Previews
Right, onto the only thing that matters:
NZ ($1.54) v SAF ($3) - draw ($38)
The All Blacks have shortened in the last couple of days - down from $1.60 and they may touch $1.50 before kick-off. I still believe this game will have the ABs at their most vulnerable - interesting to see they have stayed on the high veld this week due to having two games at altitude in successive weeks. The price is short enough to go against them, although the one nagging doubt I have is the time off the South Africans have had. It could be a blessing or a curse - as I have written before, while time off allows players to freshen up, there is no substitute for match fitness and in team sports sides can get "rusty" with layoffs (e.g. All Blacks in the corresponding game last year).
So not a game to put the house on, but if the All Blacks are to lose a game this year, it will be this one.
WORLD BASKETBALL CHAMPS
As this enters the knockout phase and we have had a chance to see the teams in action, time to peruse the winners market:
USA $1.55
Spain $8
Argentina $10
Greece $11
Rest - name your price
I haven't seen the Americans play, but judging from the reports they deserve to be favourites, whether they deserve to be $1.55 is another matter. As with the recent football world cup, look at the draw, which has:
Q1:Argentina v NZL, Turkey v Slovenia
Q2:Italy v Lithuania, Spain v Serbia & M
Q3:Germany v Nigeria, USA v Australia
Q4:France v Angola, Greece v China
In the round of 16, there are three interesting match-ups: the two in Q2 and France/Angola. I suspect Angola can upset and will be interested in the price; the two all-European clashes in Q2 can go either way as well. So of the favoured teams, Argentina and USA perhaps have easier routes to the semis, and at the prices, a wee speculator on Argentina in the winners market might not be a bad idea (sorry Kiwis, I can't see our Tall Blacks getting within 10 points). Of the longer priced teams, both Italy and Lithuania are at 70's which I feel are a touch long - either Spain or Serbia/M will be a tough quarter but it's not like they are not without a chance.
To finish off:
a) I present evidence why politicians (especially women politicians) should not talk about sport - granted, politicians always talk about things they know nothing about, but this from our beloved Prime Minister about the treatment McCaw got in the test last week made me cringe:
"One hesitates as just someone in the stand to voice an opinion, but certainly I felt someone should have been sent off," Clark told New Zealand radio station NewstalkZB.
"I thought it was absolutely appalling. We witnessed several acts of assault against the All Blacks captain and it was very, very ugly to see."
b) In the links on the left, click on Kiwi Herald - the latest couple of articles are sport-related and are classics - both the NZ satirical blogs I've found are worthwhile regular reads.
NZ ($1.54) v SAF ($3) - draw ($38)
The All Blacks have shortened in the last couple of days - down from $1.60 and they may touch $1.50 before kick-off. I still believe this game will have the ABs at their most vulnerable - interesting to see they have stayed on the high veld this week due to having two games at altitude in successive weeks. The price is short enough to go against them, although the one nagging doubt I have is the time off the South Africans have had. It could be a blessing or a curse - as I have written before, while time off allows players to freshen up, there is no substitute for match fitness and in team sports sides can get "rusty" with layoffs (e.g. All Blacks in the corresponding game last year).
So not a game to put the house on, but if the All Blacks are to lose a game this year, it will be this one.
WORLD BASKETBALL CHAMPS
As this enters the knockout phase and we have had a chance to see the teams in action, time to peruse the winners market:
USA $1.55
Spain $8
Argentina $10
Greece $11
Rest - name your price
I haven't seen the Americans play, but judging from the reports they deserve to be favourites, whether they deserve to be $1.55 is another matter. As with the recent football world cup, look at the draw, which has:
Q1:Argentina v NZL, Turkey v Slovenia
Q2:Italy v Lithuania, Spain v Serbia & M
Q3:Germany v Nigeria, USA v Australia
Q4:France v Angola, Greece v China
In the round of 16, there are three interesting match-ups: the two in Q2 and France/Angola. I suspect Angola can upset and will be interested in the price; the two all-European clashes in Q2 can go either way as well. So of the favoured teams, Argentina and USA perhaps have easier routes to the semis, and at the prices, a wee speculator on Argentina in the winners market might not be a bad idea (sorry Kiwis, I can't see our Tall Blacks getting within 10 points). Of the longer priced teams, both Italy and Lithuania are at 70's which I feel are a touch long - either Spain or Serbia/M will be a tough quarter but it's not like they are not without a chance.
To finish off:
a) I present evidence why politicians (especially women politicians) should not talk about sport - granted, politicians always talk about things they know nothing about, but this from our beloved Prime Minister about the treatment McCaw got in the test last week made me cringe:
"One hesitates as just someone in the stand to voice an opinion, but certainly I felt someone should have been sent off," Clark told New Zealand radio station NewstalkZB.
"I thought it was absolutely appalling. We witnessed several acts of assault against the All Blacks captain and it was very, very ugly to see."
b) In the links on the left, click on Kiwi Herald - the latest couple of articles are sport-related and are classics - both the NZ satirical blogs I've found are worthwhile regular reads.
Labels: previews
posted by Rob Crawford at 7:49 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home