Barcelona vs Bayern Munich - 06/05/2015

The question on everybody's lips is can the troublesome tripod trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar be stopped? Pep Guardiola doesn't seem to think Messi can, which makes you wonder what radical plan he is going to come up with to cope with the little wizard tonight. Bayern are going to attempt to keep things tight, but they are more than capable of causing Barca problems. One thing we will not see is a repeat of the 7-0 aggregate drubbing dished out in this very contest back in 2013. Barcelona have come on leaps and bounds since then and they are unquestionably the most dangerous force in world football at this moment in time. With over 100 goals between their front trio, it sounds like an impossible task to keep them at bay. Both teams to score and a Barcelona victory looks a fairly solid bet and that is available at 14/5 with Coral.

Both teams to score and Barcelona to beat Bayern Munich at 14/5 with Coral.

The 2015 General Election

Well fuck me sideways. It's been five years since the slimy David Cameron slayed the inept Gordon Brown from "power" (as politicians like to put it). Cameron is going for a brace of PM terms through the medium of a hung parliament and will more than likely attempt to make it a hat-trick in 2020 if, God forbid, I'll be alive to witness such misery. It's just blessed relief other parties seem less likely to jump into bed with the Tories this time around. The Liberal Democrats, Westminster's equivalent of Norris Cole from Corrie, seem to have finally learnt their lesson after five years of being bitch slapped by the boys in blue. The most disappointing aspect of that farce is Nick Clegg, a man with less backbone than an earthworm, but still the most credible sounding of the party leaders by a million miles. It's just a shame he dug such a deep grave for his entire party and just laid there as the Cameron and his cronies shovelled shit all over them.

I've been an open and honest Labour voter since I have been legally able to do so. Not that it makes a blind bit of difference in my constituency where the Conservatives have the voters in a Boston Crab. So I trudge into that polling station knowing it's a complete and total waste of time, but I do so regardless in the faint hope that the lady in charge of counting the votes, batty old Doris, accidentally counts the Labour votes 16 times.

This year is different. For the man in charge of the Labour Party is a man I trust even less than I would trust Harold Shipman to look after my grandma. A man, somewhat remarkably, even more incompetent than Gordon Brown. Backed by a Shadow Chancellor who unquestionably would plunge the British economy back into the dark ages. Yes, the two Ed's. A pair so unreliable with finances, I wouldn't let them look after my little sister's piggy bank.

So I ask you, are these two really the only viable alternative to the wealth promoting Conservative Party? Yes, of course they fucking are. Stupid question. UKIP will win a smattering of seats from the Conservatives, the Lib Dems will lose quite a few to Labour thanks to their lack of trust (even Nick Clegg is hanging on to his seat by the skin of his teeth), the SNP will pinch loads from Labour and it all adds up to one great big hung fucking god damn waste of time parliament.

From there it is anyone's guess what happens. Labour have ruled out a coalition with the SNP and the Lib Dems would have to be completely thick to carry on their love affair with the Conservatives. So all I can advise is you go and have a lie down in a very dark room because either Ed Miliband or David Cameron will be your next PM. What a sickening thought.

From a betting perspective, it's difficult to suggest anything with any degree of accuracy. They all seem to loathe each other, so a Labour minority government is looking the most likely outcome at 2/1 with various bookmakers. However, it would be pleasant if Labour and the Liberal Democrats would sit down and actually talk through whatever problems they have with one another. If they do, I think they will realise they have more in common than they realise. But will the Lib Dems win enough seats to be able to form a coalition with Labour? I suggest they might just have enough between them to do so and that isn't the worst bet in the world at 8/1 with Victor Chandler.

Mainz vs Hamburg - 03/05/2015

Statistically speaking, there is no stranger team than Hamburg this season. Firstly, they went around 600 minutes of football without scoring prior to their 3-2 victory over Augsburg last weekend. They have scored a mere six goals in 15 away matches, and three of those came in a 3-0 victory at Paderborn. They have only scored eight goals since the beginning of December. Yet despite all of that, should they win their game today at Mainz, Hamburg will find themselves out of the relegation places. That is easier said than done for a team who look as likely to score as I look likely to find the Higgs boson. But Hamburg's biggest strength comes in the form of their defence. A team that has scored only 19 goals in 30 games has little right to have as many points as they have. They know how to keep things tight up until they concede the first goal and often the floodgates open when chasing the game. Mainz have drawn more games than any other Bundesliga team this season and one suspects the 0-0 draw, at 14/1 with Coral, is a distinct possibility.

Mainz and Hamburg to draw 0-0 @ 14/1 with Coral.

Sky Bet League One, Final Day - 03/05/2015

Whilst Bristol City were confirmed as champion's weeks ago, an ongoing saga has been developing between Preston North End and MK Dons to determine who will also be going up to the Championship. It has all come down to the final day and, with just one point separating the two sides, everything is up for grabs. The Dons have the dream fixture for their final game - at home to the already relegated and hopelessly tailed off Yeovil Town. Preston have more a job on their hands when they travel to Colchester - themselves in grave danger of the drop and in desperate need of three points today. Things could have been oh so different for Preston coming into this fixture. Colchester for all intents and purposes should have been relegated a while ago after a horrific run of form left them six points from safety in mid March. But the U's have shown excellent resolve and only losing two of their last eight matches has seen them move to within one point of salvation. So instead of Preston having to play a team already doomed, they are taking on a team with real hope. This combined with the fact they know the MK Dons will likely crush hapless Yeovil may make for an edgy occasion for Simon Grayson's men.

To me, there have been three teams a class apart in League One this season - Bristol City, Preston and MK Dons. The Dons boast a goal difference of +53 this season and have scored four goals or more in games on eight seperate occasions. They have scored 96 goals and it would come as no shock to me if they have hit 100 by the full time whistle this afternoon. Preston are unbeaten in 18 games and arguably deserve to go up as reward for that end of season consistency.

Realistically, whatever happens today, I will not be worried about the team who doesn't make it up to the Championship automatically. Both teams are in such sparkling form and are a class apart from the three other playoff bound teams (Swindon, Sheffield United and Chesterfield). My suggestion is to back both teams to win the playoffs before today's fixtures have been played. Sky Bet are the only firm offering a market on this as I write this and they go 13/2 for Preston to win the playoffs and 4/1 for the MK Dons. If either team fail to be promoted automatically today, those prices will be cut significantly and the ideal situation would be for the MK Dons to be promoted today and us punters having 13/2 about Preston winning the playoffs, and that would be one of the bets of the decade.

MK Dons to win the playoffs @ 4/1 with Sky Bet.
Preston North End to win the playoffs @ 13/2 with Sky Bet.

WGC Cadillac Match Play Championship - Outright Betting

The horse may have bolted when it comes to backing this tip, but to demonstrate the dominance of Hunter Mahan's golf already this week, he hasn't even need to play holes 16-18 yet. He slaughtered Stephen Gallacher 7&6, battered Ben Martin 5&3 and crushed Matt Kuchar 5&4. He demonstrated similar dominant early form when landing this title in 2012. Now comes the last 16 and Mahan couldn't have a more favourable draw. Rory McIlroy, Jim Furyk, Paul Casey, JB Holmes, Louis Oosthuizen, Rickie Fowler, Charl Schwartzel and Hideki Matsuyama are all in the other half of the draw. Mahan's biggest threat will come in the form of Lee Westwood, but even he is drawn away from Mahan so they would only meet in the semi-finals. Mahan will play John Senden in the last 16 and should he win that he will meet the winner of Mark Leishman and Gary Woodland in the quarter finals. Bet 365 are going 1/5 odds for the first three because there will be a third/fourth place playoff to determine the bronze medal winner. They go 13/2 about Mahan, but most bookmakers are going 7/1, 1/2 odds for the first two and both look extremely sensible and logical bets.

Hunter Mahan to win the WGC Match Play Championship @ 7/1 with most bookmakers.

Leicester City vs Newcastle United - 02/05/2015

Chelsea may have run away with the title and the Champions League places are all but set in stone, but there's still plenty to settle in Premier League. The relegation battle is one of the more fascinating in many a year with any three from seven teams still looking in grave danger.

It all kicks off at 12:45pm (BST) as Leicester entertain beleaguered Newcastle United at the King Power Stadium. It has been a strange few weeks for Leicester City. Stuck on 19 points and seemingly doomed over a month ago, four straight wins have seen the Foxes haul themselves out of the relegation zone. They came unstuck against champions elect Chelsea on Wednesday night, but Nigel Pearson had to be encouraged with the spirit his side demonstrated throughout. Pearson continues to do himself no favours away from the field however. His bizarre ostrich rant after the Chelsea defeat was over hyped by the media, but Pearson needs to learn how to keep his composure. The danger is his antics could take the gleam off what has been a fabulous run for the Midlands side. However, even if the players are affected by the strange antics of their eccentric manager, Newcastle United are a club in turmoil. Seven straight defeats compounded by some pub league defending have seen the Magpie's sucked into a relegation dogfight. The only favourable thing for Newcastle is their final four fixtures. All four of their games do look winnable if they can significantly up their performance levels. They have to host West Brom and West Ham, who both have little to play for, and travel to QPR, who may already be relegated by the time that fixture comes around. I think Newcastle will be survive by the skin of their teeth. I cannot see them not picking up a victory from one of those three fixtures. The reality of their situation has to dawn on them at some point and there will be a result in there somewhere to match. That victory will not come today, however. Leicester have turned a corner and they will simply overwhelm Newcastle with their all out attacking style at the King Power Stadium.

Leicester City to beat Newcastle United @ evens with Boylesports, Stan James and BetBright.

Betway Premier League Darts 2015, Week 13 - 30/04/2015

Betway Premier League Darts 2015 hits Birmigham tonight and I have three best bets up:

Dave Chisnall to beat Adrian Lewis @ 13/8 with Bet Victor.

Dave Chisnall has posted four straight 100+ averages in the Premier a League. He is practically assured of a spot in the playoffs and has the perfect opportunity to punch his ticket tonight against Adrian Lewis who, in my opinion, never really looks up for the fight in the Premier League. He's only made the playoffs twice in seven attempts and that is simply not good enough for a player of his class. The short format, for whatever reason, doesn't seem to suit his game and despite the fact his form has picked up and he's given himself every chance of qualifying, his averages have been hovering around the mid to high 90's and could be overwhelmed by the scoring power of Chisnal.

Raymond van Barneveld to beat Gary Anderson @ 12/5 with Bet365.

What could have been a disasterous week for the Flying Scotsman turned out to be a pretty good one. Anderson put in the most abject display of darts I have seen from him in many a year against Stephen Bunting last week and came out later in the night to blitz a Michael van Gerwen at the top of his game. Anderson, however, has openly confessed he is struggling to get match practice in and he's just not feeling up for,it at this current time. It was the same story for RVB several weeks ago. He was questioning his attitude, whether he belongs with the elite anymore and looked seriously ready to pack it all in. Fast forward a few weeks and Barney hasn't looked back. Three gutsy victories on the spin against Taylor, MVG and Chisnal have given him all the confidence in the world that he can retain his crown. He's well overpriced at 12/5 to see off Anderson.

James Wade vs Stephen Bunting - under 4.5 match 180's @ 6/5 with Bet Victor.

I look at this match with a sense of dread. James Wade looks a shadow of his formal self and a terrible run of form have seen his playoff chances all but evaporate. The problem for the Machine has been his scoring. All too often the first dart his the treble 20, but the other two fail to follow it in. He can't even call upon his trademark quality finishing because he's not scoring enough to give himself any chances. This was summed up in his drubbing by MVG last week when, not only did he not win a leg, he didn't even get one dart at a double. Bunting can score very well, but he has also been struggling to get all three darts into the red bit. His third dart is often snatched and I think under 4.5 180's in this match looks a solid bet.