Latics favourites to reach Wembley

SPORTS BETTING:

ATHLETIC are on their way to Wembley. It’s not me saying what all Latics fans want to hear, but hard-nosed bookies.

Athletic are 4-6 to beat Chesterfield in their two-leg Johnstone’s Paint Trophy northern final and clinch a Wembley final against the southern champions. And Paul Dickov’s men are 15-8 joint favourites with Swindon to lift the trophy at the home of English football.

Now that would be something for the town to celebrate in these difficult times.

More immediately, Latics have the little matter of a trip to Anfield for a third-round FA Cup tie against mighty Liverpool. Kenny Dalglish’s side, not surprisingly, are overwhelming favourites to prevail at 1-9, with an away win rated a 14-1 shot and the draw at 13-2.



I CAN’T remember the last time the BBC Sports Personality Of the Year Award was presented on any day other than a Sunday. But that it what is going to happen tomorrow night when the trophy, won last year by jockey Tony McCoy, will be handed to one of 10 nominated sportsmen at BBC Sport’s new home, MediaCityUK, Salford. Not one woman is on the shortlist which — not surprisingly — has annoyed the fairer sex. I don’t intend to argue the merits of that state of affairs, suffice to say that the most obvious candidates this year are men.

If achievement is anything to go by, cyclist Mark Cavendish will win. The world champion and prolific Tour de France stage winner has had an amazing year and is at the pinnacle of his sport.

The bookies don’t get this wrong very often and, like McCoy a year ago, they reckon Cavendish is past the post and make him a 4-11 shot.

I think that’s short enough, but I felt the same about McCoy last year and he won by a landslide.

Darren Clarke was an emotional winner of the Open Championship and can be backed at 6-1, after being around the even money mark after his victory on the links in July.

Another golfer, US Open champion Rory McIlroy, is 20-1, while a third, Luke Donald, is the same price.

If we are going off achievement, Donald has the strongest claims of the three after topping the money list in America and Europe – the first time the double has been achieved.

The problem with backing any of these three is that the golf vote is likely to be split. So I can see distance runner Mo Farah (14-1) sneaking in through the back door. I doubt whether he will win enough votes to oust Cavendish at the top, but the world 5,000 metres champion looks a sound bet in the market without the cyclist, given the excellent record of athletics in this event and the popularity of the sport among television viewers.

RECOMMENDATION: Mo Farah, BBC Sports Personality Of The Year, in betting without Mark Cavendish, 5-2 (Betfred), Paddy Power, Coral.