OnThePunt smells another rat in NRL

from OnThePunt.com

The annual State of Origin rugby league series always proves a hit with punters - but the winner of Game One's "Channel Nine Man of the Match" had some punters and bookies scratching their heads. NSW five-eighth Greg Bird (10/1) got the nod ahead of the likes of Gasnier, Wallace, Cooper and Fitzgibbon. The Australian selectors vote for the man of the match award.

Fair enough some might say, its the opinion of four blokes who have had a bit to do with Rugby League over their time and it is just that - an opinion. But here's the stinger. Within the betting industry, the Channel Nine Man of Match award has a bit of a reputation for being a touch on "dodgy" side over the years. And now we find out that several bookies laid three players before the jump - all to significantly high wagers. The players were Buderus, Hodges and Greg Bird.

At least one bookmaker is believed to be seeking clarification from authorities citing integrity concerns and is refusing to pay out on the market.

Comments

It's all gone Pete Tong at Betfair!

The Christmas Hurdle from Leopardstown, a good Grade 2 race during the holiday period. But now it will go into history as the race which brought Betfair down. Over £21m at odds of 29 available on Voler La Vedette in-running - that's a potential liability of over £500m. You might think that's a bit suspicious, something's fishy, especially with the horse starting at a Betfair SP of 2.96. Well, this wasn't a horse being stopped by a jockey either - the bloody horse won! Look at what was matched at 29. Split that in half and multiply by 28 for the actual liability for the layer(s). (Matched amounts always shown as double the backers' stake, never counts the layers' risk). There's no way a Betfair client would have £600m+ in their account. Maybe £20 or even £50m from the massive syndicates who regard(ed) Betfair as safer than any bank, but not £600m. So the error has to be something technical. However, rumour has it, a helpdesk reply (not gospel, natur

Spot-fixing - you will never, ever be able to stop it

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lay the field - my favourite racing strategy

Dabbling with laying the field in-running at various prices today, not just one price, but several in the same race. Got several matched in the previous race at Brighton, then this race came along at Nottingham. Such a long straight at Nottingham makes punters often over-react and think the finish line is closer than it actually is. As you can see by the number of bets matched, there was plenty of volatility in this in-play market. It's rare you'll get a complete wipe-out with one horse getting matched at all levels, but it can happen, so don't give yourself too much risk...

Sport is made for betting

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