The Recreational Punter

I do not entirely agree with all the criticism of the Indian cricket authorities for producing two "unplayable" bunsens in the last 2 tests. All countries tend to produce "homers" which favour their bowlers. England have done it in the past. India may have gone a bit further and been a bit more blatant perhaps but their spinners are much better than ours, and England have batted poorly. What intrigues me is the impact the furore will have on the pitch prepared for the 4th test? If the cynical view is correct then surely India will prepare the blandest pitch possible as a draw will give them victory in the series. Equally they could respond to the criticism over the poor pitch by preparing a good one which does not take spin until the 4th day.  It seems to me that whichever way you look at it there is a fair chance that we will see a road, which must finally bring the draw into the equation. Best price 7/1 with Boylesports and Skybet.

Friday's bets were ok. There was money for Alexandra Romanov (returned 12/1 SP, having been widely available at 33/1 in the morning). Looked like winning a furlong out but just out battled to finish a promising 2nd. She's going in the tracker and should be well capable of winning a novice hurdle at Plumpton or Fontwell. As for Maazel he ran ok. I got the distance wrong, and it appeared to me so did the jockey! I think he can still win at 9 or 10 furlongs and is worth backing at small stakes a couple of more times. As for Saturday a mixed day. It started well with another Lee Carter horse, Enough Already in the 11.45 at Lingfield. I noted him with the comment "Now trained by LC. Fat at Kempton 16 Dec. Could win a handicap when fit". It appears the horse did not take umbrage at my body negative comments because he came from behind to win by a short head at a rewarding 14/1. I fancied GA Law in the 1.50 at Kempton, because of his Fontwell form when he had beaten Getaway...

Some good racing today, especially at Warwick and Exeter. The Devon National is a real marathon at what is probably the toughest track in the country, now Towcester is no more (except for the dogs).  Indeed today's fare looks more enticing than the rather rather dreary cards for Saturday - too near to Cheltenham syndrome. After an hour spent studying the 15 runners in the Devon National (3.10 Exeter) I have narrowed it down to 14 and that's only because Head to the Stars has been withdrawn. It's a 'sit back and try to enjoy without having a bet race' for me. Just 2 small wagers today then.  In the bumper at Warwick (4.53) I cannot resist a small bet on Alexandra Romanov. She's an unraced Sixties Icon filly and has some relatives that have done ok on the flat. The trainer, Sheena West, does well with her Sixties Icon horses. She buys most of them direct from Mick Channon. This one is owned by the trainer who will presumably be looking for a buyer so hopefully the...

I am pretty sure that I am not the only punter who finds not backing a winner worse than backing a loser. The agony when the horse that you have followed 3 times and then abandoned only to see it hack up the first time it runs without the burden of your money on its back. Even worst the bet you intended to have but for whatever reason (beer sometimes features) you did not have. I even cheered a horse home once only to check my account afterwards and find I had backed a completely different horse in error. Well for - with hindsight - stupid reasons I had decided to back the draw in the current 3rd test between India and England. Even with the 2% commission the 7.2 available on Betfair was the best odds available (it was 13/2 with most bookies). I placed my £20 assuming it would be matched. As I type the Indian 1st innings is about to end (England have already been all out) and it is only the morning of the 2nd day. The draw is now available at 490! Then I noticed that my bet had not bee...

India v England in a floodlight test match - so start at 9am GMT. My only bet is Jasprit Bumrah to be a man of the match. His bowling action is certainly unique (and would have been coached out of him had he been English) and is ideally suited to the swing which should be generated once the lights take effect. Incidentally the stadium where the match is taking place can accommodate a crowd of 132,000. There is little doubt where the centre of the cricketing world is now - and it is certainly not Lords. As for yesterday's bets The Widdow Maker was very impressive and looks a high class prospect now he has shown he can settle. The SP return at 13/8 was also better than expected. One to be followed. In contrast Foxey was very disappointing. Looks like he may need two more wind operations, the previous two having clearly not done the trick. NB - whenever I type Bumrah my auto-correct changes it to Burma. Thought we were not allowed to call it that anymore?

Betting shops may be allowed to open on April 14. The Grand National is April 12. Foreign holidays may be allowed from May 19. My trip to Greece is booked for May 17.

The match statistics for last night's Brighton v Crystal Palace were much as expected- Possession Brighton 75% Palace 25% Shots Brighton 25 Palace 3 Corners Brighton 11 Palace 0, and the result Brighton 1 Crystal Palace 2. Roy Hodgson did look a little embarrassed when Benteke scored at the end. But at least Roy was not wearing shorts, and I had backed Palace to small stake comfort bet. Brighton maybe 18th in the Premier League but in the competition which matters (the one judged by expected points) they are 4th.  Animal ran ok in the 2.20 at Southwell yesterday- there was money for ... the animal - 25/1 available in the morning. Returned at SP of 8/1. He can win a handicap - especially at Plumpton. Just 2 bets today- Foxey 2.45 Wetherby. His bumper form worked out well. Today is his first run after 2nd bit of wind surgery. If he does not win today I expect him to next time.  The Widdow Maker 1.30 Taunton. Will be favourite (you might get evens). Ran a weird race at Wincanton ...

The usual roller coaster weekend of punting fun (apart from the golf and football). My stick wielding pals told me that Dustin Johnson (or DJ as they insist on calling him) was a 'certainty' for the Genesis Invitational. His price was 11/2 - "back him each-way at firms paying 8 places as there is 'no way' he can be out of the top 8". I had a £20 each way 'interest' bet on DJ as I knowingly referred to him.  The course, Riviera Country Club, looked pretty  spectacular, surrounded by an urban sprawl of large homes in LA (these initials are catching on). My knowledge of golf is admittedly limited but DJ did not exactly seem unbeatable. When I checked in from time to time on Sunday evening he kept hitting trees and missing putts and he eventually finished 8th after a final round 72. Trouble was so did 3 others, so my return on the proverbial 'each way bet to nothing' was an unlucky for some £13.13 for the £40 invested. Not much luck with the footba...

This is a horse I get wrong every time. He was brilliant on heavy ground on the flat - especially in October 2019 at Nottingham. Watch it here . I remember Hector Crouch saying how sorry he was that  Goshen would be going hurdling afterwards (maybe, with hindsight, he was right).  Then of course Goshen won 3 hurdle races really easily. I was there at Footwell when he was miles clear and Jamie Moore let him run down the last hurdle to make sure there was no danger of him tipping up. I had laid him in each of these and then backed him for the Triumph. Again he was miles clear but this time the jockey (understandably in a grade 1 race) did not let him run down the hurdle and the jockey was unseated.  This term he has run disappointingly on the flat, and then even worse in a hurdle race at Cheltenham in December. He was 6/4 favourite but beaten by an impressive Song For Someone (6/1), and may (or may not - depends who you listen to) have had a defibrillating heart (something ...

No not aftertiming, this was my betting day. I thought someone might find it interesting what my bets were today (and why) and what happened- 1.00 Leicester  Backed Watar Allstar at 16/1. Andy Irvine (Zoe Davison) trained dour stayer type who might like the longer trip. And he duly dourly stayed on into 4th - loser. 1.30 Leicester Speculative small bet on This Breac at 8/1 this morning (missed the 10/1 earlier this morning and the 20/1 last night). But he is 3lb lower than when winning this last year at big odds. Despite never looking like doing so Bryony got his head in front again. Result. 2.05 Leicester Backed Little Light, also ridden by Bryony Frost. My theory here was that she could have ridden Eclair de Guye (who she won on last time) for Lucy Wadham at Sandown but had gone to Leicester instead. Little Light started at the back and stayed there throughout - loser. Bryony obviously went to Leicester for This Breac! 2.13 Fontwell My money was on Right Hand of God. For reasons ...

Ok golf is not exactly my favourite sport - better than motor racing and ice skating maybe but apart from the Open and the Masters I struggle to take much interest. Those clothes, the saloon bar image, the rather old fashioned attitudes to women, shorts and wearing jeans, and now players and clubs which enable the top players to hit the ball so far that the best courses are no longer a challenge. In my previous job there were always a significant number of keen golfers who took every opportunity to play the sport which us non-participants called 'freemasons with sticks' (as it happens with some justification. I do though occasionally have a bet on it though. It is one of the few sports where there are regular 100/1 winners and even Tiger Woods in his pomp would go off 3/1 plus. Obviously at those prices picking the winner is difficult but there are some factors which can help. Golf is very much a form game with players having hot (and cold) streaks). The trick is to spot the pl...

Thoroughly enjoyed listening to this RTE podcast about a great greyhound gamble centred on Mullingar dog track in 1978. It's described as a 'coup', which is not entirely accurate as ultimately it failed. It's wonderful charming story, really well told with interviews with the surviving organisers. The basic plot was to have an off course gamble at bookies across the whole of Ireland at tote odds on the classy stayer Ballydonnell Sam, while at the same time ensuring noone could bet on the favourite on the tote on track. There were 5 Tote windows at Mullingar and the team blocked these for the 15 minutes prior to the race by having really slow, complicated bets on all kinds of combinations other than the favourite, and making 'mistakes' so bets had to be cancelled and reissued. Ultimately they were so successful that only one bet at 1punt was placed on the Tote for Ballydonnell Sam, but it was this 'success' that proved to be the organisers' downfall....

On my officially sanctioned and allowed exercise (a walk round the block) today I listened to the latest episode of The Business Of Betting podcast .  Jake, the host, interviews Harry Findlay. I say interviews, but actually Harry talks for 50 minutes. I am afraid that when it comes to Mr Findlay my bullshit detector does tend to bleep. However what he had to say perked my interest. He suggested that the Tote in the UK is shortly to provide pool betting on greyhound racing with a take out of only 5-10% and no rebates for big punting syndicates.  For years now the Tote has been a rip off. When the national Tote was owned and run by Betfred the take outs were 16.5% on win pools, and a massive 25% on exactas and trifectas. In 2019 the UK Tote left the clutches of the bald one and was acquired by the UK Tote Group . Up till now I have to admit I have not noticed much difference. There is an app on which you can bet into the placepot, and on course you fill in a form and then the to...

A friend of mine is an avid supporter of Cambridge United. Slightly surprisingly Cambridge are top of League 2. To be honest this position flatters them on the basis of how they have played but they are, in fairness, doing better than was expected at the beginning of this very strange season. Midweek they lost to the hype side Salford City (funded by all sorts of ex-Man Utd types) 4-1. The stats (expected goals etc), suggested Cambridge were unlucky.  This weekend they faced Southend at home. The latter have been on a good run of late but again the stats (expected goals etc. - you get the picture) suggested that flattered The Shrimpers. I therefore lumped on Cambridge. The result 0-0. But at least I discovered that the Cambridge groundsman is the best in the country. He got the match on (when almost all the other League 2 games were postponed due to frozen pitches). It might have cost me money but Ian Darler, said groundsman, deserves a mention. He's worked there for 42 years and h...

One of things that has kept me going through this winter's house arrest has been Friday evenings spent doing the form for the next day's races, in particular the top class stuff broadcast on ITV. The freeze has put paid to that today with both Warwick and Newbury (2 of my favourite tracks for jumps racing) off. So what is a recreational punter to do, with no racing and no end in sight to being confined to barracks? Betting on football and cricket it is then, and a chance to test some theories. For some time my sensible (as opposed to stupid or emotional) football bets have concentrated on backing the draw in clashes between evenly matched teams. The thinking is that bookmakers know punters prefer backing a team to win, and therefore the draw price provides better value. Added to this is some evidence to suggest that no crowds mean that teams are less pressurised to go for a win, and more likely to 'settle' for a draw. In the Premiership this weekend there are 2 matches ...

This morning there was a dreadful commotion in my living room. I put down my giant JD Sports mug (sorry tasteless I know) of tea to investigate and found a rook flying about manically, crashing into mirrors. It hid behind my country and western CDs but with the help of a broom handle I eventually coaxed it out and through the back door to freedom. The poor bird had somehow made its way down the chimney (unlike Father Christmas last December). Fortunately there was no significant damage done, but upon closer investigation I found it had managed to sh*t on my copy of John Francome's autobiography 'Born Lucky', which I had happened to be re-reading the night before. With virtually no racing this week - even the all-weather at Newcastle was called off today - I sadly have no chance to test if this will prove lucky for my punting as well.

Didtheyleaveuoutto carried my hard earned in the 4.20 jumpers bumper at Kempton. I saw this horse win a bumper impressively at Lingfield 3 years ago. Ok I am no expert but it seems to me that Didtheyleaveuoutto cannot jump and does not like soft ground so back on the all weather he seemed to have a really good chance. The race report on his run sums things up - " tracked leaders on inside, travelling well when switched out inside final 2f, shaken up over 1f out, went 2nd inside final furlong, finished strongly, not reach winner".  Basically he should have won. Poor ride by Aidan Coleman. The horse is owned by JP  Mcmanus. I think JP sends 1 horse every 5 years or so to Nick Gifford out of respect for Nick's father Josh. The big 2 mile plus handicaps on the flat have been plundered in recent years by leading jumps trainers. Willie Mullins, Alan King and Nicky Henderson regularly have winners on the flat at, for example, York, Royal Ascot and 'Glorious' Goodwood.  ...

The Dublin Racing Festival lived up to the hype. I was delighted to see Honeysuckle and Rachel Blackmore win so well. I make her favourite for the Champion Hurdle now. And the winner of the appropriately named Future Stars bumper on the first day was amazing - Kilcruit looked like he had joined in with 3 furlongs to go. However I am slightly ashamed to say that as a punter I was just as excited by the gamble that was nearly landed. The racing coverage in the Guardian is at least as good as in any broadsheet and Greg Wood's article covers the details thoroughly.  Mr Wood is a bit disapproving but I suspect most of us punters have a sneaky regard for this attempt to beat the bookmakers.  From what I can gather the backers were in Ireland and they placed a series of doubles, trebles and trixies to fairly small stakes at evening before prices. It is virtually impossible to get a really large bet on at a big price the night before, but these 3 horses were all 25/1 plus so the odds...

Just had a bet on Finnegans Garden in the 3.50 at Plumpton tomorrow. It was only £40 with the Betfair Sportsbook at 15/2. Immediately after my wager the price shrunk to 13/2. Am I now an influencer?

Essaka is a horse I have a strange affection for. Now 9 years old, he's had 6 wins from 77 runs. He's a low grade sprinter who takes part in those races at the 'gaffs' where you could be forgiven for thinking the horses take it in turns to win. 4 of his wins have been at Brighton, a real specialists' track - and probably after Epsom the fastest 5 furlongs in the country. One of my earliest horses to follow was Belper, who ran up a series of wins at Brighton in the 1970's. Belper was blind in his right eye but his vision in his left was fine. Provided he could get on the rail he was unbeatable. If he was forced to race off the rail then that was his chance gone as he could not see where he was going. Jockeys were really brave (or maybe stupid) in those days! Essaka has run 16 times on the all-weather and never won on it. However all of these have either been on polytrack or tapeta. Today he runs for the first time at Southwell (in the 1.35) on their fibresand sur...

The Irish Turf Club became the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board in 2018. The main reason for the change was to ensure that the directors could not be sued personally - in effect the old Turf Club was turned into a limited liability company. This year the IHRB has been dogged by controversy, with suggestions of a lacklustre response to the use of performance enhancing drugs, shambolic starting procedures, a failure to police non-triers and the recent Viking Hoard doping case . The directors may be very relieved that the risk of finding themselves in court has been removed. Credit where it is due therefore as this weekend we can enjoy the Dublin Racing Festival. This is in only its third year but it has already established itself as the highlight of the late winter racing scene. There is little doubt that the quality of this weekend's contests is much higher than anything we see in the UK in January or February. The innovation of bringing together a disparate set of fixtures at dif...

"Cricket is an Indian game accidentally discovered by the English." Ash Nandy Great to wake up this morning and find proper cricket on Channel 4. Well done to whoever took the decision to show the India v England test series on terrestrial TV. Sky's coverage is great but our national summer game (and India's!) deserves a wider audience for some of the time. The amazing victory by India in Australia demonstrated the strength in depth of the Indians. Their young batsmen in particular have benefitted from the need to deliver under pressure in the IPL. This gave them the confidence to chase down a record 2nd innings target at the Gabba. T20 cricket is undoubtedly fun and has reached a new audience, but in reality too many of the matches are fairly predictable from an early stage of the match. I have real reservations about the current T10 league taking place in the UAE. It would be no surprise to find the people most keen on this format are the spot fixers and illegal boo...

It's the Super Bowl this weekend - the highlight of the American sporting year. There are many people whose knowledge and judgement I respect who thoroughly enjoy the NFL, but try as I might I just cannot get into a game which seems designed to provide TV bosses with as many breaks as possible to sell advertising space. Mind you cricket's IPL is going that way, with this year's addition of timeouts (i.e. 2 minutes of adverts even though a wicket has not fallen). So what do I like about football as it is called on Pinnacle's website (you have to look up soccer to find the 'football' odds)? The referee's uniform is great and I have heard of Tom Brady, the legendary quarterback, who will be playing in his 10th Super Bowl.  Brady though invites another comparison with 'soccer'. What if a finalist in European Champion's League had a centre back who was Brady's age - 43? Surely you would think he's too old to be playing at that level? After all...

I have always felt slightly uneasy when the top trainers run horses in hunter chases. Of course it's all within the rules but to me not within the spirit of what these races are for - the chance for point to point trainers to have runners at proper racetracks. Owing to the convids it's now got worse because amateur riders cannot take part under the rules which allow elite sport to continue. There used to a bit of an angle because the standard of those amateurs varies enormously.  Which leads me to the 4.10 hunter chase at Warwick today. As I type there are 17 runners, showing how keen the point to point trainers are to run their horses - despite the really tough jumping test which is Warwick and the inevitable very heavy going. Olly Murphy (see my first paragraph) has a runner, The World's End, who was near to top class under 'rules', winning a grade 1 and coming 6th in the Stayers' championship at the Cheltenham festival. He will be favourite. But lets hope one...

 I think I may have written before about the dangers of betting on 'bumpers for jumpers.' You can never be quite sure who is trying to win and who is using the 'race' as an opportunity for a free racecourse gallop. Today's 1.55 at Newcastle provided a case in point. Plenty in the Tank was sent off the 9/2 2nd favourite. The horse is trained by Olly Murphy and owned by Oliver Jack Murphy (who I am assuming is a relation). In October 2019, when trained by Ed de Giles, it won a bumper at Chepstow quite easily. It was then bought for £75k by the current owner. The horse had wind surgery and ran poorly in 2 hurdle races for Olly Murphy. In today's race it looked to my eye that Plenty in the Tank was on a schooling run. He started near the back, ran round fine and finished 7th of 12 with (well) plenty in the tank. Plenty in the Tank has gone into my tracker. I'd suggest the new owner will want to recoup some of that £75k before too long.