Ireland to stake an early claim

Sports and showbiz betting

THE BBC’S cavalier attitude to its sports coverage (horse racing being the chief sufferer)is getting beyond a joke, but one event you can guarantee the Corporation will never surrender is the Six Nations championship, which gets under way this weekend.

I have nothing against rugby union and admire the power, skill, athleticism and sheer guts which go into performing at the highest level.

But the overkill during the build-up to the Six Nations drives me bonkers and already this week I have been reaching for the remote to flip to another channel as yet another barmy advert for the championship flashes on my television screen.

Let’s be honest about it, RU is the sport of the establishment and even though rugby league has just as much merit – probably more, in fact – the old-school-tie brigade at the Beeb will always fork out large dollops of our licence money to screen what it considers to be the finest competition in the universe.

Having got that off my chest, let’s get down to the business of trying to find a winner and the best place to start is with reigning champions and Grand Slam heroes Wales.

The Welsh carried all before them last season, but they will be the team everyone is gunning for this year and 2-1 is a pretty stingy price.

England are in transition under Martin Johnson and must be swerved at 4-1, while Scotland (16-1) and Italy (100-1) are simply not good enough.

That leaves us with Ireland and France, who are both bracketed at 7-2 and have the strength and quality to follow in the bootprints of the Welsh.

The pair clash on Saturday and, as Ireland have home advantage and are 8-11 favourites to win this game, they have a great chance of making a winning start to their campaign and stealing a march on their rivals. If you wish to back France, you will get 11-8 for your money.

Saturday’s other match sees England (1-9) entertain Italy (7-1), while the weekend’s third game is at Murrayfield where Scotland (6-4) host Wales (8-13).


IN comparison to the fanfare which greets the start of the Six Nations, the launch of Super League is rather low key despite valiant efforts by the chaps at RL headquarters who continue to inundate the Chronicle office (and presumably other media organsiations) with promotional emails.

This year’s Super League gets under way on Friday when 2-1 joint-favourites Leeds take on Celtic Crusaders.

This should be plain sailing for Leeds, who will face much sterner tasks in the future, most notably from the other joint-favourites St Helens.

Warrington are 10-1 third favourites for the Super League title, with Wigan and Bradford next on 12.


THE first Test between the West Indies and England was due to start in Jamaica this afternoon and although the hosts once famously entered a bobsleigh team in the Winter Olympics, I don’t expect the Caribbean to be troubled by the snow currently causing havoc in the UK.

With Freddie Flintoff fit to play, England were worthy 5-4 favourites to make a winning start to the four-Test series.

As for Australia, they continue to lurch from one crisis to another.

Last weekend saw them lose one-day internationals to South Africa and New Zealand and news is filtering from Down Under that the controversial (and that’s a kind description) Andrew Symonds will miss the forthcoming tour against the Proteas for “rehabilitation and counselling”.

The poor Aussies – without the retired Warne, Gilchrist, McGrath, Langer, Martyn and Hayden, the injured Lee and Clark and now the troubled Symonds – are a cricketing nation in turmoil, so those of you who have not backed England to win this summer’s Ashes series are urged to do so before our lads win in the Caribbean.

England can still be backed at 6-4, which is great value but not quite so good as the 5-2 we snapped up a few months ago.

RECOMMENDATIONS: Ireland to win Six Nations, 7-2 (general); England to win Ashes, 6-4 (Sportingbet).


Muzza shouldn’t be written off

ANDREW Murray took a bit of flak for his last-16 defeat in the Australian Open - unfairly in my view - but the bookies remain convinced he has the potential to win a Grand Slam title in 2009.

Murray was clearly under the weather when beaten in five sets by Fernando Verdasco and when you consider that the Spaniard pushed eventual champion Rafael Nadal all the way in the semi-finals, there was clearly no shame in our man’s narrow defeat.

Murray won’t win the French Open - they might as well present the trophy to 4-9 shot Nadal now - but has realistic chances at Wimbledon and in the US Open.

Murray is 7-4 to break his Grand Slam duck this year and while I won’t be rushing to back him, the Scot has shown the commendable habit of bouncing back from adversity such as befell him in Melbourne.


TALKING of great Scots, Colin Montgomerie may not be everyone’s cup of tea but his appointment as Europe’s captain for next year’s Ryder Cup has sparked a flood of money on the hosts.

Europe are 10-11 to regain the cup in Wales, while America are out to 11-8, with the draw at 10s.