continues in Brisbane on Sunday. England can still salvage the series by winning all the remaining matches between the two sides and as such I think they will win on Sunday building on their success from Adelaide earlier in the week.

My final prediction takes us to American Football and the Pro-Bowl between teams representing the AFC and NFC conferences. Of course both teams will be shorn of players who will be playing in next week's Superbowl and again difficult to predict but I'm going for a win by the NFC.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Australian Open Tennis

Murray to win the men's title at 11/8
Clijsters to win the women's title at 4/11

FA Cup Football

Chelsea to defeat Everton at 11/10
Aston Villa to beat Blackburn at 5/6
Spurs to win at Fulham at 7/5
Watford to beat Brighton at 10/11

LV Cup Rugby

Harlequins to beat Wasps at 10/11
Sale to defeat the Dragons at 1/4

ODI Cricket

England to beat Australia in Brisbane at Evens

American Football Pro-Bowl

NFC to triumph over the AFC at 8/9

NFL Championship Deciders & Last Heineken Cup Pool Games

2011-01-21T17:03:00.000Z

A good result last weekend with seven correct predictions resulting in a £5 profit for the week and taking total profits to £33. The only slight disappointment was not predicting the spate of draws in the Premier League with all four games on Sunday ending in stalemate.

This week the predictions include the AFC and NFC Championship games which will identify the Superbowl participants, the last round of Heineken Cup games where a number of pools have already been decided, Barclays Premier League football and the third ODI cricket match between England and Australia.

My NFL predictions are for the Packers to defeat the Bears in Chicago and win the NFC Championship and for the Steelers to defeat the Jets in Pittsburgh for the AFC Championship.

In the Heineken Cup this year has again shown the benefit of home advantage and as such two of my three predictions are following that rule. I am therefore predicting Saracens to triumph over Clermont Auvergne, thereby denying the French team a best runner-up slot and for Ospreys to defeat Toulon who have already won the group and will probably not send out their A team. Northampton have also won their group and to ensure a home draw for the quarter finals I'm predicting that they will defeat Castres who cannot progress any further in this season's competition.

The Barclays Premier League continues this weekend and is still close at the top though it is probably a bit fanciful for Spurs to think they are in contention for top spot this season which I think will be fought out between the two Manchester sides as well as Arsenal. It is also tight at the bottom with West Ham still propping up the league but close enough to the clubs above them to be able to fashion an escape by May. I thought Liverpool would get their first win for Kenny Dalglish last week but that didn't happen so I'm chasing that result again when Liverpool visit Wolves. Arsenal should cruise to a comfortable win over Wigan at the Emirates and my other predictions are for draws at Everton who host West Ham and at Aston Villa who cannot play as badly against Manchester City as they did a few weeks ago and should be able to hold the Eastlands club.

Finally, England have started poorly in their ODI series against Australia but with the casualty list that is building up for the hosts I'm predicting England to gain their first win of the series in Sydney on Sunday.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

NFL

Packers to win the NFC Championship at 8/15
Steelers to win the AFC Championship at 8/15

Heineken Cup Rugby

Saracens to beat Clermont Auvergne at 1/2
Ospreys to defeat Toulon at 1/2
Northampton to win in Castres at 11/17

Barclays Premier League Football

Liverpool to win at Wolves at 25/19
Arsenal to defeat Wigan at 2/9
Everton to draw with West Ham at 10/3
Aston Villa to draw with Manchester City at 12/5

ODI Cricket

England to beat Australia in third match of series at 19/17

Shunt - A Book Review

2011-01-20T14:46:00.000Z

This week I have finished reading a biography of James Hunt - Shunt by Tom Rubython.

Whilst not the best sports biography that I have read it is well worth reading as it provides a comprehensive background to his life. For me James Hunt was the first F1 driver that I remember winning the World Championship and then was used to his co-commentary with Murray Walker from the 1980s through to his sudden death in 1993.

From my knowledge of James Hunt until I read the book I knew that he was a playboy and was very much part of the glamorous world of Formula 1 during the 1970s and I also felt that he had "lucked" into his World Championship win in 1976 due to the horrendous crash suffered by Niki Lauda at the Nurburgring that season. However, having read the book I now believe that he was fully deserving of his title and that it was a shame that he was never really in contention for a second title even with the three wins he achieved the following season, and this was partly due to his early retirement from the sport which was brought about because of the dangers all apparent in Motor Racing during his heyday. The death of his friend Ronnie Peterson in the 1978 Italian Grand Prix was the catalyst that he needed to make that decision.

What did become apparent from reading the book was that if Hunt was given the equipment he would always get the best from it and the number of wins and pole positions that he achieved in 1976 and 1977 go to confirm this. The main challenge that he faced was that in the late 1970s Formula 1 was very competitive with plenty of drivers and teams capable of winning Grand Prix, technology (particularly aerodynamics) were becoming far more significant in the development of cars and from the leadership of Bernie Ecclestone the whole sport was starting to become far more professional and moving away from it's more Corinthian beginnings.

All of these issues are covered in some detail in the book which is why it is a must read for any Formula 1 fan whatever you may think of Hunt himself.

As for Hunt as a person for most of the book he does not endear himself to the reader because of his hedonistic excesses for much of his life but by the end of the book and therefore his life he appeared to have grown up, and the fact that he was not just acquainted with but was popular with so many of the "Great and the Good" of F1 it does suggest he was a very charming and personable man - good friends included Bernie Ecclestone, Prof. Sid Watkins, Stirling Moss, Jackie Stewart, Ayrton Senna and Niki Lauda.

It is really for the reader to make their own decisions as to whether he was a spoilt brat or was actually a genuinely likable human being but want cannot be questioned is his undoubted talents as a racing driver.

The book itself is generally well researched and written but frustratingly there are a few typing errors particularly when it comes to numbers and dates which can make it feel a bit confusing at times - my impression is that it was rushed into print without the editing process being properly completed - but that is a minor point. The author in the headline of his preface suggests the book is "A nonfiction book that reads like a novel', a description that I disagree with however unbelievable some of the antics Hunt got up to may appear to some. If as a reader you want to read such a sports biography I suggest Sex, Lies and Handlebar Tape by Paul Howard which chronicles the life of Jacques Anquetil who was the first man to win five Tours France, a book I reviewed about 18 months ago (http://stanonsport.blogspot.com/2009/07/sex-lies-and-handlebar-tape-book-review.html).

So in summary for anyone interested in James Hunt or Formula 1 in the 1970s this is a must read book.

The book is published by Myrtle in the UK.

Derbies & Top of The Table Clashes

2011-01-15T12:03:00.000Z

I can't believe this is my 200th post!! Last week's predictions were fairly average as I correctly forecast five from ten correct results leading to a 50p profit for the week and taking total profits to £28.

This week is a similar range of sports being covered but with the football reverting back to the Barclays Premier League and the rugby being the fifth round of Heineken Cup games.

In the premier league there are a host of local derbies this weekend as well as the opportunity for Manchester City to go top of the table. My first prediction is for Manchester City to do just that by beating Wolves today. In the derbies tomorrow I'm predicting a draw in the second city between Birmingham and Aston Villa, a win for Wearside over Tyneside with Sunderland to defeat Newcastle and Kenny Dalglish to get his first win since his return as Liverpool Manager by beating Everton. Potentially the best match of the weekend should be in North London where Spurs host currently unbeaten and table toppers Manchester United and in this game I'm hedging my bets and going for a draw.

This weekend will go a long way towards deciding the quarter finalists in the Heineken Cup and my three predictions are for Leicester to win at Llannelli, the Ospreys to defeat London Irish who have been on a very poor run of form lately and finally in what should be a super match Toulon to beat Munster.

The playoffs in the NFL are well underway and there was a cracking match last week as the Jets narrowly defeated the Colts in the last couple of seconds of the game and I think all the matches will be close again this weekend. My two predictions are for the Steelers to see off the challenge from the Ravens and the Packers to triumph in Atlanta at the Falcons.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Premier League Football

Manchester City to beat Wolves at 7/19
Birmingham to draw with Aston Villa at 12/5
Sunderland to defeat Newcastle at 11/10
Liverpool to beat Everton at 13/10
Spurs to draw with Manchester United at 12/5

Heineken Cup Rugby

Leicester to win at the Scarlets at 1/2
Ospreys to win at London Irish at 7/11
Toulon to defeat Munster at 3/5

NFL Playoffs

Steelers to beat the Ravens at 10/17
Packers to win at the Falcons at 11/10

FA Cup & More Predictions

2011-01-07T18:06:00.000Z

2011 has started well for England's cricketers having sealed the Ashes series win in Sydney, with a host of records being broken and also ensuring that my first predictions of the year started with a profit. The England win was one of six correct predictions from the last week of sport and resulted in a profit of £1 on the week and taking overall profit to £27.50.

This week predictions will be based on FA Cup football which hits the third round stage and the entry of teams from the Premier League and Championship, Aviva Premiership rugby and the NFL which has now reached the play-off stage.

In my FA Cup predictions all of the fixtures I have chosen include at least one premiership side, and most with opponents from the Championship. Arsenal take on Leeds at the Emirates and whilst the North Londoners have struggled at home to former Championship teams this season I think they will win this one as Leeds concentrate on a return to the top tier of English football. Championship leaders travel to Blackburn who had a good win over Liverpool earlier in the week but I think this will be a draw. Wolves who had a massive win over Chelsea on Wednesday travel to Yorkshire to take on Doncaster and I'm forecasting a win for the Premiership team.

Sunday's encounters include a big North West derby as Manchester United the premiership leaders host Liverpool and in this match I'm predicting the form team will win. United's main rivals and City neighbours travel to Leicester managed by former City and England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson and because his departure left a bitter taste he will have his team up for this game and I'm predicting a draw.

In the Aviva Premiership there were some strange results last week, but I'm predicting more normality this weekend with a trio of home wins as Leicester in second place entertain leaders Northampton, Saracens entertain London Irish who are on a long losing streak and Sale travel to Newcastle with both teams needing a victory.

The regular NFL season was completed last weekend and this weekend plays host to the wildcard play-off games. My two predictions are for the Colts who entertain the Jets to win and the Packers who travel to the Eagles to also triumph.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

FA Cup Third Round

Arsenal to defeat Leeds at 4/11
Blackburn to draw with QPR at 28/11
Doncaster to lose to Wolves at 7/4
Manchester United to beat Liverpool at 8/13
Leicester to draw with Manchester City 3/1

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Newcastle to defeat Sale at 7/11
Leicester to beat Northampton 4/9
Saracens to beat London Irish 2/5

NFL Playoffs

Colts to beat the Jets at 14/19
Packers to win at the Eagles at 5/4

Ashes Retained & A Decent Profit

2010-12-31T19:42:00.000Z

As 2010 comes to an end the predictions this year have been more successful than last as I end the year on an accumulated profit of £26.50 having started it £11 in deficit!

Last week definitely helped with eight out of nine correct predictions, the tenth having been beaten by the weather when Newcastle Falcons rugby match with Leeds Carnegie was postponed. The only incorrect prediction was Newcastle's football team losing to Manchester City who start 2011 in joint first place in the Barclays Premier League with their local rivals!

My final predictions for 2010 actually relate to fixtures that will take place on the first weekend of 2011 and follow the same sports as last week - premier league football and rugby, ashes cricket and NFL.

The first half of the football season has been intriguing with potentially five teams still in with a shout at the league title, led by the two from Manchester with the other three challengers coming from London. What is probably no surprise is that it is the same five teams challenging this time round that finished at the top of the league in the 2009/10 season. The battle to avoid relegation is more intriguing as potentially any of the bottom 13 teams could be involved.

This week my predictions involve 2 of the top 5 clubs, a relegation six pointer and the challenge for Europa league spots. Manchester United who top the table going into the new year travel to West Bromwich Albion and I'm predicting an away win, Sunderland host Blackburn with both teams currently in the top half of table and I'm forecasting a home win in this fixture, there is a relegation battle at West Ham who host Wolves and I'm going for a home win here and finally Arsenal who currently sit third in the league travel to Birmingham where I'm predicting a draw.

In Rugby Union's Aviva Premiership there should be a full schedule of matches for the first time in a few weeks. At the top Northampton have been the form team but any of the top half dozen teams could win the league. The relegation issue seems more cut and dried with Leeds having lost all their games so far this season but they are not yet adrift and a couple of wins could change their season. This week I have chosen three fixtures to make predictions for. At the Madjewski stadium London Irish host Bath, both teams well short of form and wins recently and therefore I'm going for a home win, Saracens travel to Sale who have made some significant changes this week with Anglesea taking over coaching responsibility and Cueto as captain, but I don't think it will affect the result as I'm expecting an away win by Saracens featuring Gavin Henson's first start since 2009. Finally, Leicester travel to Exeter who have not lost at home and have been a revelation this season but even with that record I'm predicting a win for the East Midlanders.

The regular season of the NFL reaches it's conclusion this weekend with play-off places still up for grabs. I am predicting wins for the New England Patriots hosting the Miami Dolphins and the Philadelphia Eagles who host the Dallas Cowboys.

Finally, having retained the Ashes the final test of the current series starts in Sydney on Monday with England looking to ensure at least a draw so that they win the series. With the turmoil that the Australia cricket team have been suffering I'm confident that England can do the business and win again thereby securing the series 3 - 1.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Barclays Premier League

Manchester United to win at West Brom at 4/7
Sunderland to beat Blackburn at 10/11
West Ham to beat Wolves at 13/12
Birmingham to draw with Arsenal at 29/10

Aviva Premiership Rugby

London Irish to defeat Bath at 8/11
Saracens to win at Sale at 4/7
Leicester to triumph at Exeter at 2/5

NFL

Patriots to beat the Dolphins at 8/15
Eagles to beat the Cowboys at 9/11

Ashes Cricket

England to win fifth test at 6/4

Christmas Weekend Predictions

2010-12-24T16:12:00.000Z

Firstly, I'd like to wish all my readers a very Merry Christmas.

Apologies for no predictions last weekend but the weather forecast suggested that not much sport was going to happen and this was borne out. The previous week resulted in a 50% success ratio and a small profit of 50p on the week and an overall profit of £17.

This week's predictions encompass Barclays Premier League football, Aviva Premiership Rugby, NFL football and of course the 4th Test of the Ashes cricket which starts on Boxing Day in Melbourne.

All the premier league matches involve at least one team from the higher echelons of the league. High-flying Bolton host West Brom and I'm predicting a home win, Manchester City who eschewed the chance to be top of the league at Christmas for 80 years on Monday travel to Newcastle where I'm forecasting a draw. Spurs in their first game since learning their last 16 opponents in the Champions League travel to Aston Villa and I'm predicting an away win and finally the big game sees Arsenal host Chelsea who have been on a poor run which I see continuing with them losing in North London.

There won't be a full fixture list in the Aviva premiership rugby but I've chosen three games that should be played. At Wembley Saracens host Wasps which should see Gavin Henson's return to rugby for almost 2 years and I'm predicting a win for the Sarries. Newcastle host rock-bottom of the table Leeds and I can't see beyond a home win nor can I at Twickenham where Harlequins host the out of form London Irish team.

The play-off spots in the NFL are starting to fill-up now and my predictions this week are for teams who could go all the way to the Superbowl as I forecast the Colts to beat the Raiders and the Packers to defeat the Giants in what should both be close matches.

The final prediction is for the 4th Ashes test. Australia suddenly have the momentum after their big win in Perth last week but I'm staying patriotic and going for an England triumph in Melbourne in a match that could see the biggest ever audience for a Test match.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Barclays Premier League

Bolton to beat West Brom at 11/10
Newcastle to draw with Manchester City at 12/5
Spurs to win at Aston Villa at 11/8
Arsenal to defeat Chelsea at 13/8

Aviva Premiership

Saracens to beat Wasps at 3/4
Newcastle to defeat Leeds at 1/3
Harlequins to beat London Irish at 13/10

NFL Football

Colts to beat the Raiders at 13/18
Packers to beat the Giants at 4/6

4th Ashes Test

England to beat Australia and retain the Ashes at 21/10

Big Guns Take on Each Other

2010-12-10T17:18:00.000Z

Another distinctly average week on the prediction front last time round with only four correct forecasts resulting in a £4 loss and overall prediction profits down to £16.50. The disappointment was of course tempered by one of the correct predictions as England took a well-deserved 1 - 0 lead in the Ashes series in Australia.

This week the predictions cover Barclays Premier League Football, Heineken Cup European Rugby and NFL American Football.

In the premier league the top four teams from last season who all progressed through to the Champions League knockout stages this week take on each other. The league table is taking a familiar look with last season's top five all in the top five positions again and so this weekend becomes perhaps the most significant so far this season. On Sunday Spurs in fifth place host third place Chelsea and this is difficult to call as Chelsea are on their worst run in years and Spurs whilst playing attractive football don't keep clean sheets. My prediction therefore is a draw but one that should contain goals! On Monday Arsenal (league leaders) with the league's best away record travel to Old Trafford and Manchester United (second place) with the best home record. Again, I can't see beyond a draw.

This means that Manchester City in fourth place can make further progress and no doubt will be thrilled to be travelling to bottom of the table West Ham where an away win is my prediction. Most of the rest of the games involve local teams in the North West or Midlands and one of these sees Everton host Wigan where I'm predicting a home win. My final prediction is at Newcastle, under new manager Alan Pardew, who host Liverpool. Like many neutrals I like Newcastle but have been less than impressed by the way they have treated Chris Hughton and in a sense would not be bothered to see them lose this weekend, but having said that it is not really the new manager's fault he has been offered the job and so based on recent form will predict a draw between these two famous clubs.

After the Autumn Internationals and one week of Premiership rugby the Heineken Cup returns this weekend with some intriguing fixtures that could go a long way to defining the final tables. Though away wins in this tournament are rare, this week I am going for three away wins which has the potential to make me look rather foolish - some would say no change there then!! My predictions are for Leicester to win in Perpignan, the Ospreys to win at Munster (who are pretty much invincible in Limerick) and Wasps to triumph at the Dragons.

In the same vein I am also predicting away wins in a couple of this week's NFL matches as the New York Giants visit the Minnesota Vikings and in Chicago where the visitors are the New England Patriots.

An intriguing weekend of sport is in prospect and in summary the predictions are:

Barclays Premier League Football

Everton to beat Wigan at 1/2
Manchester City to win at West Ham at Evens
Newcastle to draw with Liverpool at 12/5
Spurs to draw with Chelsea at 5/2
Manchester United to draw with Arsenal at 13/5

Heineken Cup Rugby

Leicester to win in Perpignan at 23/17
Ospreys to win at Munster at 7/2
Wasps to win at the Dragons at 8/15

NFL American Football

Giants to win at the Vikings at 4/6
Patriots to win at the Bears at 8/13

Back on Track Last Week and Predictions for this Weekend

2010-12-04T13:07:00.000Z

After a a fairly dire few weeks on the prediction front I got back last week with six correct predictions and a profit of £2.50 taking overall profits up to £20.50.

I didn't see Australia's thrashing of France in the rugby or England looking rather tame against the Springboks. In the premier league Arsenal showed their inconsistency by beating Aston Villa when I predicted a draw and Chelsea showing their fragility by only getting a draw at Newcastle.

This week my predictions will include more premier league football, Aviva premiership rugby, the second Ashes test and American Football.

In the premier league most of the matches have survived the freezing conditions. Firstly, I have selected Tottenham to continue their winning run and win in Birmingham, Chelsea to win at home to Everton and Manchester City to draw with high-flying Bolton. On Monday Liverpool host Aston Villa and I am going for a home win in this game.

Rugby Union has lost a few games to the weather (including my own for the second successive week) but there are some tasty encounters still on with the highlight being second place London Irish hosting third place Leicester. I am going for a home win but it will be tight, as I suspect will be the game between Saracens who host Harlequins. Tomorrow, the season's surprise package Exeter visit Wasps and I'm going for a surprising away win in this game.

England have performed superbly since halfway through the first Ashes test in Brisbane last week and with them on top in the second test I am predicting they will go on to complete a victory in Adelaide.

My final set of predictions are in the NFL which is getting towards the sharp end of the season and the play-off contenders being identified. I am forecasting a win for Chicago in Detroit and the Indianapolis Colts who host Dallas.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Barclays Premier League

Tottenham to win at Birmingham at 15/13
Chelsea to beat Everton at 2/5
Manchester City to draw with Bolton at 10/3
Liverpool to defeat Aston Villa at 8/13

Aviva Premier League Rugby Union

London Irish to beat Leicester at 4/5
Saracens to beat Harlequins at 4/11
Exeter to win at Wasps at 5/1

Second Ashes Test

England to beat Australia at 8/11

NFL American Football

Bears to win at the Lions at 10/21
Colts to beat the Cowboys at 4/9

El Clasico

2010-11-30T15:02:00.000Z

Last night at a bit of a loose end I found myself sitting down to watch a game of Spanish football. This was quite a strange thing to do as whilst I enjoy watching football, it is not if I'm honest my favourite sport and I have no real affiliation with any team outside of England.

The game was "El Clasico" between the two giants of Spanish football, Barcelona and Real Madrid, who are also quite possibly the two best football teams in Europe and not just their homeland. What has inspired me to write about this game (instead of the England Ashes fightback in Brisbane, the Rugby Union Autumn Internationals etc.) was because I was mesmerised by the performance of Barcelona. If I'm honest, I have probably never seen a team play football so beautifully.

Barcelona won the game 5 - 0 and in the second half of the game in particular, I don't recall Real Madrid keeping possession for more than 10 seconds at a time. The Catalan team's ability to retain possession through their passing and movement, finding of space and using the whole of the pitch until an attacking opportunity presented itself, were something I have never witnessed in a game of football. What it made it all the more special though was this was against their greatest rivals in a very competitive league and not a friendly or demonstration game, but that was what it looked like. For the few seconds at a time Barcelona did not have the ball they pressed their opponents where ever they were on the pitch to immediately win the ball back - all I can think is this is what is meant by "total football", a phrase I remember being used to describe the Dutch team of the 1970s led by Johann Cruyff.

Of course it is no coincidence that the great Dutchman has been integral to the development of Barcelona in the last 30 years but for a team to embrace and develop his mantra so positively is almost unbelievable. What it showed was that for a style to develop it needs to be coached and practised from a young age so that it can flourish and the fact that during most of the game 8 or 9 of the Barcelona team had graduated from the academy demonstrates the success of the approach.

For much of the second half the only time the pass and move stopped was when a frustrated Madrid player kicked the legs away from his opposition and there was quite an accumulation of yellow cards because of these tactics - that only one red card was issued and that in injury time after the fifth goal was more than surprising. Jose Mourinho may have found a way to stifle Barcelona last year with his Inter Milan team on their way to win the Champions League but last night neither he nor his charges had any clue in how to defend against such skill.

To conclude, all I want to say is that if you like football and have never watched Barcelona, or not recently, then take the opportunity (I found out through watching the game they won their previous match in La Liga 8 - 0)! Other football managers will say that they can devise systems to counter the Barcelona way of play but I imagine their will be a heavy reliance on the dark side of the game and not the beautiful way in which Barcelona played last night.

For all of Manchester City's money, Alex Ferguson's inspirational abilities they are not the future of football - the future is here and is on show now in the Camp Nou! I for one am a convert.

Last Round of Autumn Internationals and More

2010-11-26T13:41:00.007Z

Last week was another poor one from a prediction point of view but my own personal disappointment was sated by Spurs' win at Arsenal and the Welsh rugby team only drawing with the Fijians!

From my ten forecasts only four were correct and this led to a loss of £3 on the week and resulting in the profits having halved in the last month to only £18!

The small successes were the All Blacks' big win over Ireland in what appeared to be a closer game than the scoreline suggested, Blackpool and Manchester United triumphing in the Barclays Premier League and finally a success in American Football with the correct prediction of Green Bay to win at Minnesota.

For many the biggest sporting event of the weekend is already underway in Brisbane where the Ashes cricket started a couple of days ago. As I said on this blog a couple of days ago this series was never going to be easy for England and this has been borne out so far with Australia having the upper hand, though not by too much. As the game has already started I won't be making any predictions for this game but you can be assured I will be keeping track of developments!

The tennis season is drawing to a close in London this weekend and we already know that Roger Federer and our own Andy Murray have made the semi-finals. It is likely world number on, Rafael Nadal, will join them and my prediction to win the tournament is Federer.

It is the final set of rugby union autumn internationals and there are some fascinating encounters in prospect. For me the highlight will be the game at Twickenham between a resurgent England and the wounded Springboks. If England can win (and that is my prediction) they will be seen as a team likely to provide a real threat in next year's World Cup, if they lose it will seriously dampen down that expectation. Meanwhile Scotland take on Samoa which will be close but I think will result in a home team win, France face Australia in what promises to be the most exciting of the games and again I'm predicting a home win, and Ireland host Argentina where again I think the tourists will fail.

There is no prediction for the Wales game against the All Blacks, mainly because I agree with the bookies that it will be a win for the New Zealanders and the odds don't make a prediction worthwhile.

Elsewhere in England the premier league football season continues. In what for years most people regarded as being fairly predictable, this league seems to have taken on an unpredictability almost beyond belief in the last few weeks with no outstanding team and a number of "unfancied" teams punching above their supposed weight. My predictions this weekend are for Aston Villa to draw with an Arsenal team deprived of Fabregas, a similar result between Fulham and Birmingham, Chelsea to win at Newcastle, both teams being models of inconsistency lately and finally for Spurs to build on their recent wins by defeating Liverpool but I suspect there may be some goals in that game!

With a success in an American Football prediction last weekend I'm having another shot this weekend and forecasting that the Vikings with their new coach beating the Redskins.

In summary and with betting odds the predictions are:

ATP Tennis Finals in London

Federer to win at 11/8

International Rugby Union

England to beat South Africa at 1/2
Scotland to beat Samoa at 2/5
France to beat Australia at 10/11
Ireland to beat Argentina at 2/5

Barclays Premier League Football

Aston Villa to draw with Arsenal at 12/5
Fulham to draw with Birmingham at 12/5
Chelsea to win at Newcastle at 3/4
Spurs to beat Liverpool at 11/10

NFL American Football

Vikings to win at the Redskins at Evens

Ashes Gets Underway

2010-11-24T18:07:00.005Z

In a few hours one of the greatest sporting events gets underway in Brisbane, Australia and for the first time in my adult life there is a genuine belief that England can triumph against their antipodean foes on Australian soil.

There are numerous reasons for this sense of optimism, not least that England have been achieving success in all forms of cricket over the last couple of years whilst Australia appear to be a team in transition, after the retirement in recent years of many of their so called "Golden Generation".

On this basis, the sense of optimism appears justified but it fails to take into account two important factors. Firstly, the series is taking place on the Australians home soil, meaning the majority of support will be for them and secondly many of the Australian players have an uncanny knack of raising their game against the old enemy, not least the captain Ricky Ponting who if Australia do lose the series will be the first Aussie captain in more than a century to lose three Ashes series.

Trying to take an unbiased view on the teams (which is difficult) my view is that the English bowlers should have the edge but they have the disadvantage of being inexperienced in Australian conditions and with the Kookaburra ball. Whilst the English batsmen are undoubtedly talented I think the Aussie batsmen are better are building big scores and so may just have the edge in that department, particularly if Ponting and Hussey find some form.

One of the big talking points in the media has been about England approaching the series with a team containing only four specialist bowlers. Personally, I imagine the England management agree, this is a red herring as these guys are professional sportsman who should be capable of bowling 60 or 70 overs each during a five day test, whatever the weather. It should also be noted that support can be provided by other players in the team such as Collingwood and Pietersen who will be able to bowl a few overs if required. The final point on this subject and another reason why I think it is the English bowlers who have an edge, is because they all know one end of the bat from another which hasn't always been the case with English bowlers. This resource should not be overlooked as an extra 50 runs at the end of an innings can make a big difference to getting a positive result.

Many pundits appear to be predicting a fairly easy English win (at least the English ones) in the region of 3 - 1. Personally, I'd be happy with a win by one game scoring the winning run or taking the last wicket in the last couple of overs of the last game!! If I am honest I'd probably be fairly happy with a 2 - 2 draw but I am going to predict a 2 - 1 win to England.

Let play commence.

Rugby, Football and Some US Sports

2010-11-19T14:35:00.004Z

A second poor week on the trot again with last week's predictions! Only three correct leading to a loss of £4.50 and taking the blog's profits down to £21 since it began.

The isolated successes were led by England's rugby triumph over Australia in what was one of the best performances seen at Twickenham by England in a few years. The only other correct predictions were the predictable success of David Haye retaining his world boxing title against Audley Harrison and Spurs finding some league form in the Barclays Premiership to defeat Blackburn.

This week the Autumn rugby internationals continue, premier league football has a full schedule and to round of my predictions I am once again dipping into a couple of US sports - NASCAR and American Football.

Starting with the rugby there are some fairly poor odds available on outright results and so I am going for some spreads on the wins. Firstly, Wales take on Fiji at the Millennium stadium this evening and my prediction is a home win by more than 13 points. At Twickenham, a relatively unchanged and unscathed side after last weeks heroics see England host Samoa and I'm going for the English by between 21 and 30 points to win. In Dublin the Irish host the All Blacks who were imperious in their defeat of the Scots at Murrayfield last weekend and I can't see beyond them winning all of their matches against the home nations and am therefore predicting a win for the New Zealanders by more than 13 points.

The Barclays Premiership is now a third of the way complete and whilst most of the top teams are where would be expected there has been no stand-out team this season. Chelsea sit on top of the league and after their blistering start they have stumbled to a number of losses recently, Manchester United may be unbeaten but they have become draw specialists, particularly away from home, Arsenal look genuine title contenders one week and then lose at home the next, Manchester City neither look like a team nor confident in their ability to be an attacking force, Spurs can't keep a clean sheet and Liverpool's mini-renaissance was ended last weekend and now they have to perform without captain Gerrard for a few weeks.

Therefore making predictions has become more guesswork based than ever but it won't stop me. The big match is the North London derby at the Emirates and whilst my head says an Arsenal win and heart a Spurs triumph I am going to settle on a draw. Blackpool have surprised many this season with their attacking brand of football and whilst they haven't been great at home I'm predicting them to beat Wolves, Manchester United should beat Wigan at Old Trafford and in perhaps the most intriguing match Manchester City travel to their former managers new charges at Fulham, a game I think has draw written all over it and more pressure building on Mancini.

In the US it is the final race of the NASCAR season with three drivers in with a shout of the title. Having followed most of the season when possible (shame Sky no longer have live coverage), it is tough to call but in the last few races Denny Hamlin seems to have got the measure of Jimmie Johnson and I am going for Hamlin to win the title (if not the race).

Finally, even though my American Football predictions have been pretty rubbish in the past I will make up the numbers with a couple more this week. Firstly I am predicting the Packers to triumph at the Vikings and secondly going for the 49ers to defeat the visiting Buccaneers.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Rugby Union Autumn Internationals

Wales to defeat Fiji by more than 13 points at 4/9
England to beat Samoa by between 21 and 30 points at 9/4
All Blacks to triumph over Ireland by more than 13 points at 8/13

Barclays Premiership Football

Arsenal to draw with Spurs at 16/5
Blackpool to beat Wolves at 8/5
Manchester United to defeat Wigan at 1/4
Fulham to draw with Manchester City at 23/10

NASCAR

Denny Hamlin to win championship at 8/13

American Football

Packers to win at the Vikings at 10/17
49ers to defeat the Buccaneers at 6/11

The Greatest Season Ever?

2010-11-15T11:43:00.003Z

Back in March, and then last week I suggested that Fernando Alonso or Mark Webber would win the Formula 1 World Championship, and if I'm honest before the red lights went out to signal the start of the final race in Abu Dhabi yesterday, I was still of that opinion as I suspect were many other viewers, pundits and those involved in the sport.

Yet again though the world of sport showed just how tough it is to predict a result and 90 minutes after the red lights went out the young German Sebastian Vettel took the chequered flag and as he was going round his warm down lap to the pits it was confirmed that he was the youngest World Champion to grace the sport and his team Red Bull had completed in the space of 8 days a double of Constructors and Drivers Championships.

I have to admit to not being a huge Sebastian Vettel fan, and I don't really know why as in three full seasons in F1 has seen him display his talent at just about every race in which he has competed, from winning a race in the unfancied Toro Rosso team in 2008, becoming Jenson Button's main challenger throughout the 2009 season and then demonstrating he was clearly the fastest driver in 2010 with his clutch of 10 pole positions, 5 face wins and no doubt more fastest laps than any of his rivals this season. The only thing I can think of, is that because he had not led the championship in either of the last 2 seasons that he didn't have what it took to become the champion even though he was always in the mix.

Behind closed doors at Ferrari there will be an inquest into the strategy decision that led to Alonso being bottled up in the midfield for much of the race, but then like me they regarded Webber and not Vettel as the main threat for the championship. As I commented on Friday, I thought Alonso was due a bad race but I had no idea that it would be the Renault of Vitaly Petrov who would be the thorn in his side as I imagined it would be the McLarens who may prove to be his undoing.

On the question of strategy, Red Bull were fully vindicated in their decision in Brazil to leave Webber in second place behind Vettel and have to be congratulated on that, as they do in rising to the top of the tree in the six years they have been in the sport. Of course, now that they are at the top it will be interesting to see if they can maintain that performance and I for one hope they can.

2010 has to go down as one of the most fascinating and enthralling championships of all time and I hope has led to it attracting a whole new fan base. Next year offers as much if not even more potential with the likelihood of five former World Champions on the starting grid and another three of four drivers to add to this list and at least be in the running for race wins.

Yet again there will be a number of changes to the rules for 2011 with the banning of double diffusers and F-Ducts, as well as the return of KERS. However, the biggest variable could be a new tyre manufacturer (Pirelli) entering the fray to replace Bridgestone. Though this will be the same for all teams, with less than 120 days before the start of the next season there is not much time for the car designers to develop their cars that best suit the new tyre's characteristics. With the likelihood that Pirelli will be developing their tyres throughout the season as they receive feedback this change will be a very significant joker in the pack for 2011.

I for one can't wait to the start of the next season and hope it provides the same level of excitement and anticipation as has been generated in the last nine months. My early prediction is for Hamilton to be World Champion but this is more based on hope than through any genuine reasoning. Bring it on!

More Rugby and the F1 Final Showdown for 2010

2010-11-13T12:05:00.005Z

The worst week of predictions last week with only a 20% success resulting in a loss of £7.50 and reducing profits to £25.50.

A similar range of sports predictions this weekend with the on-going Rugby Autumn Internationals, the Haye v Harrison Boxing, Premier League football and of course the final installment of the F1 season in Abu Dhabi.

Rugby Union

England to beat Australia at 6/4
Wales to beat South Africa at 12/5
Italy to beat Argentina at 11/8

World Championship Boxing

Haye to beat Harrison at 4/25

Barclays Premier League Football

Manchester United to win at Aston Villa at 11/13
Spurs to beat Blackburn at 8/13
Stoke to draw with Liverpool at 5/2
Everton to draw with Arsenal at 12/5

F1 Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi

Hamilton to win at 11/2
Webber to podium at 4/9

F1 Season Reaches Climax!

2010-11-12T16:25:00.004Z

What has been one of the most enthralling F1 championships for many years draws to a conclusion this weekend in Abu Dhabi.

Unbelievably, going into this final race of 19 there are still 4 potential World Champions - Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton. The favourite has to be Alonso in his Ferrari as he enters the race with an 8 point cushion over Webber and has been the form driver of the second half of the season. However, after the first two practice sessions the McLarens are looking competitive for the first time in a few races and because Alonso and his car have been so competitive since mid-summer I'm thinking he is due a poor result which would open the championship wide open.

Of course, Red Bull could have made things easier for their driver Webber last weekend by allowing him to pass Vettel and take the win and leave only one point between him and Alonso, but it does not appear to be their way and means whilst they secured the constructors championship in Brazil they have made it more difficult for one of their drivers to secure their version of the championship.

Personally I believe, whilst Red Bull will continue to be competitive for many years to come in F1 this may be their best chance to secure the driver's championship for a few years and that in the last couple of races they should have supported Webber's attempt to do this, but because there has been a bias towards his younger German colleague from the team ownership this has not happened. This is a shame because like Jenson Button last season this is the first time in a long career that started at the back of the grid that Webber has been in a car that could take him to the title. Secondly, he would be a great ambassador for both F1 and Red Bull as World Champion and it is this latter point that I think is the problem for the Red Bull marketing machine - a laid back Aussie in his mid 30s is not what they envisage as the face of the brand. This I find strange as he is one of the gutsiest drivers on the grid and has a penchant for the spectacular (accident that is)! Finally, and this is a purely selfish view, as a bit of statto there have only been three Australian drivers to win Grand Prix and the other two went on to become World Champions - Jack Brabham and Alan Jones - and I'd like to see that symettery continued by Webber, especially as I like the guy which isn't something I can say about every Australian sportsman!

I mentioned earlier that this might be Red Bull's best chance of winning the drivers championship for some time and the reason I say this is because whilst undoubtedly the have one of the best, if not the best technical director and F1 car designer on the grid, because of their quest to be succesful this year they may struggle next year and who knows how long Adrian Newey will stay on the team. In addition to McLaren and Ferrari who are bound to be at the front of the grid again next year it wouldn't surprise me to see Mercedes there, especially as they took a decision mid-season to concentrate on next year's car rather like Honda / Brawn did two years ago and it is just possible lightning may strike twice. It also wouldn't surprise me to see both Renault and Williams kicking on next season.

As most of the season there have been five drivers battling for the championship it has been forgotten that there are 19 others in each race and three of them deserve special mention. Firstly is Rosberg who in an uncompetitive Mercedes has picked up a significant points haul, consistently out driven his illustrious teammate Michael Schumacher and next year deserves to be in a car in which he can win his first race. Secondly, Kubica has confirmed his reputation at Renault this season and is another who deserves to be in a race winning car which if Renault can't provide then I expect to see him at Ferrari or McLaren in the next year. Finally, Kamui Kobyashi of Sauber only made his F1 debut towards the end of last season and looked exciting but this season has gone from strength to strength and I imagine has probably made more overtakes for position than any other driver on the grid and when he does overtake you don't want to miss it! All this in a distinctly average car just goes to prove his talent (reminds me of a young Ayrton Senna in a Toleman), and I think he could go on to be the first Asian to win a Grand Prix and possibly a championship if provided with the right machinery.

Anyway, the real issue is who will become World Champion on Sunday evening. At the beginning of the season I said Alonso and now after eighteen races that is still my thinking, though I'd like to see Webber do it. Having said that it will be an interesting race that I think will be won by Lewis Hamilton and Webber will be on of those on the podium with him.

Autumn Internationals & F1 Reaching Climax

2010-11-05T16:22:00.009Z

Not a great weekend on the predictions last time out mainly due to my rugby predictions all being wrong in both codes. This led to a £2 loss on the week and reduction in overall profits down to £33.

The highlights of this week's sporting action are the beginning of the Rugby Union autumn internationals and the penultimate race of the F1 season in Brazil. At Twickenham England's new look team host the All Blacks and whilst this is undoubtedly going to be a close game I think England may just sneak a win. At Cardiff Wales host Australia who triumphed over New Zealand in Hong Kong last week and with all the injury problems for the Welsh I can't see anything other than a Wallaby win. The final game is between Ireland and South Africa, two teams that have fallen from the standards they were setting only a couple of years ago, and so therefore I'm going for a home win in what should be another close game.

The F1 season has been gripping from the second race of the season, Bahrain was a bit of a damp squib let's not forget, and even now five drivers still have a chance of winning the championship. Realistically though I think Vettel of Red Bull and both British McLaren drivers are rank outsiders and with Red Bull not throwing their weight behind the Aussie Mark Webber it looks like Alonso of Ferrari could be handed the title enabling him to become champion for the third time. Having said that (and secretly having supported Webber for most of the season), I'm hoping the title isn't decided this weekend and that Webber wins and Hamilton podiums to potentially leave them both in the running for the final race in Abu Dhabi next weekend, so they are my predictions.

The Moto GP chapionship was settled a few weeks ago and they now have the final race of their season in Valencia at the weekend. After 4 championship wins in 7 years Valentino Rossi is leaving Yamaha after this race and takes the ride of another former World Champion, Casey Stoner at Ducatti who is moving to Honda. Both of these great riders will want to sign-off this phase of their careers with a win and as such I'm predicting a Rossi win and Stoner podium.

We are already a quarter of the way through the football season and the table, at least at the top is following a similar pattern to last year, which as a Spurs fan I'm quite happy about. Starting with Spurs who will have to come back down to earth after their superb mid-week win over current European Champions Inter Milan, I am predicting a draw for them at Bolton who were unlucky to lose in the closing minutes to Liverpool last weekend. Fulham appear revitalised over the last couple of weeks and with the lack of strikers available to Aston Villa I am forecasting a home win to the West Londoners. My final prediction sees premiership leaders visit Liverpool who have won their last three games and in what looks like a tight game I'm predicting a draw.

In summary my predictions for this week are:

Rugby Union Autumn Internationals

England to beat the All Blacks at 11/2
Australia to defeat Wales at 3/10
Ireland to beat South Africa at 8/11

Brazilian F1 Grand Prix

Webber to win at 13/5
Hamilton to podium at 10/11

Valencia MotoGP

Rossi to win at 7/2
Stoner to podium at 2/11

Barclays Premiership Football

Bolton to draw with Spurs at 12/5
Fulham to beat Aston Villa at 5/4
Liverpool to draw with Chelsea at 12/5

Bounce - A book review

2010-11-03T17:05:00.005Z

This is only the second time that I have attempted to review a book using this blog, but as with the first time, I found the subject matter of the book so riveting that I have to recommend to anyone who reads this.

The book is Bounce by Matthew Syed the former GB Table Tennis player and Times journalist. I bought the book completely by chance as having read the cover description I felt it would be good research material for the book I have been trying to write for the last two years. How right I was!

Bounce explores what it is that makes champions, and in so doing exploded many myths along the way. These include dispelling the belief that talent or race i.e. the genes we are born with, are what will make us successful. In truth and from the excellent research it soon becomes apparent that true path to success is down to hard-work more than any other factor. Of course there are other contributory factors and many of these are addressed in the book such as sports psychology and socio-economic factors.

This is a book that should be read by every parent, sports coach, business manager - pretty much everyone - as it will make you rethink what makes a champion, or a success in any field.

Bounce is published by Fourth Estate, part of Harper Collins and I bought as a paperback.

Enjoy the read which in Iain Dowie parlance is "unputdownable".

On a Roll

2010-10-30T11:46:00.004+01:00

Last weekend was another good one on the predictions front with eight out of 10 correct forecasts leading to a £6 profit and overall profits up to £35.

This week sees predictions in football, both rugby codes and Moto GP.

Barclays Premier League Football

Arsenal to beat West Ham at 1/5
Fulham to beat Wigan at 10/11
Manchester United to draw with Spurs at 10/3
Newcastle to beat Sunderland at 5/4

Rugby League

England to beat Australia at 8/1

Portuguese MotoGP

Lorenzo to win at 7/4
Stoner to podium at 2/11

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Leicester to win at Gloucester at 11/10
Harlequins to beat Bath at 15/13
Leeds to beat Wasps at 15/8

Has the tide turned..

2010-10-23T12:05:00.005+01:00

A more successful week of predictions last week with seven from ten correct and a profit of £4.50 on the week taking overall profits to £29.

Of course the main news of the week has surrounded Wayne Rooney and Manchester United where by Thursday it looked as if he was on his way out of the club only to sign a new five year contract yesterday - all very strange.

This week's predictions are concentrated on three sports with premier league football and rugby union, as well as the first ever Korean F1 Grand Prix.

In the Barclays Premiership the first game of the weekend sees Spurs who had an extraordinary game in the Champions League midweek host Everton who had a fine win over Liverpool last weekend. My prediction for this game is a draw as it is for the big game of the weekend in Manchester where City host Arsenal. My final football predictions are a home win for Sunderland over Aston Villa and an away win for the previously mentioned Manchester United at Stoke.

After a couple of European weekends the Aviva Premiership rugby continues this week. My predictions here are for Leicester to triumph over the once mighty Bath, Gloucester to win at home to Harlequins, London Irish to inflict Exeter's first home defeat of the season and in the big match Nothampton to win at Wasps.

The Formula 1 season is getting to the sharp end now and after qualifying in Korea it doesn't look good for the British McLaren pair of Lewis Hamilton or Jenson Button to win a second championship. The Red Bulls have again shut-out the front-row of the grid but whilst Vettel is on pole I am predicting Championship leader Webber to take the win and take a one step closer to being the third Australian World Champion. My final prediction is for Hamilton to make it on to the podium.

In summary the predictions this week are:

Barclays Premier League Football

Spurs to draw with Everton at 12/5
Sunderland to beat Aston Villa at 7/5
Manchester United to win at Stoke at 8/11
Manchester City to draw with Arsenal at 12/5

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Leicester to beat Bath at 5/18
Gloucester to beat Harlequins at 8/15
London Irish to win at Exeter at 4/9
Northampton to win at Wasps at 6/5

Korean Grand Prix

Webber to win at 9/2
Hamilton to podium at 11/10

Change of Luck Needed

2010-10-16T13:11:00.005+01:00

Yet again apologies for no post last week but hoping that a week off might bring a change of luck as two weeks ago my predictions were distinctly poor equating to a loss of £4.50 with only four from eleven correct forecasts. These predictions did include correctly forecasting Europe winning the Ryder Cup and Wigan triumphing in the Rugby League play-offs but overall profits are down to £24 now.

This week we have a return of the premier league after the fairly dire international break for the home nations, the second round of Heineken Cup rugby, Shanghai Masters tennis and the Australian Moto GP where all is at stake is second place in the championship behind the runaway winner Jorge Lorenzo.

Starting with the football, perhaps the biggest game is the bottom of the table derby clash in Liverpool. The Reds may have new owners but after the worst start to a season for more than 50 years they could do with a win at their near neighbours who sit only one place higher than them in the league table. On the basis that a draw suits neither team that is what I am predicting in this game, as I am for the game Fulham who have drawn six of their seven games this season and host Tottenham today, and I am then going for the same result at Aston Villa who host the free-scoring defending champions Chelsea. My final prediction is for a home win at Bolton who host Stoke.

Andy Murray has had a convincing run through to the final of the Shanghai Masters tennis and will tomorrow face either Federer or Djokovic and I am going for the Scot to triumph in this tournament who ever he faces in the final.

The Australian Moto GP will take place at Phillip Island in the early hours (UK time) and I'm predicting local hero and pole sitter Casey Stoner to win and last week's GP winner Valentino Rossi to make the podium as both chase a possible second place in the championship after the withdrawl of Pedrosa.

Finally, the Heineken Cup kicked off last week with as usual a high percentage of home wins but some great games. I will stick with the trend this week by predicting Saracens to defeat Leinster at Wembley and Leicester to defeat the Scarlets but I think an away win is on the cards in Edinburgh who host Northampton and I'm predicting a win for the East Midlands team in this game.

In summary the predictions are:

Barclays Premier League Football

Bolton to beat Stoke at 6/5
Fulham to draw with Tottenham at 23/10
Aston Villa to draw with Chelsea at 13/5
Everton to draw with Liverpool at 9/4

Shanghai Masters Tennis

Murray to triumph at 6/4

Australian Moto GP

Stoner to win at 4/6
Rossi to podium at 4/7

Heineken Cup Rugby

Northampton to win at Edinburgh at 7/10
Saracens to defeat Leinster at 4/6
Leicester to beat the Scarlets at 2/9

Time for a Change of Luck

2010-10-01T17:13:00.006+01:00

Last week produced another set of dire results on the prediction front with only three correct forecasts and a loss of £2 taking overall profits on the predictions to £29. The three rays of light were Sunderland drawing at Liverpool in the football, Wigan beating Leeds to make the Superleague final and Saracens triumphing over Northampton in the Aviva Premiership Rugby Union.

The main highlight of this weekend is the Ryder Cup which has made a rather inauspicious start due to the inclement weather at Celtic Manor. My prediction for the Cup winners (when ever that may be) is Europe.

The Premier League season continues and after a strange set of results last week the title race is suddenly looking more interesting. At the bottom of the table I'm prediction Wigan and Wolves to draw and amongst the clubs with loftier ambitions I am forecasting Manchester United to win at Sunderland, Spurs and Aston Villa to draw and finally league leaders Chelsea to beat Arsenal.

Cycling has once again made the news for all the wrong reasons this week with a number of positive drug tests being announced including three time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador, though it seems there might be more to that story. However, it is the World Championships in Australia and the Brits have started well with Pooley winning Gold in the women's time trial and David Millar gaining a silver on the men's equivalent. For the men's road race I am predicting a top 3 finish for Mark Cavendish though it will be tough.

The Moto GP season continues in Japan and after Pedrosa's practice accident this morning it looks like Lorenzo will cruise to the world title. For the weekend though I am predicting a Rossi win and Stoner Podium.

At Old Trafford Rugby League takes centre stage with the Grand Final between local rivals Wigan and St. Helens. Both teams have lost their last three appearances in this end of season showpiece and so one of these runs has to be broken and I am predicting a win for Wigan meaning St. Helens will have lost for four years running.

The final predictions are in Rugby Union's Aviva Premiership. It is the West Country derby at Bath and I'm predicting the home side to triumph over Gloucester. Meanwhile last seasons play-off finalists Saracens and Leicester meet on Sunday and in a repeat of the Twickenham result I'm predicting a win for the East Midlanders.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

Ryder Cup

Europe to win at 8/15

Premier League Football

Wigan and Wolves to draw at 23/10
Manchester United to win at Sunderland at 5/6
Spurs and Aston Villa to draw at 13/5
Chelsea to beat Arsenal at 3/4

World Championship Cycling

Cavendish to finish in top 3 of the road race at 19/4

Japanese Moto GP

Rossi to win at 5/2
Stoner to podium at 2/5

Rugby League Grand Final

Wigan to beat St. Helens at 8/11

Aviva Premiership Rugby

Bath to defeat Gloucester at 2/7
Leicester to beat Saracens at 2/1

Not a Great Week

2010-09-25T12:14:00.003+01:00

It wasn't a great week on the predictions last week with only four out of ten correct leading to a loss of £2 on the week and overall profits down to £31. The four successes were Spurs' defeat of Wolves and Arsenal drawing with Sunderland in the Barclays Premier League, Nibali winning the Vuelta and London Irish's rugby union win over Gloucester.

This weeks predictions cover a similar range of sports and starting with the football I am predicting Chelsea to continue their 100% start to the season with a win over Manchester City, Liverpool's poor start to continue with a draw at home to Sunderland, Spurs to win at West Ham and Manchester United to win at Bolton.

In rugby league's play-off semi-final I think Wigan will narrowly win over Leeds reversing the result from a couple of weeks ago and setting up a Grand Final with St. Helens. In the union version of the sport my two predictions are for Wasps to win at Gloucester and Saracens to triumph over Northampton.

The closest and most exciting Formula One season continues with the only night race of the season in Singapore and for this race I'm predicting Championship leader Mark Webber to win and Jenson Button to make the podium in his McLaren. The final prediction is in American Football where my predictions last year were poor to say the least but anyway I'm having another go and forecasting a win for the Oakland Raiders over the Arizona Cardinals.

In summary the predictions for this week are:

Barclays Premier League Football

Chelsea to win at Manchester City at 5/4
Liverpool to draw with Sunderland at 7/2
Spurs to win at West Ham at 5/4
Manchester United to win at Bolton at 8/15

Superleague Play-Off Semi-Final

Wigan to beat Leeds at 4/6

Rugby Union

Wasps to win at Gloucester at 10/11
Saracens to beat Northampton at 5/8

F1 Grand Prix in Singapore

Webber to win at 7/2
Button to podium at 5/2

American Football

Oakland Raiders to defeat Arizona Cardinals at 15/8

Predictions are back!

2010-09-18T12:17:00.005+01:00

After a few weeks away I'm back (actually hols finished a couple of weeks ago but was busy). The last set of predictions were some of the worst for a long time with only 3 from 10 correct - strangely all in the premier league - and meant a loss of £4 on the week taking overall profits down to £33.

This week I have football premier league predictions, Aviva premiership rugby, superleague (rugby league) play-offs, Tour of Spain and the Aragon Moto GP.

After a few weeks of the premier league football season the league table is already looking fairly predictable but I guess there is plenty of time for that to change. This week I am predicting Spurs to win at home versus Wolves and then I am going for three draws in the games between West Brom & Birmingham, Sunderland & Arsenal and the big game between Manchester United & Liverpool.

The big game today in the newly sponsored Aviva Premier League rugby is Wasps hosting Leicester and I'm predicting a tight win to the Midlands side and tomorrow for London Irish to defeat Gloucester.

Rugby League's play-offs started last week and in this evening's game I'm predicting Warrington to beat visitors Huddersfield.

The final two sports I am predicting for the weekend are in Spain and I'm forecasting Nibali to hold on and win the Tour of Spain cycling and Dani Pedrosa to win his third Moto GP on the bounce with Valentino Rossi to make the podium.

In summary the predictions for this weekend are:

Barclays Premier League

Spurs to beat Wolves at 8/15
West Brom to draw with Birmingham at 23/10
Sunderland to draw with Arsenal at 11/4
Manchester United to draw with Liverpool at 13/5

Aviva Premiership

Leicester to win at Wasps at 10/11
London Irish to beat Gloucester at 1/3

Superleague Play-off

Warrington to beat Huddersfield at 3/10

Tour of Spain Cycling

Nibali to win at 3/5

Aragon Moto GP

Pedrosa to win at 6/4
Rossi to podium at 4/5

Footie Season is Back!!!

2010-08-14T15:24:00.005+01:00

Sorry for no blog last week and there probably won't be much for the next couple of weeks as going on holiday yippee!

From my predictions a couple of weeks ago I made a small 50p profit taking overall profits to £37.50 and I'm hoping to add to that this week.

The big sports news is that the Premier League is back and started with a 0-0 draw at White Hart Lane between two of the teams looking to challenge for the title this year, Spurs and Manchester City. All of the usual suspects are playing later this weekend and I'm predicting Chelsea to start with a win over West Brom, Liverpool and Arsenal to draw, and then on Monday Manchester United to triumph over Newcastle who have returned back to this league.

Other than Manchester City there has not been much transfer activity over the summer and so I'm thinking that it could be a five or six way fight for the title this year with all of the key teams noted above, but time will tell.

This weekend also sees the final golf major of the season, the USPGA in Wisconsin and with two and a bit rounds to go I'm predicting a first title for Rory McIlroy and a top 10 finish for Tiger Woods. The last tennis major takes place in a couple of weeks but in Toronto all the big four have made the semi-finals and to win the Rogers Cup I'm going for Federer.

Rugby League's Superleague continues and in this evening's game I'm going for Catalans over the Harlequins and tomorrow for Wigan to triumph over Huddersfield.

Finally the Moto GP season is back after it's summer break and in Brno I'm going for a Pedrosa win and a Rossi podium.

In summary the predictions are:

Premier League Football

Chelsea to beat West Brom at 2/11
Liverpool to draw with Arsenal at 12/5
Manchester United to beat Newcastle at 1/4

USPGA Golf

McIlroy to win at 7/1
Woods to finish in top 10 at 27/11

Roger's Cup Tennis

Federer to win at 14/5

Rugby League

Catalans to beat Harlequins at 1/2
Wigan to beat Huddersfield at 2/7

Brno Moto GP

Pedrosa to win at 9/4
Rossi to podium at 4/7

A New Era for British Ahtletics?

2010-07-31T13:00:00.006+01:00

Somehow I have managed to delete my previous effort so here goes again! Predicting on three sports this weekend led by athletics where I'm hoping to see the GB team add to their already significant haul.

Predictions are for Dai Greene to win the 400m Hurdles, Michael Rimmer the 800m and Lisa Dobriskey to podium in the 1500m.

The F1 Grand Prix circus has moved to Hungary before it's summer break and I'm going for Mark Webber's Red Bull to win and Fernando Alonso to make the podium.

The Superleague season continues and my predictions are for Harlequins to defeat Hull and Warrington to triumph over St. Helens. Of course the Test Match between England and Pakistan continues at Trentbridge but the result almost looks foregone even after Pakistan's last wicket partnership avoided the follow-on.

In summary the predictions are:

European Athletics Championships

Greene to win 400m hurdles at 1/4
Rimmer to win 800m at 10/11
Dobriskey to podium in 1500m at 2/5

Hungarian Grand Prix

Webber to win at 7/2
Alonso to podium at 4/7

Rugby League Superleague

Harlequins to beat Hull at 5/4
Warrington to beat St Helens at 4/6

A Dishonest Result, but Good to be Spanish!

2010-07-31T12:19:00.005+01:00

There was a £2 profit on the predictions last week mainly due to Alonso winning the German Grand Prix, so I do feel a slight fraud. Overall profits are up to £37 but other than Alonso the other successful Spaniards last week didn't do me many favours as Pedrosa crashed out of the Laguna Seca Moto GP handing the win to compatriot Lorenzo. Pedrosa's misfortune did help me as it enabled Valentino Rossi to make the podium.

Alberto Contador may have won the Tour de France but was nowhere in the final time trial that was won by World Time Trial Champion, Fabian Cancellera. There was some success in the Tour for me last week as Cavendish won the final stage on the Champs Elysees as predicted.

Last week's other predictions were for the Rugby League and again one success and one failure as Bradford's poor run continued when they were defeated by Hull KR but I was incorrect in thinking that Castleford could win at the Crusaders.

Le Tour Reaches Climax

2010-07-24T11:58:00.003+01:00

Last week's predictions resulted in as £2 loss and means overall profits down to £35. Key highlight was Westwood finishing second in The Open but otherwise not too much to shout about.

For this week the Tour de France finishes in Paris tomorrow and it should be a victory parade for Alberto Contador who I'm predicting to win today's time trial and Mark Cavendish to be triumphant on the Champs d'Elysee's to claim his fifth stage.

In addition there is the German GP and I think victory will be claimed by another Spaniard, Alonso with McLaren's Hamiton on the podium. In the US the Moto GP season continues and I'm predicting yet another Spaniard, this time Pedrosa to win and the unbelievable Rossi to make the podium.

Final two predictions are for the continuing Superleague Rugby League and I'm going for Hull KR to defeat Bradford and Castleford to win on their visit to the Crusaders.

In summary predictions are:

Tour de France

Contador to win time trial (stage 19) at 5/1
Cavendish to win final stage at 2/5

German Grand Prix

Alonso to win at 9/2
Hamilton to podium at 11/8

Laguna Seca Moto GP

Pedrosa to win at 11/4
Rossi to podium at 10/11

Superleague Rugby League

Hull KR to beat Bradford at 3/10
Castleford to win at Crusaders at Evens

The Doctor's Back & A Windy Open

2010-07-17T12:56:00.004+01:00

The undoubted highlight of the weekend's sporting events is the Open Golf at St. Andrews which has already had it's fair share of weather in the first two rounds. However, the big story has been the return to the race track of Valentino Rossi in the German Moto GP just six weeks after the compound fracture he suffered in his home GP at Mugello.
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For the Open I am predicting Tiger Woods to complete a hat-trick of wins on the Old Course and for Lee Westwood to be in the places (top 4).

As for the Moto GP whilst it would be great for a fairytale return of the Doctor to the winner's podium I am predicting his teammate Lorenzo to win and Casey Stoner on the podium.

The Tour de France is now two week's old and the riders are heading for the Pyrenees. In today's stage from Rodez to Revel I am predicting another Cavendish win, even without the benefit of his lead out man Mark Renshaw who was disqualified earlier in the week for his headbutting of rival Julian Dean.

In Rugby League the Superleague continues and my predictions this weekend are both for home wins with Bradford beating Salford and Castleford to defeat Wakefield.

In summary the predictions are:

Open Golf

Woods to win at 6/1
Westwood to place at 10/11

German Moto GP

Lorenzo to win at 11/10
Stoner to podium at 4/7

Tour de France Stage 13

Cavendish to win at 11/2

Rugby League's Superleague

Bradford to beat Salford at 2/7
Castleford to beat Wakefield at 4/7

Back to Profit - Thanks to a Number 2 Driver!

2010-07-17T12:36:00.003+01:00

A profitable set of predictions last week thanks mainly to the performance of Mark Webber, Red Bull's self-proclaimed Number 2 driver and World Championship leader Lewis Hamilton's podium.

The Formula 1 season has lived up to all expectations and more this year and it is great to think we have only just passed the half-way mark. It looks like the World Champion will come from either one of the McLaren or Red Bull drivers but it may just be too early to discount Alonso. For me the only disappointment has been the return to the track of Michael Schumacher who unfortunately has not replicated the form of his earlier career.

Back to the predictions from last week though and Holland failed to fire in the World Cup final (other than their fury) and Nicolas Roche didn't make my forecast break to win the Tour de France stage, as Contador and Schleck blew the field apart into Morzine. The final prediction of England beating Bangladesh in the ODI cricket did happen after a fine batting performance, particularly from skipper Andrew Stauss.

Even though only 5 predictions in total, three were correct resulting in a £3 profit for the week and aggregate profits up to £37.

World Cup Final & British GP

2010-07-11T10:22:00.003+01:00

Two of the greatest sporting events take place today with the final of football's World Cup in South Africa and the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

In addition the Tour de France has got serious now as the cyclists hit the mountain stages of the Alps. All of the pre-race favourites, perhaps with the exception of Frank Schleck, are still very much in contention but this is likely to change during the next two stages of racing. Today's stage sees the riders finish at the ski station of Morzine-Avoriaz and I am going for a top three finish for a famous name - Roche - the son of 1987 winner Stephen. Roche junior is currently eighth overall and has been finishing under the radar on most stages but I believe this could be the day for him to change that.

Tomorrow will see the conclusion of the England versus Bangladesh ODI cricket series and having lost their first ever game to this opposition yesterday, I think England will right this and cruise to a win.

The big events take place today though with the first being the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. In qualifying the Red Bulls were dominant on the revised track and as such I am going for a Red Bull win but not for pole sitter Sebastian Vettel but rather his Aussie teammate Mark Webber. The McLarens seem to have lost ground with their latest upgrades, particularly Button, but Hamilton is starting from fourth and I think he will finish on the podium in his home Grand Prix.

In Johannesburg this evening will be the culmination of a month of football that has thrown up it's fair share of shocks and excitement. Many had predicted the Spaniards to make the final but fewer pundits expected The Netherlands to go all the way. At the start I thought that the Dutch could do (and did tweet this) and nothing I have seen will stop me from predicting them to go all the way and make the final step to World Champions that their predecessors in 1974 and 1978 were unable to achieve.

In summary then my predictions are:

Football World Cup

Holland to win at 14/5

British Grand Prix

Webber to win at 7/2
Hamilton to podium at 11/8

Tour de France

Roche to finish in top 3 of stage to Morzine-Avoriaz at 8/1

ODI Cricket

England to beat Bangladesh in final match at 1/7

More Mediocrity

2010-07-11T09:39:00.003+01:00

Another mediocre week of predictions with only five out of eight correct leading to a loss of £1 on the week and down to an overall profit of £34.

Success was led by the Spaniards as Lorenzo won the Moto GP in Catalunya and Nadal triumphed at Wimbledon for the second time. Joining Lorenzo on the podium was Honda bound Casey Stoner which resulted in another correct forecast.

The two other successes were Wigan continuing with a win in their title chasing campaign in Rugby League's Superleague and The Netherlands reaching the final of football's World Cup in South Africa after their triumph over Uruguay.

The big question for this week is whether Spain's sporting success will continue this evening in the World Cup final.

Tour de France, Wimbledon Men's Final & More

2010-07-04T11:48:00.003+01:00

Late on the predictions this weekend but still some to whet the appetite. It may be fourth of July but unfortunately no Americans in my forecasts this weekend. For the Men's final at Wimbledon it is a Spaniard, Rafa Nadal that I'm plumping for and in the first stage proper of the Tour de France a Brit in Mark Cavendish.

Other predictions this weekend are Lorenzo to win the Moto GP at Catalunya with Stoner equalling his podium finish from last week. Superleague Rugby League carries on today and I am going for wins for Wigan at Catalans and Bradford at home to Hull.

Finally, we know now the last four teams left in the World Cup and perhaps the biggest surprise is that there are three European teams left when after the group phases most people would have predicted a better showing from the South Americans. My predictions for the semi-finals are the Netherlands to beat Uruguay and to face Germany in the final who I believe will prevail over the Spanish.

In summary the predictions are:

Wimbledon Men's Final

Nadal to beat Berdych at 1/3

Tour de France

Cavendish to win stage 1 into Brussels at 11/10

Catalunya Moto GP

Lorenzo to win at 4/11
Stoner to podium at 3/5

Superleague

Wigan to win at Catalans at 1/3
Bradford to beat Hull at 10/11

World Cup Semi-Finals

The Netherlands to beat Uruguay at 4/6
Germany to beat Spain at 19/10

Nothing Special

2010-07-04T11:37:00.003+01:00

Last week was average on the predictions with a £1 loss based from seven correct predictions from twelve. The highlights were Wigan and Castleford's wins in the rugby league, Lorenzo and Stoner winning and finishing first and on the podium in the Assen Moto GP and England wrapping up the ODI cricket against the Aussies even though they lost the subsequent two games in London.

Finally both Uraguay and Argentina triumphed in their last 16 World Cup matches though the former are now the only non-European side left in the competition - slightly fortunate after Suarez's blatant cheating.

Profits are currently at £35 and hopefully I will have more success this week after a couple of week's of losses.

World Cup Knock-Out Stages & Much More

2010-06-26T13:01:00.005+01:00

The World Cup in South Africa has reached the half-way stage which means we are into the knockout phase from today, though for many teams this will not be unusual as they needed results from their last group games to make it into the last 16. We've already seen both of the 2006 finalists humbled and the players off on their summer holidays and eight more teams will be joining them in the next four days.

Today's games see Uruguay take on South Korea and the USA play Ghana and in these games I am going for the teams from the American continent to prevail. Tomorrow sees the first really big game of the tournament as previous winners England and Germany face each other and being a patriot my prediction is for an England win. In the evening game the most impressive team so far Argentina face Mexico and for me there is only one result - a triumph for Maradonna's men.

Football may be the main highlight of the sporting weekend but there is plenty of other top level sport going on as Wimbledon continues (no predictions this weekend as no worthwhile odds), the Dutch TT Moto GP, European Grand Prix, International rugby union whilst back in England there is Superleague rugby and another ODI cricket game as England look to seal the series against Australia in Manchester.

In the Superleague I am predicting a win for Wigan at Harlequins and for Castleford who host Bradford. In the cricket I am staying patriotic and going for an England win at Old Trafford and in rugby union for France to triumph against Argentina in what should be an intriguing game!

On to the motorsport and my prediction is for Lorenzo to win in Assen with Casey Stoner gaining his first podium of the season. Finally, as I write this qualifying is just beginning for the European GP in Valencia and it is looking tough to call but I'm going for an Alonso win at his second "home" Grand Prix and Webber and his Red Bull to make the podium.

In summary the predictions are as follows:

World Cup Football

Uruguay to beat South Korea at Evens
USA to beat Ghana at 7/4
England to beat Germany at 17/10
Argentina to beat Mexico at 8/15

Superleague Rugby League

Wigan to win at Harlequins at 1/4
Castleford to beat Bradford at 4/6

International Rugby Union

France to beat Argentina at 4/9

ODI Cricket

England to beat Australia at Old Trafford at 10/11

Dutch TT Moto GP

Lorenzo to win at 3/10
Stoner to podium at 8/15

European Grand Prix

Alonso to win at 11/4
Webber to podium at 5/4

Close but no cigar...

2010-06-26T12:41:00.002+01:00

Not a great week on the prediction front last week with only four correct predictions even though many of the other predictions went to the wire.

All of the football World Cup predictions were correct as Denmark beat Cameroon, Brazil defeated the Ivory Coast and Paraguay triumphed against Slovakia. The only other correct prediction was Hull KR's win in the Superleague over Harlequins.

In most of my other predictions it was teams or individuals coming from behind and none quite achieved it with Armstrong coming second in the Tour of Switzerland by 12 seconds, Stoner charging from the back of the field at the beginning of the Moto GP and not quite making the podium, Wigan fighting back against St Helens only to lose by 2 points, Argentina failing by four points to overcome Scotland in the rugby and Els who had got himself into the joint lead of the US Open after the first few holes of the final round to fall away on the run-in and finish third.

Overall the week resulted in a loss of £3 taking overall profits down to £35 since the blog started.

Below Par World Cup Performances

2010-06-19T14:49:00.004+01:00

Many of the big European teams have put in poor performances in the World Cup so far and it also looks like the hosts will also not proceed beyond the group stages, all of which has made predicting results for the Cup very difficult. Having said that I will have a go with three of the games coming up in the next couple of days starting with a win for Denmark over Cameroon and followed by triumphs for Paraguay against Slovakia and Brazil who take on the Ivory Coast.

This weekend also sees the British round of the Moto GP and the redesigned Silverstone and here I am going for a Pedrosa win and Stoner podium. Rugby League's Superleague continues and my predictions are for Wigan to defeat St. Helens and Hull KR to beat Harlequins. In Rugby Union there was a great win for England in Australia this morning but in the second test between Argentina and Scotland I am going for the hosts to avenge last weekend's loss.

Final predictions are for Lance Armstrong to win the Tour of Switzerland cycling, Ernie Els to win the US Open Golf with Ian Poulter finishing in the Top 10.

In summary my sporting predictions for the weekend are:

World Cup Football

Denmark to beat Cameroon at 13/8
Paraguay to beat Slovakia at 10/9
Brazil to defeat the Ivory Coast at 4/6

British Moto GP

Pedrosa to win at 13/8
Stoner to podium at 8/11

Super League

Wigan to beat St. Helens at 8/13
Hull KR to beat Harlequins at 1/3

Tour of Switzerland Cycling

Armstrong to win at 24/5

Rugby Union

Argentina to beat Scotland at 4/7

US Open Golf

Els to win at 7/1
Poulter to finish in top 10 at 6/5

To Finish First, First You Have to Finish

2010-06-19T14:29:00.003+01:00

It may seem obvious but at Le Mans last week whilst the Peugeot cars were undoubtedly the fastest the Audis triumphed, taking all three podium positions because of the unreliability of the Peugeot cars. A similar scenario has been seen in F1 this season with Red Bull's fragility allowing McLaren to have established the lead in both the drivers and constructors championships.

Last week I was helped by these frailties for my predictions as Hamilton triumphed in a superb Canadian Grand Prix and the Kristiansen Audi made the podium at Le Mans. Other successes were Scotland's rugby victory in Argentina, their footballer's win over Nigeria and the Super League victories for Wigan and the Leeds Rhinos.

These six successes provided me with a £4.50 profit for the week taking overall profits for the blog to £38. This weeks predictions will follow shortly.

Le Mans, Grand Prix; Oh and Some Football!

2010-06-12T12:19:00.004+01:00

The Grand Prix circus returns to Canada, perhaps the greatest motorsport event of the year at Le Mans and some football happening in South Africa - not a bad weekend. In addition there is international rugby union in the Southern hemisphere and the Super League continues.

In the football world cup my two predictions are for Argentina to beat Nigeria and England to defeat the USA. In the rugby I am being brave and going for a France win in South Africa and Scotland in Argentina.

The Super League continues and again I am going for away wins by Wigan at Wakefield and Leeds at Harlequins.

In France the Le Mans 24 hour race gets underway this afternoon and it looks like it will be a home win with one of the Peugeots triumphing and I'm going for the Bourdais/Lamy/Pagenaud car. To make the podium will be one of the Audis and the one I am predicting is the Kristiansen/McNish/Capello car.

The final prediction is for the Canadian Grand Prix which is back on the calendar after an absence last year and though they didn't perform too well in second practice I'm thinking a McLaren win by Hamilton and a first podium finish since his return by Schumacher.

In summary the predictions are:

World Cup Football

Argentina to beat Nigeria at 4/9
England to beat USA at 8/15

International Rugby

France to beat South Africa at 3/1
Scotland to beat Argentina at 10/3

Rugby League Superleague

Wigan to win at Wakefield at 4/7
Leeds to win at Harlequins at 4/7

Le Mans 24 Hour

Bourdais et al to win at 10/3
Kristiansen et al to podium at 9/10

Canadian Grand Prix

Hamilton to win at 5/2
Schumacher to podium at 9/2

An average week

2010-06-12T12:08:00.002+01:00

Only five out of ten correct predictions last week resulting in a loss of a £1 and overall being £33.50 up since the beginning of the blog.

Successes were led by Nadal winning the French Open, Dani Pedrosa's win in the French Moto GP, South Africa's rugby win in Wales and Harlequins' super league triumph over the Crusaders. The final correct prediction was Rewilding's third place finish in the Derby which I had predicted each way.

Derby & French Open Finals

2010-06-05T13:26:00.002+01:00

Other than the Derby it's been hard finding some decent odds today but here goes the predictions for the week nevertheless.

The Derby

Bullet Train to win at 15/2
Rewilding at 11/2 each way

French Open Tennis

Nadal to win men's at 1/4
Stosur to win the women's at 4/17

Rugby Union

South Africa to beat Wales at 10/11

Rugby League

Harlequins to beat the Crusaders 1/2
Bradford to beat Huddersfield at 4/5

Italian Moto GP

Lorenzo to win at 1/3
Pedrosa to podium at 4/5

Brits dominate in Motorsport

2010-06-05T13:14:00.004+01:00

It was a good week to be a British single seat driver last Sunday, perhaps other than for Mike Conway, with Hamilton & Button taking the top two podium places in the F1 Grand Prix in Turkey and Franchitti & Wheldon repeating the feat in the Indy 500.

Hamilton and Franchitti both matched with predictions though I did only predict a podium for Hamilton as thought Vettel would win, which perhaps he would had he not driven into his teammate.

It was a good week on the predictions elsewhere with both Millwall and Dagenham & Redbridge winning their play-off finals, Warrington winning their Challenge Cup quarter-final as well as Leicester and Clermont Auvergne winning their respective League finals.

All of this resulted in a decent profit meaning overall profits are up to £34.50.