Magic Mark/Double Chance – Saturday

MAGIC MARK We begin the Saturday column with three picks in mind. Whether we will do a personal trade out depends upon how shrewd the punters are if we are in a 2/2 scenario!

We kick off in Scotland with Celtic at a eye-popping 1/1 price on beating Aberdeen away. Celtic  do have a midweek CL qualifier, but will surely use this game to set the precedence for their challenge for Champions League qualifiers. Celtic are very short to retain the SPL and so they should be. Aberdeen are much improved so we are led to believe, but Celtic will need to put some fighting spirit inside them, and at even money representing 50% chance of winning is too good to miss.

Celtic’s statistics from last season are too good to miss regardless of incomes and departures!

Our second tip comes from Wigan on the road to Bournemouth. We are reliably informed that the hosts gave the ball away too easily versus Watford and playing that style again will give any team a chance to penalise them!

Our last game goes with Manchester United at a big 11/10 regardless of new management, Manchester United will continue to be a force overtime and the handpicked successor will remain for a long time to come with the efforts of building the right team and strategy. In Moyes Everton days, his team sussed the playing style of Swansea, and will take this with his superior United side to take a first win!

Magic Mark selections:

• Celtic, Wigan and Manchester United to all win 8.82 BetVictor, Perm three doubles only!

DOUBLE CHANCE – This column will not make you rich overnight, but will aim to bring consistent winners to this column!

Regardless of the Everton management, the team spirit is still present and will be able to pocket a draw or better at Carrow road come 5pm tonight! Everton will have the momentum of last season to look towards a top 6 finish this season and by taking the away points where possible should aid their cause, even in a scrappy performance. We risk taking Nottingham Forest to avoid defeat for the thirs successive weekend as they make the short trip to the reebok stadium in another game we see as a low scoring game. We would not be surprised if this was a bore draw!

Lastly we retain our services in the Championship in backing Watford to get a result at Reading. In our opinion Watford can beat Reading and the short trip down the M25 and M4 will give little time for the players to get any sleep, more build up aggression and determination after taking Bournemouth out convincingly! Watford were unlucky to miss out on premiership football and will be main contenders for promotion again.

Double chance selections: Everton, Forest and Watford to win or draw (Double Chance) pays 2.85 BetVictor

Thursday Betting

 

Just bets only tonight, no time for previews:

• Nishikori v Gasquet – Gasquet to win and Thun/Hacken both to score to win – 2.63 Ladbrokes.* (10 units)

* In the event Gasquet wins, we will trade out on leg two by placing 7 units backing both teams not to score at 13/10 with Betway.

Outcome possibilities:

Outcome one – Gasguet wins and both teams score as above – £10 pays £16.30 profit at Ladbrokes

Outcome two – ONLY if Gasguet wins, we have £16.30 we can lay off partially. Back 7.7 units at 13/10 with Betway that both teams do not score, taking as a cover bet.

Possible winnings:

Outcome one wins £16.30 before placing the cover

Outcome two – Take the cover, laying £7 off at 13/10 Betway for both teams not to score leaving a an outcome one winnings of £9.30 and if the cover wins, you win £9.10

 

Any more bets will appear here!

Wednesday/Thursday Betting

 

We enter the midweek with Champions League and Europa League qualifying.

Wednesday sees a card of five matches in the Champions League, with Celtic in action. Celtic enjoyed their best run in the Champions League for years in recent seasons and would be gutted if they failed to make the group stage again this year. Celtic however, may be complacent, seeing as they were expected to romp the SPL last term, and appeared that they could afford to take the foot off the gas. With Hooper sold, will Celtic be short of strike force?

The Scottish Champions face Swedish team Elfsborg, who are 17 games into their campaign have not won in the last three, collecting two draws in succession. Celtic should take a lead into the second leg and can be banked at 4/7 to reign supreme.

Austrian Salzburg take on Turkish giants Fenerbache in a game that could end poised after the first leg. The home side have seen both teams score in four of the last five games, and are no strangers in scoring, winning the last two games by the same scoreline 5-1. Fenerbache will be prepared for this and will be eyeing atleast a goal to take back to Turkey as a minimum target. They have also seen both teams score in four of the last five, which puts up a healthy 8/5 double with Sportingbet and William Hill for a Celtic win and both teams to score in Salzburg.

Looking at Thursdays action, Swedish side Hacken welcome Swiss side Thun in a game the bookies cannot split in 90 minutes. Hacked have only netted 20 points from 17 games this season, with Thun only playing three games, being on the losing 3-2 end in the last two games. Thun are favourites to qualify, but think they will want to get atleast a draw in Sweden to take back for the second leg. Consider Thun, as Hacken have lost the last three and the European campaign for them in some respects comes at the wrong time for them. We expect Italian Udinese to make light work of Siroki Brijeg also to round off our double

Sevilla will be in a position to get off to a winning start this season and should be good enough to avoid conceding. Paddy Power offer to outstanding price of 4/5 to win to nil and as short as 1/3 at skybet.

Recommendations:

•  Celtic win and both teams to score in Salzburg pays 8/5 at Sportingbet and William Hill (Weds)
• Thun double chance win or draw and Udinese – 21/20 Bet365 (Thursday)
• Sevilla to win to nil – 4/5 Paddy Power (Thursday)
• Swansea/Malmo – Under 2.5 goals 19/20 Coral

Wednesday Betting

 

We kick on in the IPL where Koltata play Pune warriors in a match up KKR need to win to keep pace for the race for the last play off place. They play bottom of the table Pune who have mustered up just two wins from fourteen games. KKR have averaged their inning at 142.64 and play Pune who have averaged five runs average less. Marginally, 8/15 is under priced to the 15/8 with Pune. KKR have been priced on the basis of which team has the greatest need etc. We will recommend if KKR bat first, they will win the match as they pile the pressure on.

 

Next up is the Europa League final, where Chelsea’s excellent season can close on a high with the Europa League. They go into this play a Benfica side that have ultimately thrown away the Portugese title to Porto. Chelsea are 31/20 in normal time to win the Europa League and are 4/6 to lift the title. Benfica had some trouble en route to winning their place in the final, especially with Newcastle. In our opinion there is only one winner here, and the bias is not being English. Rafa has certainly made his mark this season, with his successor having a tall duty to match his ultimate achievement this season.

Both teams will play a tight first half and see goals in the tie, with the first goal after 27 minutes 11/10 with Stan James.

Recommended betting:

• Kolkata to beat Pune Warriors – 8/15 general
• Chelsea to beat Benfica – 31/20 BetVictor
• Time of first goal – Over 27 minutes 11/10 Stan James

Thursday Betting

 

Home wins for Benfica and Chelsea are not too far off the mark and difficult to oppose tonight! The double is 6/5 for the pair. If you have not decided whether to bet on it tonight, take a look at the opta facts for the game:

Courtesy of optasports.com

Benfica Vs Fenerbahce

• Benfica have won their last five European home games, though three of these have been by the odd goal.
• Going back further, the Portuguese giants have lost only two of their last 15 at the Estadio de Luz (W11 D2), with those defeats coming against Barcelona and Chelsea.
• Benfica’s one previous home meeting with Fenerbahce was back in September 1975 – they won 7-0.
• Since that victory, the Eagles have only twice hosted Turkish opposition; they beat Altay S.K. 4-0 in 1980 but lost 0-2 against Galatasaray in 2008.
• Indeed overall, Turkish teams have won three and lost none of their last four trips to Portugal (excluding qualifiers) in Europe.
• Fenerbahce have won 13 and lost just two of their last 20 European games.
• The Yellow Canaries have kept five clean sheets in their last seven games in the Europa League, conceding just two goals in total in this run.
• Away from home, Aykut Kocaman’s side are unbeaten in Europe this term, winning four, drawing two and conceding just three goals.
• Oscar Cardozo has scored six goals in Europe this season, despite only starting six games.
• Despite playing only seven games in the competition, Benfica have seen their woodwork hit a joint-high seven times in the Europa League this term.

 

Chelsea Vs Basle

• Chelsea only managed 39% possession in their first leg against Basel, but still managed twice as many shots on target (6-3).
• Fernando Torres has scored seven goals in 13 appearances in Europe this season; he has managed seven in 32 in the Premier League.
• Chelsea are unbeaten in 12 European home games (W10 D2) and in 16 against non-English sides (W13 D3).
• The Blues have only managed one clean sheet in their last nine at Stamford Bridge in Europe, however, shipping exactly one in each of their last four.
• In 28 European home games played by English sides against teams from Switzerland in Europe (excluding qualifiers), there has only ever been one away win: West Brom 1-3 Grasshoppers Zurich in September 1981.
• Despite this, the last three clashes between English and Swiss sides on English soil have ended level, with Basel themselves drawing two of those encounters.
• The Swiss side have only won one of their last 12 European away games (D7 L4).
• Despite only entering after the Champions League group stages, Chelsea have conceded a joint-high four penalties in the Europa League this season.
• Basel have received more cards than any other team in the Europa League this term (30 yellows, three reds).
• Fernando Torres has scored six goals in his last five European home games.

With Chelsea as hot favourites to win the cup now at 4/6, there will be plenty of interest in that. Yes by all means certain, compared to the price of 8/15 to win tonight, it may not inspire some and begs the conclusion whether they have been priced up on reputation more than anything?

We have covered the Premier League darts for Week 13 at twopointfivetip.com, where members are able to get reasonable membership. We are in excess of 300 units profit, and out tip of the week (10 units) free to blog subscribers and twitter followers is for James Wade to beat Simon Whitlock tonight. Whitlock did beat the machine in their last encounter and feel James will seek revenge on the Wizard tonight. James has a far better chance of qualifying for the o2 and could seal it tonight by scoring two wins.

Elsewhere, we have the League two play off first legs tonight,  with the winner odds thus:

• Bradford  -5/2
• Cheltenham – 3/1
• Northampton – 3/1
• Burton – 67/20

Bradford are a cracking punt at 1/1 to beat Burton tonight. they played two games ago, where Bradford won 1-0 on the same ground.

Opta facts for the game, courtesy of optasports.com

• Burton have never picked up a win at Valley Parade against Bradford, drawing three and losing twice.
• Heading into the play-offs, Bradford have lost just once in their last nine games (W5 D3).
• Burton ended the season without an away win four attempts (D2 L2).
• Despite not scoring in his last two appearances, Bradford striker Nakhi Wells has scored four goals in his last six league games.
• Over the 46 game season, Burton salvaged 23 points from losing positions; a league-high.
• At Valley Parade this season, Bradford have lost just three points from winning positions; a league-low.

In the other game, Northampton host Cheltenham. Again Opta facts for the game, courtesy of optasports.com

• The Cobblers are without a win against the Robins in six games (D2 L4).
• Cheltenham striker Darryl Duffy has netted five goals in his last three appearances against Northampton.
• The Robins have lost 26 points from winning positions this season; the most in the division.
• Over the last 10 league games, only Bradford (18) have picked up more points going into the play-offs than Cheltenham (17).
• Northampton striker Adebayo Akinfenwa has scored a goal in three of his last four games against Cheltenham.

Key Home & Away stats from the two games:

Bradford/Burton

Both League meetings this season saw the game won by a single goal on both occasions. They traded one win a-piece and another 1-0 win for Bradford tonight is 7/1 with Stan James. At Bradford home games there was an average of 1.2 goals per game. Bradford scored an average of 0.75 goals per game and conceded 0.46 goals per game. burton were only able to score an average of 0.48 goals per game on the road, but concede 0.91 goals per game.

Northampton/Cheltenham

Five of the last six encounters saw both teams scoring in this and Betvictor go 39/40 on this outcome. Trouble with this bet is that Northampton were the joint lowest conceding side at home this season, conceding a mere sixteen in forty-six matches. cheltenham won 26% of games on the road, drawing 35% and losing 39% of matches on the road. Northampton won an impressive 74% of home games, losing 17% and drawing just 9% of all homes this season.

 

The verdict:

Under 2.5 goals on both games would be ideal looking at the statistics.

 

Lockup – Yankee:

• Chelsea
• Benfica
• Under 2.5 goals at Northampton
• Under 2.5 goals at Bradford

7/1 Stan James

Lockup “Daley” Double:

Benfica & Chelsea  -6/5 Ladbrokes

 

Thursday Betting

 

We enter this thursday with the Europa League semi final’s and also week 12 of the Premier League Darts.

We head to the darts first. Our free tip, in association with Easyodds.com is for Thornton to outscore Hamilton on 180’s. Many weeks the hammer have scored between 2-3 180’s predominately and Thornton has been the subject to winners on 180’s over the weeks on twopointfivetip.com.

Thornton score a mere one maximum last week, and the hammer scored just two in his game. Being week 12, both players need to step up. However, Thornton is the more natural hitter on this, so at 1/1 we rate his chances at more 60-65/40-35 in Thornton’s favour. Representing some value, has given us the opportunity to offer this tip to all readers ahead of Week 12 of the McCoys Premier League Darts.

Looking more to the Europa league, we expect:

• Basle/Chelsea – Under 2.5 goals – 17/20 BetVictor
• Fenerbache/Benfica – Under 2.5 goals – 4/5 general

Pays 3.33 at BetVictor

Lockup Single of the day:

• Thornton to beat Hamilton on 180’s – 1/1 Ladbrokes

 

Thursday Betting

 

Basel Vs Tottenham

It does not look good for Spurs, with the Bale incident last week, and the fact they may have to score twice, but at least once and avoid conceding:

Best match odds:

• Basle – 6/4
• Draw – 12/5 general
• Spurs – 2/1 BetVictor

courtesy of opta sports

• Basel have conceded only four goals in total in their last eight Europa League matches; but two of these came in the first leg of this tie.
• Excluding qualifiers, FC Basel have won just two of their 14 matches against English sides in Europe.
• Tottenham have scored in nine of their last 10 Europa League games, but have also conceded in eight of these.
• The Swiss side have conceded just two goals after half-time this season in the Europa League; this despite playing in 11 matches.
• Basel have not lost a competitive home match since August 23rd 2012, winning 12 of their 15 matches at St. Jakob-Park (D3).
• Spurs have won just one of their last nine games away from home in European competition (W1 D5 L3).
• Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson has scored six goals in his last 10 appearances for club and country; including a goal in each of his last two competitive appearances for Spurs.
• Spurs have conceded as many goals in their last two Europa League games as they had in their previous nine matches in the competition this season (6).

Being the English spirit, Spurs do have the ounce to qualify from this position, and at 6/4 is terrific odds with Paddy Power, seeing as its just 5/4 in places. Both to score is just 8/13 and Spurs to score twice (which is desired by the boss) is 11/8. If spurs take the lead and sit on 1-0, it could all go wrong. By scoring two goals, they win if it ends up as 1-2 and will force extra time on a 2-2 draw.

Recommended betting:

• Spurs – over 1.5 goals scored 11/8 Coral
• Spurs to qualify – 6/4 Paddy Power

Rubin Vs Chelsea

Interestingly, Rubin have kept the most clean sheets in this competition this term, joint top alongside Newcastle. We remember that Chelsea won the first leg 3-1 and look good to progress to the semi final stage.

Best match odds:

• Rubin – 7/4 Stan James
• Draw – 12/5 Betfred
• Chelsea – 9/5 BetVictor

Opta facts courtesy of optasports.com

• This will be the sixth occasion that Chelsea have played a Russian side in Europe (excl. quals), with the Blues winning each of the previous five, conceding just two goals overall.
• Rubin have kept a joint-competition-high seven clean sheets; alongside Newcastle United.
• There have been four red cards given in Rubin Kazan’s last five games in the competition; three of which have been handed to the Russian side.
• Salomon Rondon has netted five goals for Rubin in the Europa League this season and has attempted more shots (30) than any other player in the competition.
• Rubin Kazan have scored the first goal of the game in seven of their 11 matches in the competition this season.
• Chelsea have won three successive games in all competitions and will be looking to secure four wins in a row for the first time in 2013 (last won four successive games in Dec 2012).
• After failing to score with any of his first 15 shots at goal (excl. blocked) in the Europa League this season, Fernando Torres has scored with three of his last seven (43%).
• Rubin Kazan have conceded only three goals in their last eight European home matches (excl. quals). However, two of these goals contributed to two 0-1 defeats.

This is not a game Chelsea need to win, thus the attractive odds. Chelsea are very good at sitting on leads, but are aware that effectively they will be through unless Rubin force extra time by scoring three goals, assuming Chelsea do score also. Interestingly Rubin have only three goals in their last eight European home games, and will give the return leg a good go.

With Chelsea’s class and comfortable lead, you could see this being a low scoring game, and you will find it difficult to find odds of more than 8/11 industry wide. Coral do show us interest in one or neither team scoring, which strangely appeals to us at 7/5, purely on the basis, Chelsea could park the bus and play out a goalless draw.

Recommended betting:

• One or neither team to score – 7/5 Coral

Newcastle Vs Benfica

Benfica are in a game they know they do not need to win, which begs the question on why they are just 6/4 away in places…

Best match odds:

• Newcastle – 2/1 BetVictor
• Draw – 12/5 Ladbrokes
• Benfica – 13/8 Stan James

 

Opta facts courtesy of optasports.com

• The Magpies’ first leg defeat was only their third in 12 encounters with Portuguese sides in Europe (W4 D5).
• Benfica have won just one of their last six clashes with English teams (L3 D2) – this coming in the 3-1 first leg victory at Estadio da Luz.
• No side have kept more clean sheets in the Europa League (excl. qualifiers) than Newcastle United this season (7).
• Benfica have the best shot conversion rate of the eight sides left in the Europa League this season (21%), having netted 10 of their 48 shots.
• Benfica attempted 20 shots in the first leg of this tie; six more than Newcastle have faced in any other Europa League game this season.
• At St James Park, the home side are unbeaten against Portuguese teams, winning four and drawing two of their six games.
• On home soil, the Magpies are unbeaten in 22 European clashes, winning 18 and drawing four.
• Papiss Demba Cisse has scored in four successive appearances at St James Park for Newcastle, with the last three of these all being netted in the 90th minute or later.
• Excluding penalty shootouts, Benfica haven’t lost a competitive game since 23rd October 2012; a 35 game run (W30 D5).
• Benfica have netted 23 goals in their last six competitive games; an average of 3.8 goals a game.

We do think this will probably be the end of Newcastle’s venture, but can defend their record of the most clean sheets in this competition this season with 7 occasions in this competition. Newcastle have never lost to a Portugese team at home on six occasions.

Newcastle will give this a right go, and not to forget Benfica’s 20 attempts in the first leg, so seeing both to score is a take at 4/5 with Bet365.

If Newcastle score first, it will lead to Benfica reacting, so on this basis, you could vision both scoring, and backing this with some confidence!

Recommended betting:

• Both teams to score – 4/5 Bet365

 

In summary:

Lockup single of the day:

• Thornton to beat Whitlock 11/10 general

Lockup “Daley” Double

• Under 2.5 goals in Rubin and Newcastle games pays 5/2 at 188bet

Thursday Betting

We enter Thursday with the Europa League dominating the night, with the quarter finals all taking place. 3 of the 8 teams left are all from England, and if all 3 get through to the semi finals, we are guaranteed a representative in the final.

Looking at the stage of the competition, all the teams surely now will take this seriously, thus, 4 more games to reach the final.

Best outright odds:

• Chelsea – 11/4
• Spurs – 11/4
• Benfica – 9/2
• Lazio – 8/1
• Newcastle – 15/1
• Rubin – 16/1
• Fenerbache – 20/1
• Basle – 33/1

Spurs and Chelsea are 11/10 to make the final, and that is before the have even qualified, or played their semi final.

It would be interesting to see an all English final, but this a while off.

Benfica are 8/15 to beat Newcastle 8/1 in their tie.

Opta facts suggest

• These two sides have never met before in a competitive game.
• The Magpies have met Portuguese teams on 11 previous occasions, winning four, drawing five and losing just twice.
• These clashes have tended not to be very high-scoring, with the last seven games between Newcastle and Portuguese opposition producing a total of just 11 goals, with only one team in one game scoring more than one goal in that period.
• At St James Park, the home side are unbeaten against Portuguese teams, winning four and drawing two of their six games.
• Benfica are without a victory in their last five clashes with English teams, losing three and drawing two.
• Newcastle have suffered just one defeat in their last 10 European games, winning four, drawing five and keeping a clean sheets in each of the last four clashes.
• On home soil, the Magpies are unbeaten in 22 European clashes, winning 18 and drawing four.
• No side have kept more clean sheets in the Europa League (excl. qualifiers) than Newcastle United this season (7).
• Benfica have the best shot conversion rate in the Europa League this season (25%), having netted seven of their 28 shots.

Chelsea are 8/15 to beat Rubin.

Opta facts suggest:

• This will be the fifth occasion that Chelsea have played a Russian side in Europe (excl. quals), with the Blues winning each of the previous four, conceding just one goal overall.
• Since the start of 2011-12, Chelsea have remained unbeaten at Stamford Bridge in their 11 European games there (W9 D2).
• During those 11 games, Chelsea have scored 32 times – an average of 2.9 goals a game.
• Rubin Kazan will be making only their second trip to England, having lost their first 0-1 against Tottenham Hotspur in the 2011-12 Europa League group stages.
• Excluding qualifiers, Rubin Kazan have won only four of their 19 European games outside of Russia, but two of these victories have come this season (Neftchi Baku and Atlético Madrid).
• Rubin have been in fantastic defensive form in the Europa League this season; conceding only four goals in their 10 games and keeping a joint-competition-high seven clean sheets.
• There have been four red cards given in Rubin Kazan’s last four games in the competition; three of which have been handed to the Russian side.
• Salomón Rondón has netted five goals for Rubin in the Europa League this season and has attempted more shots (29) – no player has mustered more in the competition.
• Rubin Kazan have scored the first goal of the game in seven of their 10 matches in the competition this season.

Fenerbache are 7/5 at home to 12/5 Lazio.

Opta facts suggest:

• Lazio’s Libor Kozák is the top scorer in the 2012-13 Europa League with eight goals so far, including a hat-trick in his last appearance in the competition versus Stuttgart.
• The last eight Europa League games that Fenerbahce have played in have produced only 11 goals (1.4 a game).
• Excluding qualifiers, the Turkish side have netted in 19 of their last 21 European games at home.
• Lazio are unbeaten in their 12 Europa League matches (including qualifiers) this season (W8 D4).
• Lazio have won three of their previous four European games in Turkey (L1, excl. qualifiers).
• Fenerbahce have scored the first goal of the game in seven of their 10 Europa League matches this season.

Spurs are a skinny 2/5 to beat 9/1 Basle.

Opta facts suggest:

• Spurs have won four and drawn one of their Europa League matches at White Hart Lane this season.
• Basel have conceded only two goals in total in their last seven Europa League matches.
• Excluding qualifiers, FC Basel have won just two of their 13 matches against English sides in Europe, but one of these came against Manchester United (2-1) in their last clash with an English team (Nov 2011).
• Tottenham have scored in eight of their last nine Europa League games, but have also conceded in seven of these.
• There have been six red cards given in the 10 Europa League games involving Basel this season (three for Basel, three for their opponents).
• Basle have scored six goals in the 80th minute or later in the Europa League this season; more than any other side.
• The Swiss side have conceded just one goal after half-time this season in the Europa League; this despite playing in 10 matches.

What do we expect from the games?

All 4 favourites to win (Benfica, Chelsea, Spurs and Fenerbache because they are at home) pays 7.28 at Ladbrokes. Less the Turkish side, the odds on favourites will return 3.15 at Paddy Power.

Thursdays “Daley” Double:

• Spurs to win and under 2.5 goals in Chelsea/Rubin’s game pays 8/5 at Boylesports

Lockup Single of the day:

• Robert Thornton +2.5 legs vs Phil Taylor pays 11/10 at William Hill.

Thursday Betting

The second legs of the last 16 in the Europa League. Unibet go 17/2 all three teams from England win tonight and Ladbrokes are 3/1 all three qualify.

Taking the 3/1, essentially:

• Spurs – qualified pretty much
• Newcastle – A sniff of an away goal means toon need two.
• Chelsea – Again, an away goal means Chelsea need three.

Is 3/1 such a good bet? Too many variables, take on as a patriotic bet!

• Chelsea to qualify – 3/4 Hills
• Bordeaux/Benfica – Both to score – 9/10 Ladbrokes
• Newcastle – HT draw – 11/10 Bwin

Lockup Single of the day:

Hamilton 

To hit more

Than

Pays 11/10 general

Thursday Betting

 

We enter the next phase of the Europa League with plenty of action occupying our mind, especially with the Premier League Darts on also.

 

We head to the darts first:

 

We enjoyed one of the best weeks of darts last week. Results came in our favour, and this week will be as special, as it’s a 4-dayer for Darts with the UK masters following on the Friday – Sunday at Butlins Minehead.

 

A brief recap from last week courtesy of – http://www.pdc.tv/news/article/m8i7knufkiec1nb3073t138d2/title/mccoys-premier-league-darts-night-four

 

McCoy’s Premier League Darts 
Night Four- Thursday February 28
Westpoint Arena, Exeter
Robert Thornton 7-2 Gary Anderson
Andy Hamilton 2-7 Michael van Gerwen
James Wade 6-6 Phil Taylor
Wes Newton 7-3 Adrian Lewis
Raymond van Barneveld 7-3 Simon Whitlock

Latest League Table

After Week Four	P	W	D	L	+/-	LWAT	Pts
Phil Taylor	4	2	2	0	+9	11	6
Michael van Gerwen	4	2	2	0	+9	9	6
Raymond van Barneveld	4	3	0	1	+8	11	6
Robert Thornton	4	2	2	0	+7	8	6
James Wade	4	2	1	1	+3	5	5
Andy Hamilton	4	2	0	2	-2	8	4
Wes Newton	4	1	1	2	-4	8	3
Simon Whitlock	4	1	0	3	-7	8	2
Gary Anderson	4	1	0	3	-8	7	2
Adrian Lewis	4	0	0	4	-15	5	0

 

Adrian Lewis was the talking point of last week for losing his fourth game on the trot! With five more games before relegation, the maximum available points are 10, so essentially Lewis just needs to focus.

 

The order of play for week five:

 

• Wade Vs Thornton
• Barney Vs Hamilton
• Lewis Vs Van Gerwen
• Taylor Vs Anderson
• Newton Vs Whitlock

 

Wade Vs Thornton

 

In a game with fifth versus fourth, this could be a difficult game to call seeing as Thornton smashed his personal best average in a long time with a 109.33 against Anderson. Wade managed to force a draw against Taylor with a near 102 average and three 180’s!

 

The pair have met nine times before with Wade winning six encounters, and Thornton the other three! Wade has won the last five against Thornton, and with the way both players have been performing, you would have to side with Thornton on this game. Bookmakers go best 13/10 on Wade, with Sportingbet going 6/4 with Thornton and a general 7/2 on the draw!

 

Barney Vs Hamilton

 

Barney was complaining about blurred eyesight in the interview from the win last week. Barney a type two diabetic, stated that he was mere luck at times that the dart went in, seeing as he encountered difficulties. Barney put in a competent 99.47 average with three maximums. Hamilton lost 7-2 to Gerwen, where he got a couple of maximums and a 93 average. Van Gerwen was too good for Hamilton, and will want to make amends this week.

 

Hamilton’s only victory was back in 2006 and in total on the 19 times they have met, Barney has won 17 of the 19, with one draw being a 7-7 draw last April. Barney won the other premier league encounter last year 8-6. Bookies make Barneveld the 4/6 favourite with Hamilton 3/1 and the draw 9/2 with BetVictor.

 

Seeing that Barney’s eyesight is likely to still be a set back for barney, be assured doubles are missed, and offering 120.50 is generous if you fancy taking it on.

 

Lewis Vs Van Gerwen

 

Lewis has big problems, and it showed visually in his defeat to Wes Newton. Lewis got a mediocre 84 average with a single maximum. Van Gerwen got a 95 average with five 180’s. Bookies will have a tougher decision to make on where to set the maximums bar as BetVictor go 8/11 on 7 or more as the best price. This indicates they are expecting Lewis to bounce back, playing a better quality game should raise the overall game.

 

The pair have met 8 times before with Gerwen winning 6 and Lewis winning 2. Van Gerwen won the last 3 encounters with Lewis winning the previous 2.

 

Bookies take 1/2 on a Gerwen win, which is likely to be the highlight of a lot of ACCAS. Lewis is 9/2 with Sportingbet and the draw at the same price at BetVictor. Bwin are bonkers offering 11/13 that Gerwen hits more maximums than Lewis, which purely on the form guide is a steal!

 

Taylor Vs Anderson

 

The Power faces a disgruntled Anderson, who has seen better days. It is not often we say this, but Taylor was unlucky not to win against Wade and had a lot of bottle to take out the twelfth leg. The Power got a 102.51 average last week, with Anderson getting a shade under 94. Most would expect Taylor to win this and double up with Van Gerwen for a 21/20 double. I have seen worse bets than this. The Power has shown a lot of resistance against all his opposition in the premier league thus far, and they way Anderson has played, The Power will see this as great practice before the UK masters starting the next night.

 

With a deficit of 8 legs, Anderson could add to this tally against Taylor with a surplus of 9. Taylor has won 11 legs against the throw against 7 won by Anderson. The pair have met 27 times with Taylor winning 22 of the occasions, with 1 draw and 4 wins for Anderson. The pair enjoyed a 7-7 draw last year as well as Taylor giving Anderson a drubbing 2 months beforehand 8-1.

 

Newton Vs Whitlock

 

Whitlock a couple of weeks ago was unlucky with a tonne plus average to lose, especially to Taylor. Last week Barney gave Whitlock a great game. Newton beat Lewis last week with a near 86 average hitting three maximums in the process. With Whitlocks average nearly 10 points higher, and the way both players have been performing, the Australian is 11/13 with Bwin, with 9/4 with Newton at Coral and 4/1 with Boylesports for the draw.

 

The pair have played 12 times with Whitlock being the victor on 9 occasions with Whitlock winning 3 of the last 5 including the European final in September.

 

Free tip

Double:

• MVG/Taylor – 21/20 Boylesports

 

Looking at the football, and Europa League dominates tonight:

Anhzi Vs Newcastle

Toon have the long trip to Russia to face a team, who have been on their winter break. Newcastle will have to take advantage of this and at the very least score!

Best match odds:

• Anhzi – 3/4 Blue Square
• Draw – 13/5 Ladbrokes
• Newcastle  – 4/1 Coral

Taking into account the home team have been on their winter break, the bookies are taking no chances knowing that Newcastle lost at home at the weekend 1-0 to Swansea. If you fancy toon to qualify, make sure you snap up the 13/8 at the magic sign.

It is possible the strategy will be for Newcastle to play out the game, keeping it tight, and going to nick a goal, like they did in the previous round. Looking at the under 2.5 odds, the 4/5 with BetVictor is surely too generous, taking both scenarios mentioned above into account. We therefore believe plan A will be a low scoring game.

Steaua Bucharest Vs Chelsea

Despite the recent issues inside the camp of Chelsea, their main priority in Europe is to save face and go an win the Europa League. We believe that they have the depth to contend for this, and the FA Cup, although Champions League qualification is a prime priority.

Best match odds:

 

• Steaua – 13/5 Stan James
• Draw – 13/5 Coral
• Chelsea – 1/1 Boylesports

 

Surely the English side will be too strong for the Romanian side over the two legs. Chelsea can make their lives easier, but Steaua will be no easy task. The Romanians won 3-0 at the weekend to a mid table side and are running away with their league. Chelsea have to be aware of Raul Rusescu, Steaua’s top scorer and leading goalscorer of the league. Both teams to score is tempting at 10/11, but we are confident Chelsea can take the Romanian’s back to Stamford Bridge with an aggregate lead.

Spurs Vs Inter

This will be he toughest test for the North London side hosting Inter Milan!

Best match odds:

• Spurs – 10/11 Blue Square
• Draw – 11/4 BetVictor
• Inter – 7/2 Stan James

 

Spurs are the favourites to progress from the round at 3/4 best with Bwin and Inter 6/5 with Bet365. After Spurs win over the Gunners on Sunday, this will give them full confidence against Inter. Milan won their game 3-2 at the weekend, so we may see goals in this game. Inter will want to take the tie back to the San Siro with an away and a 1-1 draw would be a disaster for spurs. Ideally they will need a 2 goal win. Only Stan James are of the opinion that both teams will not score, so backers thinking both will should snap the even money bet quickly!

Recommended betting: Thursday

• MVG/Taylor – 21/20 Boylesports (Darts)
• Under 2.5 goals – 4/5 BetVictor (Anzhi/Newcastle)
• Chelsea to win in 90 minutes – 1/1 Boylesports)
• Both teams to score (YES) 1/1 Stan James (Spurs/Inter)
• Benfica – 4/7 William Hill