County Championship 2012

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 With the couple of rain affected drawn matches last week, I'm still sitting on +15.68 for the tournament. Expect very few results this week which means the matches that are completed, could throw up a few surprise results. I'm taking 4 in total though, 2 in both divisions. Lancashire to beat Somerset- 11/8 StanJames- (4/10) There's very little chance of a result here the groundsman has said as there's a lot of rain expected for the south-west but if there is a result, I feel Lancashire have a decent chance of taking it. They haven't started the season well, losing to both Sussex and Warwickshire but there were signs in the match against Warwickshire that they were finally beginning to play some decent cricket. A couple of centuries from Darren Maddy and Rikki Clarke really were the undoing of Lancashire as at one point, they had them at 81-7 and really struggling. Batting has been their real Achilles heel in the first couple of matches, and they will desprately need the likes of Paul Horton, Stephen Moore and Ashwell Prince to really fire with the bat at the top of the order. The bowling has been decent though, with Simon Kerrigan leading with the ball and I expect Saj Mahmood to be back in the side to bolster the seam attack as well as Tom Smith who is back in the squad. Somerset have been solid at the start of this season, with a win, a loss and a draw to their name but injuries to Trescothick and Kirby are big blows for them and the pair will be out for at least 3/4 weeks each meaning a couple of twin youngsters have been drafted into the squad. They do have Nick Compton in their ranks however, who has been the star with the bat in the early part of the season in county cricket. There is plenty of rain about in this part of the country, but there isn't a great deal between the two sides, and the Lancashire batsman will start scoring runs sooner rather than later, and when that happens they are a dangerous outfit given their bowling talent. At a decent price, I'm happy to back Moore's men to try and force a win here, weather permitted. Surrey to beat Durham- 6/5 StanJames- (3/10) Happy to back Surrey at odds against here as they haven't done a whole lot wrong this season, excluding the horror batting show they put on against Middlesex on the final day at Lord's. They beat Sussex comfortably in their first match, and they were in a decent position to beat Worcestershire but there was too much rain about for a result in that one. Jacques Rudolph returns for them which is a huge boost, as their top order have lacked a few runs, leaving it down to the likes of Hamilton-Brown, Maynard and the lower order to chip in with the runs. Mark Ramprakash has been penalised this week for some antics in their last match and it could well be he who makes way for Rudolph potentially as the veteran hasn't done anything with the bat so far this season. The Surrey bowlers have all been amongst the wickets though which is a good sign for them, and if they want, Tom Linley could come back into the side, but in whichever case, the seam attack is still a vastly strong one. Durham are still without Steve Harmison, and Ian Blackwell has also been ruled out for the visit to the Oval with a shoulder injury. Durham haven't had the best of starts to the season. First up they were hammered by Notts, and although they dominated the majority of the match against Middlesex, they were slightly fortunate in the end that the rain came to their rescue in the final session as they were struggling in their run chase. Graham Onions has started the season well with the ball and he will need to lead from the front once again if his side are to get success against a strong Surrey outfit. Like I said, Surrey really haven't done a lot wrong so far this season, and once their top 3/4 hit some runs early up, they will be even more solid than they have been. Hamilton-Brown and Maynard have started the season well in the middle order, and the bowlers have all chipped in. Surrey look the more youthful of the two sides, and possibly have more match winners amongst their ranks, and I fancy them as the underdogs in this one. Couple for division 2: Gloucestershire to beat Glamorgan- 10/11 Bet365- (4/10) Although I expect Gloucestershire to really struggle this season, I'd have them bigger favourites against Glamorgan here. The problem with the dragons is their batting. Only once in 6 innings have they managed to score above 200 so far this season, and that's a really poor stat for Mark Wallace's men. Granted their bowling has been far better, but the news that Jim Allenby is out with a back injury is a huge blow for them in both batting and bowling departments as he's contributed with both bat and ball. With Glamorgan losing one of their better players, Gloucestershire welcome back arguably their best batsman in Kane Williamson. The New Zealand man returns after making a century against South Africa recently which is certainly no easy task so that's a huge boost for Gloucestershire that he is back for another spell at the club. David Payne is out with injury but with the way Glamorgan have been batting, you'd have to fancy the likes of Will Gidman and co to have some success with the ball. Unless we see a vast improvement in the way the Welsh side play, Gloucestershire should win this as they do possess a couple of good cricketers amongst their ranks in Williamson and Hamish Marshall who made some runs in his last innings against Kent and Will Gidman with the ball. Glamorgan with the way they've played, must be suffering from a lack of confidence, and with Gloucestershire finally having a home match, I'll back them to beat their Welsh opponents in this one. Northants to beat Essex- 13/8 Bet365- (3/10) Northamptonshire look a big price to me here. The Northants coach David Capel has called for his players to improve after a couple of poor results this season and I think they will respond down at Chelmsford. They have their talisman and captain Andrew Hall back in the squad for the first time this season and that's a huge boost, as without him, their side is left extremely unbalanced. Con de Lange impressed in the recent second XI match as well meaning he has been included in the squad. Northants' batting has let them down so far this season, with nobody really performing at the top of the order on a consistent basis. Stephen Peters has been particularly disappointing as he is usually ultra consistent for his side so Hall and co will be hoping the top order can find some form. Jack Brooks has been superb in the early part of the season though, taking 12 wickets in his first 2 matches, and with the backup of Vaas, Hall, Willey and Middlebrook combined, there they have a decent bowling outfit. I'm still not totally convinced by this Essex side. The whole match fixing incident over the summer left a few eyebrows raised but it doesn't seem to have affected them too much as they trounced Gloucestershire in their opening game and then were lucky to avoid defeat to Yorkshire. However, whilst there's no doubting their batting capabilities with the likes of Petersen, Bopara and Foster in their ranks, their bowling attack doesn't impress me a great deal. With Chris Wright leaving, it's left to the likes of Masters and Willoughby to take wickets constantly, and whilst they are good county cricketers, both are well on the wrong side of 30 and it's a tough ask for them to take 12/13 wickets combined week in week out. Willoughby looks set to return to the side, but there's every chance he may be a touch rusty as he hasn't played so far this season. Graham Napier may also miss out as he's facing a late fitness test, whilst Tim Phillips is also likely to miss out which to me leaves the bowling department short, and that's not helped by Ten Doeschate still away at the IPL. With the conditions that are likely to be about, the bowlers should get a great deal of success, and that's why I'm backing Northants here. Brooks and Vaas are quality seamers with the new ball, and if they can get stuck into this Essex batting lineup early up, there's no reason why they are such outsiders for this one. With skipper Andrew Hall back, that adds a ton of quality and balance to the Steelbacks side and I'll back them to improve vastly on their previous couple of results this season.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Surrey failing by 3 runs a couple of weeks ago was so annoying. Took last week off as the forecast was crap but despite threatening to be worse there's some pockets of dry weather this week so I'll get involved. +8.13pts coming into this round but already with some outrights off to fast starts. 4pts Lancashire to beat Somerset 11/8 Stan James Lancashire have begun their Championship defence with two defeats and they will probably be glad to get away from Liverpool for a bit and head to a place which will hold fond memories for them as Taunton was where they won the title last year. They will take on a Somerset side who aren't in great nick particularly despite the excellent start to the season Nick Compton has made. I do feel Somerset's results have been better than their performances and for the sake of my outright on him I hope it doesn't happen but were Compton to fail you wonder if there is a deck of cards feel about this Somerset line up especially in bowling conditions. It's well publicised that there is no Trescothick for Somerset this week and Lewis Gregory isn't an opening batsman. Steve Kirby is missing as well although his place will be taken by the recalled Vernon Philander who is back in the side. Lancashire have had a funny start to their campaign. Their batsmen haven't got going yet but they have Tom Smith back this week and he was a pivotal part of their title winning side last year and he could be the missing key in their batting line up. This wicket should be nice for batting too. One thing Lancashire do have is a strong bowling attack and if Compton doesn't go well in this match then there will be a brittle look to this young Somerset batting line up and despite 2 defeats so far I think Lancashire have played better than the results suggest and given that and Somerset's injuries 11/8 on the champions is just a bit too good to turn down. 4pts Durham to beat Surrey 4/5 Coral Obviously for the sake of my outright bet on Surrey I hope I'm wrong here but until the main men in their batting line up start firing I think I have to take them on here. Jacques Rudolph comes back into the side for the hosts after some family issues kept him out last week but Surrey's main concern is their engine room. Ramprakash and Zander de Bruyn have scored a total of 156 runs in 12 innings this season so far and with a distinct lack of batting depth it is vital to this Surrey side that while the wickets are doing a bit that these two score runs because the attacking gamble of Hamilton-Brown's style isn't going to keep coming off, especially against a Durham attack this good. In a way that's the concern for the hosts here. They have played for me the two worst attacks in the division in Sussex and Worcestershire and still their highest score is only 273. Durham's batsmen haven't fared a huge amount better but we know a couple of things, firstly that their batsmen have all got starts at some point this season and that their batting line up goes a long way down. Even Mitch Claydon at 11 last week slogged a quick 50 odd. Durham's bowling attack is the business with Onions in excellent form and Thorp and Claydon backing him up well. They are without Ian Blackwell for this match but I don't think his spin will be missed and he's only scored 28 runs in 4 innings this season so he's not the miss he could have been. Surrey's bowling attack is good but I don't like the noises coming out of Ramprakash who has been quite critically vocal about the Surrey batsmen thinking batting so far this season has been and continues to be a lottery. You don't win many lotteries against this Durham attack and so I'll take the visitors here. 4pts Warwickshire to beat Sussex 10/11 Ladbrokes Sussex come into this match off the back of a win at Lancashire a couple of weeks ago but I'm going to stand by my original prognosis of this Sussex bowling attack and claim that it is as weak as I thought it was. I saw it on a helpful wicket at Surrey on the opening day of the season and it looked a bit mundane that day and a good game at Liverpool isn't changing my mind about it. Sussex have Matt Prior back for them this week but I like this Warwickshire side. I like it even more with Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott in it. Runs will come nicely and in big numbers from those two and while the likes of Keith Barker and even Darren Maddy are performing with the ball then the Bears will continue to go well. Jeetan Patel is an underrated overseas player and the likes of Neil Carter and Rikki Clarke can put time back into matches which can also be important too. Warwickshire have done nothing wrong so far this season and so I'm going to trust my gut about this Sussex side and take them on and take last year's runners up to pick up a third straight win in this match. And one for Division 2. 3pts Leicestershire 1st Inns Lead vs Hampshire 6/4 BetVictor I think there is a bit of value in this market for the visitors. Despite the return of Michael Carberry and the signing of Simon Katich, Hampshire's batting woes haven't gone away and they haven't even threatened 300 yet let alone score it. In fact having faced two moderate bowling attacks so far Hampshire haven't even got a bonus batting point this season. Leicestershire haven't gone too badly so far and the news that Josh Cobb is fit is a nice boost for them. He and Sarwan both scored centuries last week while the likes of Boyce, du Toit and Smith have all had starts since the season began. Hampshire's batting order is all wrong and until that is sorted out you get the feeling they might struggle for runs. One man who has scored a few this season has been Hamza Riazuddin who I would imagine will make way for the returning Jimmy Tomlinson in this match. Leicestershire might be missing Matthew Hoggard but in the likes of Robbie Joseph and Claude Henderson they have a couple of quality bowlers and in Sarwan they have an in form batsman and given Hampshire's start to the season with the bat I think the Foxes are decent value at 6/4 to lead at half way.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Got to love the start of the cricket season. Be lucky to get any results for some while if the weather stays like this :sad

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 2 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Lancashire v Nottinghamshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.04[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.95[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.30 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Warwickshire v Durham (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.95[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]98.85 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Thursday 3 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Middlesex v Worcestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.66[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.37[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.11 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 2 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Derbyshire v Gloucestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.14[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]99.36 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Glamorgan v Essex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.75[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.53[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.58 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Northamptonshire v Hampshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.62[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.55[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.61 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Yorkshire v Leicestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.53[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.75[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.58 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Hopefully the weather will be ok for enough of these matches to get some results in. It generally looks ok for the majority of three of the days which will be good. I'm taking 3 match bets and a top bat this week. 5pts Warwickshire to beat Durham 11/10 Stan James I'm quite surprised at the price on the Bears here. They seem to be continued to be underrated but that's fine by me. For me they have played the best cricket in division 1 this season and odds against at home is a big price in my opinion. Warwickshire had been going well with the bat anyway but whenever Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott line up for them then you know they will go well with the bat while their bowling attack continues to bowl sides out even without the likes of Boyd Rankin and Chris Woakes through injury. Durham's batting hasn't really got going this season yet and that has to be a concern especially in the conditions we are experiencing at the minute. On paper their batting line up looks a very strong one with almost everyone in the top eight containing international experience but they haven't scored more than 253 with the bat so far. With the ball they will have been dealt a blow in that a back complaint is stopping Ben Stokes from bowling so there is a lot of pressure on the likes of Graham Onions, Mitch Claydon and Callum Thorp with Paul Collingwood chipping in. Ian Blackwell returns to the Durham squad but as I mentioned last week they wouldn't exactly have missed him based on his start to the season so far. To me you have a confident batting line up against a low in confidence one who could be a bit rusty having sat at The Oval and watched the rain fall for four days last week. Everything I can see points towards a Warwickshire win and that's where my money has gone as well. 4pts Nottinghamshire to beat Lancashire 10/11 Ladbrokes I like Nottinghamshire in this match. As I said in my outright preview I think they are going to go very close to winning the title again this season and they've certainly begun the season in that way with a couple of wins and a couple of draws, the latest of which they were dominating when the rain stopped any hope of a result. Apart from being cut open by Nick Compton they have had a good season and Compton is miles clear in the run charts so that's not necessarily a negative. Lancashire have begun the defence of their title very scratchily. They lost their first two matches this season and while they looked to be on top of Somerset last week, Compton aside you have to question what they were on top of exactly. The answer was not much. Both sides include their England stars for this match so Jimmy Anderson plays for Lancashire while Nottinghamshire welcome Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann into their side. It is the latter which interests me the most of this Old Trafford wicket. I expect the wicket now that it has been turned around to be quite slow and I expect it to spin even in these conditions. Certainly it spun last year when it was used for one day and T20 matches and I think Swann could go really well on this wicket. Broad can too with those slower cutters he bowls. Neither batting line up is fantastic but Notts' one is in fair enough form and I think overall they have the stronger side and the one which can suit this wicket the best so I'll take the 2010 champions to beat the 2011 version on the ground where they won that title two years ago. 1pt S.Croft Top Lancashire Batsman vs Nottinghamshire (1st Inns Only) 11/2 BetVictor Steven Croft has probably been Lancashire's best batsman so far this season and I find him a little big to top score again at 11/2. He has top scored in the first innings of two of Lancashire's three matches so far with a 50 and a century and he has begun this season the way he has finished the last season. While he has always been a good one day batsman I'm sure he is the kind of batsman that Peter Moores has asked for more from in the longer form of the game and the early signs are that he is getting it. What I like about this bet is batting in the middle order he should avoid the spells from Stuart Broad and Andre Adams and he can work the lesser bowlers like Paul Franks, Ben Phillips et al. He's a good player of spin so he should play Swann as well as anyone especially being right handed unlike a lot of the Lancashire middle order. Given his form and his credentials I think 11/2 is a touch too big for Lancashire's best batsman this season. 4pts Northamptonshire to beat Hampshire 6/4 BetVictor Northants look like they have been written off a wee bit too quickly according to these odds. Yes they have lost their first two matches this season but they were all over Essex last week only to not have the chance to get stuck into them fully. Andrew Hall returns for the Steelbacks and he not only gives them a top bowling option but he lengthens their batting which is where they have been light so far this season. In Chaminda Vaas and Jack Brooks, Northants have a new ball pairing to be feared and with Jimmy Adams still away from the Hampshire top order for personal problems Vaas and Brooks could enjoy some early joy against Terry and Dawson. To be fair although Vince and Ervine have all the talent in the world once the Carberry/Katich partnership is broken there isn't a huge amount in terms of sustained quality in Hampshire's batting line up. That's perhaps a little harsh on Sean Ervine who led Hampshire to victory at Glamorgan a couple of weeks ago but even so the point is this Hampshire batting line up isn't as strong as it should be or perhaps looks on paper, especially without Adams and with McKenzie yet to arrive. Northamptonshire have some good batsmen in their batting line up and I'm sure with the extra batting quality in Andrew Hall they will feel a bit less pressure and will deliver runs albeit against a decent Hampshire attack. I wouldn't be surprised at all if Hampshire do win this match but there are enough holes in their line up to warrant a punt on last season's long time promotion chasers to pick up a first win of the campaign and launch another promotion push at odds of 6/4.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Presumed the matches started tomorrow with it being a thursday :$ Not sure I would have taken much though to be honest with the bad weather still lingering about. Good luck this week though Kev :ok

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Top stuff kev :clap:clap

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 9 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Durham v Somerset (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.85[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]99.51 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Nottinghamshire v Middlesex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.61[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.5[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.11 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Worcestershire v Surrey (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.5[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.61[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.90 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Sussex v Lancashire (11:05 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.85[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.67 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 9 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Essex v Kent (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.83[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.17 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Gloucestershire v Yorkshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.38[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.69[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.19 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Hampshire v Derbyshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.66[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.37[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.35 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Leicestershire v Northamptonshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.84[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]99.80 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Decent week for me last week with the 3 match bets all winning to move me up to +22.27pts which I'll more than take given the rotten weather we've had in the first month of the season. Sussex vs Lancashire is on TV this week and I'll keep my eye on that. I'm going with two other matches though. Forecast isn't great for Wednesday so any play will be a bonus but we might only need three days for these two anyway so I'll go with them. 7pts Durham to beat Somerset 4/5 Bet365 Durham haven't won a match this season yet but they may well have beaten Middlesex earlier in the season had rain not wiped out the opening day of that match. Their opponent's in this match aren't going a great deal better this season having only won one match which was against Middlesex in the opening week of the season. Since then Somerset has become a bit of a health hazard with injuries galore. Marcus Trescothick is out indefinitely with an ankle issue, Alfonso Thomas is with the IPL, Steve Kirby and Gemaal Hussain are injured and then on the eve of this match Jos Buttler split the webbing on his hand so he misses out here too. Throw on top of all that Nick Compton is away with the England Lions and you have a heavily depleted Somerset side. In fact they are so depleted that they will be playing two spinners in this match because there is nobody else to play. Their 12th man for this match will be their fitness coach! You don't want to play one spinner at Durham if you can avoid it let alone two while two or three of the batsmen will be very young. Durham have no such problems. Somehow Graeme Onions and Scott Borthwick avoided England Lions call ups which is a massive boost for them especially with Steve Harmison still out of action. Ben Stokes is injured which is a blow but the likes of Stoneman and Muchall are good enough batsmen and Onions, Thorp and Claydon should be good enough to take care of this young and light Somerset batting line up with a bit of Paul Collingwood's medium pace to help out if needed. Durham haven't scored enough runs to win matches this season but conditions and Somerset's depleted side suggests this will be a low scoring match but even if it isn't this Somerset attack does have a bit of a cannon fodder look about it minus Vernon Philander who will need to bowl out of his skin to keep Somerset alive in this one. I don't see it. I think Durham's pace attack will tear Somerset apart without Compton holding the batting together and I expect the likes of di Venuto, Collingwood and Benkenstein to feast on the buffet served up and power Durham to a first four day win of the season. 4pts Derbyshire to beat Hampshire 11/8 Skybet I hate taking on Hampshire but the simple fact is it has to be done because their batting line up is not firing at all and even though Jimmy Adams comes back at the top of the order that only compensates the loss of Michael Carberry to the England Lions side. That was a call up Hampshire could have done without and so if Adams, Dawson and Katich fail you worry for this Hampshire side although all Hampshire fans will hope Monday's 80 odd by James Vince in the CB40 can launch him into some kind of rich form. It won't be easy for the Hampshire batsmen though against Derbyshire's bowling attack which is enjoying itself this season. Tim Groenewald and Tony Palladino are going great guns this term and if this Rose Bowl wicket turns I think David Wainwright comes right into the game. He's a spinner I rate very highly so he could cause problems. In the likes of Guptill, Madsen, Redfern and Durston, Derbyshire have a quality top six and they are performing well as a unit this season. Hampshire's bowling attack will be boosted by the return of Kabir Ali but you sense they will have to work harder to get through the Derbyshire batting line up than Derbyshire's bowlers will to get through Hampshire's on the evidence of the season so far. Hampshire still haven't passed 256 with the bat in any competition this season and you wouldn't think they will definitely go past that against this Derbyshire attack. 256 in either innings doesn't win you matches at this level especially against a confident and surprisingly competent Derbyshire so it's the visitors for me at strong odds against.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable, width: 617]

[TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn, align: left]Wednesday 16 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Surrey v Somerset (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.42[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.66[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.65[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]106.31 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Warwickshire v Lancashire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.24[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.65[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]103.29 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Worcestershire v Sussex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.42[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.25[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.82[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]127.04 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable, width: 617] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn, align: left]Wednesday 16 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Derbyshire v Glamorgan (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.88[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.3[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.4[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]112.91 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Kent v Northamptonshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.14[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.5[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.64[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]113.18 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Leicestershire v Essex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.78[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.75[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.96[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]113.66 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn, align: left]Yorkshire v Hampshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.92[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.92[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.05[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]101.28 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 The rain saved me a heavy loss last week so I am the same as I was going into last week. Not a lot I like this week with team news not favouring some of the juicier prices so it's just a couple of odds on shots that I think are good things to top up the profit for the competition so far. 4pts Warwickshire to beat Lancashire 8/11 Skybet Lancashire really haven't begun the defence of their title very well and what I find interesting is that even though their bowling attack was performing ok they went out and signed another bowler when they signed Ajmal Shahzad. Undoubtedly he's a good bowler but you would think they would have looked to strengthen the batting. In that regard the absence of Tom Smith isn't a help as he provides an extra depth to Lancashire's batting. Even on a good wicket at Hove last week they couldn't put up any runs admittedly in what was a bit of a farcical final day. Warwickshire will be without Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott in this match but that didn't bother them at the start of the season. It just means the likes of Porterfield, Chopra, Maddy and Clarke need to fill their boots again but all four have scored runs recently so that isn't an issue. The big plus for Warwickshire was the return of Chris Woakes at the weekend and he is fit to play in this match. He'll add depth to the batting but he's a quality bowler with the red cherry in his hands too which is important. Warwickshire have already beaten Lancashire this season and with the defending champions struggling with the bat I will take Warwickshire to complete a quick double over the Red Rose. 5pts Derbyshire to beat Glamorgan 8/11 Stan James Derbyshire have been the surprise packages of the County Championship so far and I expect them to continue that run in this match against a Glamorgan side who are missing James Harris like a dog misses its bone. Harris is the only bowler there of genuine quality in terms of pace and they look a bit toothless to me. Even Henriques, who was taking a few wickets for them has gone now which although Marcus North has come in, with conditions the way they are isn't helpful. Derbyshire have no such problems. They have a nice balance to their bowling attack and all elements of it are performing well and with the bat they've been superb even on a ground not recognised for the best batting wickets at the best of times. Martin Guptill brings a solid influence to the side at the top but the likes of Durston and in particular my one to watch for the season Dan Redfern have been terrific. With good balance with the bat and the ball and everyone in form I will take the hosts here against a Glamorgan side who haven't fired with the bat, although North will go a way to sorting that out once he settles in, and who look very toothless with the ball.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Looks like the weather is improving a touch so hopefully there will be enough play for some results this week. I'm currently sitting on +15.68 for the tournament and I'll take 4 this week to hopefully improve that figure. Pretty tired so no great write-ups but looking for the value this week. Lancashire to beat Warwickshire- 6/5 Bet365- (4/10) Completely turning the form table on its head in this one as I'm backing the men from Manchester to record their first Championship win over a side who have started the season exceptionally well. Although I don't expect Lancashire to be amongst the front runners to retain their title come the end of the season, I do feel it is a matter of time before their batsman start to score runs, and in that should bring some wins given the strength with the ball. Lancashire are boosted by the return of Stephen Kerrigan from Lions duty who he impressed last year where he tore apart Warwickshire in the second innings alone. Obviously they are without Jimmy Anderson but Ajmal Shahzad started his Lancashire career well with a few wickets against Sussex which was a positive sign for Peter Moore's side. Chris Woakes could well make the side for his first Championship game of the season, but Warwickshire will be without Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell who both have scored well for them in the games they have played so that will mean that others will have to make up for the runs they will be missing in the England duo. As I've mentioned, I think it's only a matter of time before Lancashire start scoring runs. Bowling wise they are as good as any but it has been the lack of runs which have let them down. They did manage a hefty score against Leicestershire in the CB40 which should give them some confidence and if they manage to post a couple of decent scores, they have a decent chance here in my eyes. Warwickshire are without Trott and Bell and it will be interesting to see how their other batsman fare against the likes of Chapple, Shahzad and Kerrigan so I'll back Lancashire to record their first win in the 4 day game here. Worcestershire to beat Sussex- 11/8 BetVictor- (3/10) Think Worcestershire are worth a punt here as they haven't played too badly so far this season. They may well take some confidence from the victory over Essex in the CB40 at the weekend where they chased down 191 with ease. Much like Lancashire, it's been the shortage of runs which have hampered them this season as they've generally down okay with the ball. They've already knocked Surrey over a couple of times this season for little over 100 which is a decent effort, and but for centuries from Hamilton-Brown and Maynard in their match last week against Surrey, they could well have been looking at a win rather than just about salvaging a draw. Of late though, Moeen Ali and Vikram Solanki have started to score some runs, and in the likes of Mitchell, Cameron and Kervezee in the middle order, they have players there who are capable of scoring runs as well. The main blow is that main strike bowler Alan Richardson is injured but they are hoping Gareth Andrew will be fit enough to take his place in the side. I'm still just not convinced about this Sussex side and they still haven't shown enough this season to suggest that they should be this price against what is a talented Worcestershire side so I'll back Solanki and co with the value in this one. Northants to beat Kent- 6/4 StanJames- (3/10) I see no reason why Northants are such a big price here. Jack Brooks returns for them which is a massive boost given the way he bowled against the WIndies and the fact that Chaminda Vaas is missing. Their other bowlers have also bowled well of late, with Hall, Willey and Daggett all taking wickets so they will provide decent backup to Brooks. Since losing their first couple of matches this season, Northants can count themselves pretty unlucky with the results they've had. Rain has severely hampered them, as they dominated Essex in the little time that they had to bowl at them and then followed that draw with an impressive win over Hampshire in which they did well to bowl them out on the final day. They didn't manage to take a final wicket against Leicestershire last week but they were well on top for virtually the whole match and there were signs that both openers were starting to find their feet with the bat which were promising signs given how they have struggled so far this season. Kent welcome back Matt Coles, who like Jack Brooks impressed in the Lions match last week. They are still unbeaten this season but I don't feel they have been as convincing of late as they were early on in the season. They were struggling terribly early doors against Essex last week, as at one point they were 9-5 before Stevens and Jones got them out of trouble. That sort of performance will encourage the likes of Brooks and Willey to get stuck into the Kent top order and really trouble them. Kent absoutely hammered Northants in the first match between these two sides, but Northants have improved since then as well having Andrew Hall dominating with both bat and ball. As I've mentioned, Northants can count themselves unlucky not to have more to show for their efforts but I feel they have a really good chance here so I'll back them to gain revenge for the previous meeting between the two sides. Leicestershire to beat Essex- 11/8 StanJames- (3/10) The team news coming out of both camps suggests to me that the prices in this one are based more on reputation more than anything. Essex are without both Ravi Bopara and Alistair Cook in this one which leaves their top order a tad short, especially considering their batsman so far have been extremely erratic and inconsistent. Bowling wise they have done okay, although allowing Kent back into the match after their superb start doesn't exactly give me bundles of confidence in all honesty. Leicestershire will be extremely disappointed with the result against Gloucestershire at the weekend in which they suffered a real drubbing but it must be noted that all 3 out of Hoggard, Joseph and Buck were all rested for that match which possibly suggests why Gloucestershire managed such a high score. All of the before mentioned players are back for this one though, and Will Jefferson returns to the team against his former side which really strengthens the batting prospects for Hoggard's men. Josh Cobb has been in superb form recently, whilst Sarwan has also scored well which says to me that Leicestershire have pretty much all areas covered. Essex though look a little short in the batting department given Cook and Bopara aren't involved so I'll go with the value here and back Leicestershire at odds against.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Tuesday 22 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Somerset v Durham (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.00 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 23 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Lancashire v Middlesex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.83[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.24[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]99.20 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Surrey v Warwickshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.02[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]97.12 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Friday 25 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Sussex v Nottinghamshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.83[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.01 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 23 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Essex v Derbyshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.83[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.01 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Hampshire v Glamorgan (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.45[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]3.25[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]99.73 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Kent v Leicestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.59[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.62[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.99 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Northamptonshire v Gloucestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.00 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Multiple start days this week which is different. Scorchio time has arrived for this week's matches so we should get some decent creekit and more importantly some results to get stuck into. Derbyshire did the bizzo for me last week but annoying Warwickshire couldn't see off Lancashire so +3.65 for last week and +25.92pts for the season overall. I'll take one on Tuesday and come back tomorrow with Wednesday's picks. 4pts Somerset to beat Durham 10/11 BetVictor I like Somerset in this match. They've only lost once all season and that was only a narrow two wicket defeat to Warwickshire who are well out in front as the early pacesetters so that isn't too bad a result. Somerset have drawn their last four matches but they have dominated three of them and only a combination of the rain and a series of bad light has denied them a couple of wins, one of which would have been against Durham in the reverse fixture were it not for two days being washed out. Durham come into the match yet to win a match in the Championship this season with two heavy defeats to Nottinghamshire and Warwickshire along with three draws which they were clinging on to and saved by the weather in. Somerset will continue to be without Marcus Trescothick but it hasn't hampered them in their run scoring. Nick Compton is in supreme nick at the minute and Jos Buttler's return from split webbing is a boost too. Vernon Philander's short stint is over but Alfonso Thomas is back from the IPL and Gemaal Hussain back from injury. Thomas may not play here because of jet lag but Somerset might try him in the hope they win the toss and bat first. Durham are missing some important players themselves. There's no Dale Benkenstein who is injured and Graham Onions is in the England squad so won't play until England release him which would be Thursday at the earliest you would think. Ben Stokes is set to play despite his injury while Steve Harmison and Liam Plunkett could play their first first class games of the season. Durham's batting continues to disappoint. They still haven't bettered 253 in any competition yet and were rolled over for 161 on a good deck at The Oval on Sunday in the CB40. Graham Onions has been chief destroyer for their bowling attack which has kept them competitive so he will be a big loss. Somerset are putting up good runs despite Trescothick's absence and as their better and more experienced bowlers come back they will get the elusive last few wickets they've failed to get in recent matches and will win games and I think they can start winning matches again with a win over Durham at what is expected to be a hot and sunny Taunton this week.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 4 draws last week meant no change to my overall figure of +15.68 for the tournament although I owe a massive thanks to Paul Horton who saved Lancashire's skin. Not going mad this week due to team news but I am taking 2. On a side note, sorry to hear about Luton Kev. Sure it'll be 3rd time lucky :ok Lancashire to beat Middlesex- 4/5 Bet365- (3/10) Paul Horton got me out of jail last week when I backed Lancashire to beat Warwickshire and but for a cracking knock on the final day by Horton and good support from Luke Proctor and Gareth Cross, they would have lost that match by a huge margin. As it was though, they managed to hang on and grab a draw which looked unlikely for the best part of 3 and a bit days. Coach Peter Moore said the draw felt like a win considering the position they were in and it should have boosted morale in the dressing room which would have been really low after Warwickshire's first innings. They managed to beat Essex at the weekend in the CB40 to make it 2 wins out of 2, and that would have been pleasing for them, especially considering they were without skipper Glen Chapple and Simon Kerrigan as well for that one. Both players return for the Championship match but beating Essex pretty comfortably without both players is a good effort. Middlesex also won their one day match at the weekend against Leicestershire and are boosted by the return of Eoin Morgan from the IPL, but will be without Stephen Finn who is included in the England squad which leaves the bowling attack a tad short IMO. They have some decent seam options in Tim Murtagh, Gareth Berg and Corey Collymore but without the spearhead of the attack in Finn, it does lack a natural out and out wicket taker. Granted Lancashire's batsman haven't really done it so far this season, but Paul Horton has a couple of scores under his belt now, whilst Ashwell Prince and Stephen Croft have also scored okay of late and others have made some contributions as well. When the top order to make runs, they are a hugely dangerous outfit as they have a mighty fine bowling attack and given the improvement of the weather, that should help them find their feet. They are the better side on paper though, especially bowling wise and I'll back the men from Manchester to improve their Championship form and record a win here. Essex to beat Derbyshire- 4/5 Bet365- (3/10) Gone against Essex a couple of times this season including last week against Leicestershire but feel now is the right time to back them. They were lucky to get a draw against Leicestershire really as they looked unlikely to get the runs in the second innings but rain and bad light came in to save them. They actually haven't managed a win since the opening game of the season which you'd have to say is partly down to injuries and the players they have been missing for various reasons. Owais Shah is back from the IPL for the first time though which makes a huge difference to the side and fills in a huge gap in the batting line-up. There's still no Bopara, Cook or ten Doeschate but with Petersen, Pettini, Shah, Smith, Foster and Ben Foakes who impressed on debut they have some heavy run scorers there who should be able to score well. Charl Willoughby is back from a rest at the weekend as well which majorly strengthens the bowling attack. Derbyshire have started really well in the Championship but you have to feel that they won't remain top of the pile for the entire season and when up against one of the better sides in the league, they will falter. That's just what they're up against here and although possessing some good batsman, the bowling attack is their weakness and I'd expect Essex to have few problems in taking advantage of that. It's not exactly helped by the fact that Mark Footitt is ruled out through injury as well, leaving a pretty weak seam attack in truth. Yorkshire had no problems scoring runs against the Derbyshire bowling attack at the weekend and Gloucestershire, despite lacking runs at the start of the season also managed an easy 400+ score which doesn't give me a whole lot of confidence in this Derbyshire bowling attack. Essex know they will need to improve their form and get some more wins under their belt as on paper, they have one of the strongest sides in the league, and with the boost of Owais Shah returning, I think they will do that here and beat the surprise package of the league so far this season.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Cheers bud. Fingers crossed. Happy with Somerset's comeback on the opening day and I'm going with three more this week. 5pts Warwickshire to beat Surrey 4/5 Skybet I think Warwickshire are worth backing here purely because of the depth of their batting line up which I would say now that Woakes is back and Barker is still playing is the longest in the country by some way. Batting has been Surrey's problem so far this season. They just can't get a foundation out of their top four at the minute. Even when Davies scores a ton the other three fail and when Rudolph gets a few Davies fails and so on and so on. Couple that with Jordan batting at 7 and offering very little at the minute and this Surrey batting line up has major issues. They will bowl most sides out in the country but with the temperatures that are being forecast at The Oval this week if that is a flat deck it might be tougher than it normally would be and their bowlers will definitely need their batsmen to come to the party. Having Chris Woakes back is a massive boost for Warwickshire. He provides a very good bowling option, easily one of the top 10 bowling potentials in the country and he's a very good batsman for a number eight or even nine which he could be used in this match. Even without Bell and Trott this Warwickshire side continue to put up big runs and they also have a very good spinner which could be crucial should a bit of a dust bowl develop in the soaring heat that is forecast. I think Warwickshire have all bases covered in this match but I think they will win the match but running through the Surrey batting line up easier than what Surrey's star pace attack will get through the Bears' batting. 3pts Middlesex to beat Lancashire 6/5 Skybet I think Middlesex are worthy of a small stake this week because one innings doesn't make a summer and I need to see a lot more from this Lancashire batting line up before I can trust it at odds on. The fact is even with the recovery last week had that match gone four days without disruption Lancashire would still have lost it so it isn't as though they are in matches they are just clinging on with everything they have with the assistance of the weather. Back at Liverpool on a wicket which always does plenty you would to wonder if they will be able to put up the runs like they did in the second innings last week. Everything we've seen so far this season suggests they won't. Middlesex are going along nicely. They have won a couple of matches to sit third in the table and a couple of their draws they dominated but rain denied them the time to win the match so the Middlesex outfit look worth a bet to me here. Ok there's no Andrew Strauss this week but apart from one knock of 50 odd he didn't contribute a lot when he was there and there is the potential for Eoin Morgan to go better than that and he does play this week. Steven Finn will miss the start of the match but I would be amazed if England don't go in with an unchanged side so Finn will be back for the last two days if not three depending on when he is released. In the meantime Tim Murtagh, Corey Collymore and Berg/Crook/Dexter all provide decent enough bowling options. Middlesex have a decent enough batting line up with Ollie Rayner having a ton to his name at number 8 and Murtagh churning out a few runs at number 9 and I think overall they should be the favourites for this one so at 6/5 I'll take Middlesex to pick up another win against still winless Lancashire this week. 6pts Northamptonshire to beat Gloucestershire 4/5 Stan James Everything is looking a lot more rosy in the Northants garden at the minute and I think they can continue to ride the wave and pick up a win over Gloucestershire this week. Northants have bounced back from a poor start to the season well with good performance in their last two matches, both of which were draws but certainly against Leicestershire an unfortunate draw given that rain denied them as did a vital last wicket stand which clung on for a draw. Since then they have purchased their own ground and spirits are good around the place. It isn't helpful that they are without Jack Brooks this week but David Willey is bowling well at the minute and Andrew Hall is too. Alex Wakely returns to strengthen the batting line up from last week and I would expect this batting line up to fill its boots against a woeful and very inexperienced Gloucestershire bowling attack. Yorkshire chased down 400 without too much difficulty on the final day against this Gloucestershire bowling attack and that lack of fizz in the attack will always put pressure on their batsmen to deliver. Eventually they will succumb to that pressure. Northants bowl well in their own conditions and should give the likes of Williamson, Gidman and Dent all sorts of troubles and assuming they can find 20 wickets out of Vaas, Willey, Daggett, Hall and Middlebrook, and I'm very confident that they can, then I only see Northants winning this match and potentially winning it very easily.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Good start to the week with Somerset winning inside three days. Going with one for Friday's match. Will update the P/L once the week is out but hoping for a payout from Northants while Warwickshire certainly not dead yet either. 5pts Nottinghamshire to beat Sussex 8/11 Skybet Nottinghamshire have hit the traps running in the Championship this season and I expect that to continue here. They had the better of their recent draw with Middlesex but since then they have had almost a fortnight off which will be a real boost. The only match this season they have been in trouble in was the one against Somerset when Nick Compton proper filled his boots. Since then only the weather has denied them when they haven't won. The Middlesex game was during the Lions week so they have Samit Patel and James Taylor back from that squad this week. Adam Voges joins up with the squad this week too so their batting line up now looks pretty awesome. With Andre Adams in good form and the likes of Gurney and Phillips bowling well Notts have everything they need to really hit home now. Sussex come into the match off the back of a good win over Yorkshire in the CB40 on Thursday night but it is never easy backing up a CB40 match into a Championship one. One thing we do know is the Sussex batsmen won't get fed the sort of **** that came down against Yorkshire and with the key man Goodwin struggling for form if the openers go early this line up could go quickly, especially if Yardy's hand issue means he misses the match. Sussex played well at Lancashire and at home to Lancashire in the match which was washed out for three days but they've been pretty poor apart from that and I struggle to see their seam attack getting through this Notts batting line up too easily. I'm happy to take the high fliers to round off the week in style for me here.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Superb stuff this week Kev, although I'm a tad disappointed Lancashire couldn't dampen that a touch. ;) Notts look good to hopefully pick up the win tomorrow as well :clap

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Cheers mate :ok. Nottinghamshire's win this afternoon rounded off a decent week for me with four of the five bets winning and Middlesex securing a draw from behind. +16.09pts in total this week which puts me up to +42.01pts for the season ahead of another week of Championship action which begins on Tuesday.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 30 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Durham v Lancashire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.38 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Middlesex v Sussex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.38 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Worcestershire v Somerset (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.62[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.57[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.73 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Tuesday 29 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Glamorgan v Leicestershire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.93[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.81 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 30 May 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Gloucestershire v Derbyshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.37[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.66[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.11 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Yorkshire v Northamptonshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.57[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.62[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.73 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[danj2202]

Cheers mate :ok. Nottinghamshire's win this afternoon rounded off a decent week for me with four of the five bets winning and Middlesex securing a draw from behind. +16.09pts in total this week which puts me up to +42.01pts for the season ahead of another week of Championship action which begins on Tuesday.

Cracking job. Followed you in. You bet draw no bet i guess? I was betting with the draw. May continue following you kev. Not bad for a luton fan i have to say! Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012

Cracking job. Followed you in. You bet draw no bet i guess? I was betting with the draw. May continue following you kev. Not bad for a luton fan i have to say! Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

Yeah I bet DNB. I don't trust the British weather enough to put in the extra risk of including the draw. And us Luton fans are an intelligent breed ;).

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 I'll start the week off with Tuesday's match. 4pts Glamorgan to beat Leicestershire Evs Paddy Power Glamorgan have yet to win a match in the County Championship this season but I think they can put that right. They have been getting closer and closer and this week could well be the week the duck is broken. Their batting earlier in the season was a bit of a shambles but Marcus North's appearance in club colours looks to have given them a bit of solidity in the middle order while Stewart Walters is back in the squad for this match but the main piece of team news for the Dragons is the recall for James Harris after his hernia issues of the winter. He is a real attack leader and one of the 10 best seam bowlers in the country so to have him back will be a massive lift for the Welsh side. Harris is also capable of late order runs too. Runs are the main issue for Leicestershire for me. If you take Ramnaresh Sarwan and Josh Cobb out of their line up there hasn't been many runs from anywhere else. The next two in their runs list, Wayne White and Ned Eckersley have their figures for the season ridiculously distorted by Essex's declaration bowling in a match earlier in the season so other than Sarwan and Cobb nobody averages 30 for the season which isn't good enough. With the ball they are a lot more competitive but even then you can score runs against them as Kent showed last week. Leicestershire were rolled over tamely last week and should have lost to Northamptonshire two weeks before that so Leicestershire aren't in the best of form and with confidence low in their batting line up I think Glamorgan's bowling attack can take advantage of that and pick up their first four day win of the summer in this match.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Ever so close to backing Glamorgan but still feel that if North goes cheaply, they simply won't score enough runs and Leicestershire perhaps can score more across the board. Will stay away until Wednesday's matches I think in which there should be some value about. GL with that one though Kev.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Two more for me this week. Happy with the first day down at the Gardens so hopefully Glammy can push on and these two can go well to make a good week again. 4pts Lancashire to beat Durham Evs BetVictor This match on paper looks the match of the round but when you look at their form they are both in pretty poor touch giving the match even more of a 50/50 look to it. I'm not so sure it is quite that though as I believe Lancashire have played well in the last couple of weeks whereas I suspect something is going on behind the scenes at Durham be it coach or captain. I found it very strange that Mustard was so reluctant to bowl his strike bowler Steve Harmison last week and the general attitude and ways Durham are finding to lose gives me the impression the camp isn't the most harmonious. The squad have been given a warning by the coach this week so we'll find out one way or the other. Lancashire have drawn their last two matches, both in different circumstances. They were staring down the barrel of a big innings defeat at Warwickshire two weeks ago before a Paul Horton ton rescued them and then it was roles reversed for them last week when they failed to enforce the follow on against Middlesex and paid the price by not being able to bowl them out on the final day. Lancashire are scoring runs now which is important because Durham aren't scoring them at all. They put up 380 at Taunton last week but when you saw what a poor Hampshire batting line up did to that Somerset attack in the CB40 on the same ground even Durham's 380 doesn't look all that good. Lancashire have a bowling attack to trouble any side which made it more surprising that they couldn't bowl Middlesex out last week but Durham's batting line up, even with Benkenstein returning, doesn't look like it is going to fire anytime soon. Michael di Venuto made 96 in the first innings last week but he isn't playing this week and I'm not convinced even the return of Graham Onions will help Durham in terms of them putting up the runs needed to get a result. Runs are what made the four day world go round and I think Lancashire have the more confident batting line up and I think even money is perfectly acceptable on the defending champions to keep the misery piled on Durham. 4pts Middlesex to beat Sussex 10/11 Ladbrokes Not sure how these two can be the same price. It can only be reputation. Not my reputation for each side though thankfully because I really don't see what there is to rate about Sussex right now. Their bowling attack looks tamer than tame to say the least and although Murray Goodwin scored 70 odd against Notts last week their batting line up as a collective is nowhere near performing to the level it needs to. Middlesex come into the match off the back of a good battling draw over Lancashire last week where their top three all scored good runs on a tough Liverpool wicket and then the likes of Eoin Morgan and Dawid Malan are quality in their middle order too. Chuck in Steven Finn's appearance to bolster a naturally strong Panthers attack without him and I think you've got the makings of a good thing in Middlesex. The Panthers have plenty of runs in them, a top attack for conditions at Lords and they play Lords very well indeed. Middlesex have won two of the three matches at Lords this summer and would have won the third had the weather not given them too little time to bowl Durham out a second time. Sussex have just lost to Notts and I believe they will suffer the same fate to a very underrated Middlesex side at HQ this week.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 :lol Kev has beaten me to both write-ups. What a dick ;) Lancashire to beat Somerset- Evens Bet365- (3/10) Third week in a row I'm backing Lancashire to come up with their first win in the Championship so let's hope it's third time lucky. They've drawn their previous two matches against Warwickshire and Middlesex and in truth they should have lost the first and won the second. Against the Bears, they needed Paul Horton to make an unbeaten century on the final day to salvage a draw, and then when in a commanding position against Middlesex, their bowlers let them down and couldn't take the final 10 wickets required for victory. The thing that was letting them down majorly at the start of the season was the lack of runs, but now all of their batsman have hit some scores recently and with the bowling talent they possess, they are a really dangerous outfit. Whilst Lancashire's batsman have found some form, Durham's really haven't. It's strange to think a team with the likes of Mustard, Collingwood, Blackwell, Di Venuto and Benkenstein amongst their ranks will struggle for runs but that's been the case. It's not exactly helped anymore by the fact that Di Ventuo isn't playing in this one either so it's leaves such a heavy burden on the experienced names at the top of the order to score heavily. Just feel given the recent performances of Lancashire, a 4 day win isn't too far around the corner and with Durham struggling, I feel it may come this week. Middlesex to beat Sussex- 10/11 Bet365- (3/10) Probably would have stayed away from Middlesex if Stephen Finn wasn't playing but the fact that he is provides a massive boost for Middlesex. Without Finn, I'm not all too convinced about their bowling attack but Finn takes it onto a new level, and Roland-Jones who started the season well also returns for them as well in this one. Morgan and Malan are in the middle order as well which gives them a bit of extra quality in the batting department and it's hard to pick a weakness in them with all of their top players available. As Kev has mentioned, this Sussex bowling attack is pretty poor in truth, and although Panesar is taking wickets and should have some success at Lord's, any side who needs Luke Wright to be in the side partly as a main seam option doesn't fill me confidence in the bowling attack. Batting wise they should be fine, especially with Goodwin finally making some runs last week, but the Middlesex attack should be able to chip away at it like Notts did with ease last week. Big players available for the home side makes a massive difference to me, and I fancy them to record a win against Sussex here.

[fishy25]

Re: County Championship 2012 Blimey did Lancashire make us sweat for that win. Pulled through though along with Middlesex bringing a clean sweep in the forum which takes me nicely up to +18.40 for the tournament.

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 Annoyingly Glamorgan couldn't bowl Leicestershire out for a second time but the other two bets won on the final day, or final over in Lancashire's case to continue the good run in this thread. +7.64 for the week for me and up to +49.65 now.

[danj2202]

Still a good week. I am buggered of i am messing about with draw no bet with you guys in this form. All the rain in the durham lancs game was a bit hairy though! Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

[kevshat]

Re: County Championship 2012 [TABLE=class: couponTable]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Tuesday 5 June 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Durham v Warwickshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.37[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.66[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.11 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Middlesex v Somerset (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.1[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.00 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 6 June 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Nottinghamshire v Lancashire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.61[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.5[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.90 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Sussex v Surrey (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]100.00 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: couponTable] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Tuesday 5 June 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Leicestershire v Derbyshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.87[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.57[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]98.42 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Wednesday 6 June 2012[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Glamorgan v Yorkshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2.87[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.5[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]101.45 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Kent v Hampshire (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.38 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0] [TD][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Northamptonshire v Essex (11:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd]1.9[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp]102.38 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]