Marking your card for 2013

Marking your card for 2013


Feature
Michael Duffy

Last year's top tips
MICHAEL Bradley’s Edinburgh scuppered the accumulator on last year’s five certs. Their shock victory over Toulouse in the Heineken Cup quarter-final last year meant Clermont Auvergne went further than Toulouse, and put paid to the 8/11 we had on Toulouse to be the last French team in the competition. The other four certs obliged, those being Ruby Walsh to be top jockey at Cheltenham (1/2), Charlton to win promotion to League One (3/10), Germany to qualify from their Euro 2012 group (2/7) and Mayo to win the Connacht Championship (8/13).

THE CERTS

1 Dr Crokes and Crossmaglen to reach Club Final 1/1
THE standard of football in the Club Championship is getting better every year and while St Brigid’s of Roscommon and Ballymun Kickhams are very good sides, I think Dr Crokes and Crossmaglen Rangers are on a collision course this season and both should win their semi-finals on February 16.
Crossmaglen just seem to get better and better and have come through a difficult Ulster Championship with flying colours, while Dr Crokes look like men on a mission this year. If both qualify, it should be a cracker.

2 Nicky Henderson to be top trainer at Cheltenham 1/2
THE wet weather has made it difficult to weigh up contenders for this year’s Cheltenham Festival and if the ground does come up soft, some of the fancied runners may well opt out. However, a safe bet is the 1/2 being offered by William Hill about Nicky Henderson being top trainer at the festival.
The wily old campaigner has an embarrassment of riches to his name for all the big races, and he is also assured of picking up a handicap or two. Cheltenham finishes on March 15.


3 Cardiff to win the Championship 8/11
THE Championship is a notoriously difficult division to navigate, but the title looks at the mercy of ‘Malky’ Mackay’s Cardiff City side, currently seven points clear with 16 games remaining.
8/11 is a skimpy enough price, but three of their next four home games (against Ipswich, Bristol and Brighton) look very winnable, and if they can pick up some draws away from home, then they look sure to push on and claim a place in the top flight of English football for the first time since 1957. The Championship finishes on May 4.

4 Man Utd to win Premier League, Bayern Munich to win Bundesliga, Barcelona to win La Liga, Juventus to win Serie A 4/6
ALL the major European soccer leagues have a distinctly lop-sided look to them, and it’s nearly impossible to see any of the four big guns slipping up. Barcelona and Bayern Munich are home and hosed, and Juventus are eight points clear in Serie A.
Man City will offer stern resistance for their local rivals, but Alex Ferguson’s Man Utd side now have RVP, whose firepower should see them reclaim their title come May 19.

5 Dublin to win the Leinster title 4/6
IN our predictions for the 2013 season in last week’s Mayo News, I went for the Dubs to win the All-Ireland, and while they will have plenty of competition for Sam, I can’t see anyone in Leinster getting close to them.
Jim Gavin’s appointment as manager will add a fresh impetus and appetite to the set-up, and they should have too much in the tank for Kildare in the semi-final and probably old rivals Meath in the final itself on July 14.

ACCUMULATOR PAYS 14/1


THE VALUE BETS
1 Colbert Station to win the Grand National 20/1
IT’S hard enough to pick the winner of the Grand National on the day of the race, never mind in January! But we were impressed with the way Colbert Station landed the Paddy Power Chase over Christmas.
He landed a big gamble in the hands of AP McCoy and his owner and trainer, JP McManus and Ted Walsh, are canny operators. A lot will depend on the weight he is allocated but he is lightly raced, jumps for fun and stays all day. The Grand National is on April 6.

2 Mark Selby to win World Snooker Championship 15/2
I WENT for the ‘Jester from Leicester’ to win the World Championship last year, but injury destroyed Selby’s preparations and he was hammered by Barry Hawkins in the first round at the Crucible.
However, I am prepared to give him another crack at odds of 15/2, as he showed he can compete with the best of them by winning the UK Championship recently. The Snooker World Championship starts on April 20.

3 Michael Van Gerwen to win the Premier League of Darts 5/2
THE price may be a bit skimpy in terms of value, but I can’t see past MVG for this year’s newly-revamped Premier League.
The first ten rounds this year are the best of 12 legs so it is easy to see the explosive Van Gerwen bursting from the blocks and sealing victories very quickly by taking seven legs.
The Dutchman is the most improved player in the game and he is bound to throw a nine darter at some stage.
The competition starts in February and finishes in May.

4 Borussia Dortmund to win theChampions League 7/1
WITH only the round of 16 drawn yet, it’s difficult to predict the winner of the Champions League, as the route to the final is all important.
However, Borussia Dortmund were hugely impressive in the group stages and their brand of counter-attacking football will be suitable for knockout football.
If they get over Shakhtar Donestsk in the last 16, they will be a danger to any team.
They are out of the running for the Bundesliga and can concentrate fully on Europe’s top soccer prize. The Champions League Final is on May 25.

5 Galway to win All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 4/1
2012 was a very successful debut season for Anthony Cunningham as Galway hurling manager, and I think they are great value at 4/1 to topple the Cats and go one better in 2013.
Joining the Leinster Championship has clearing benefitted their preparations. While Joe Canning is clearly still their star man, he no longer has the burden of winning matches on his own, with players like Damien Hayes and Damien Burke well able to step up to the mark. The All-Ireland Hurling Final takes place on September 8.

ACCUMULATOR It’s the stuff dreams are made of, but if you put a €10 accumulator on these five tips, and the first four obliged, you would be waiting on Galway to win the All-Ireland final for a windfall of €249,900.