Monday 14 March 2011

The Great Tipster Experiment Week 3 Results

I think it's fair to say that the Six Nations rugby this weekend was defined by its drama, not its quality. All three games could have gone either way and in the end it was the finest of margins that cost me my predictions.

My first bet of the weekend was for France and Italy to accumulate more than 47 points between them. In the end only 43 were scored. I could complain about how close Aurelien Rougerie came to scoring in the first half or just how much the French let me down. I could complain about this, but like the rest of you watching that game (and I'm assuming I don't have any French readers) I was on the edge of my seat willing the Italians to hold on in the end. Screw the money, results like that are what sport are about.

I then sat down for Wales Vs Ireland with a bet on the Irish to win. This time I feel robbed. Robbed by Peter Alan, robbed by Jonathan Sexton, but most of all robbed by Paddy Wallace. I am genuinely less angered by the 'illegitimate' try that was awarded than by the way the Irish bottled it. Paddy Wallace, what were you thinking? You waste of f***ing space! Who turns downs a try in the corner ever. Never mind when it's the last play of an error strewn game.

In the last few years the Irish have shaken off the tag of the perennially unlucky losers. A string of Irish Heineken Cup wins and a Grand Slam put and end to the feeling that they were the nearly men of European rugby. In recent years they have been composed and calm in pressure situations. And yet on Saturday they blew it, and while I don't doubt that the Phillips try is the main talking point of the match, the Irish still only have themselves to blame.

At least Scotland did exactly what I expected of them. I bet for them to stay within 16 points of the English, in the end they only lost by 6. I hope Scottish rugby fans don't get too downbeat because we really have improved. Yesterday we went toe-to-toe with the English at Twickenham and genuinely came close to winning it. I agree with Andy Robinson that the set piece cost us in the end. That can be fixed. The key is that we have a truly competitive squad now.

No one in their right mind could tell me that I made unwise bets, 9 times out of 10 I would have won my France bet. 4 times out of 5 I would have won my Irish bet. The unpredictablity of sport if what makes it so interesting, but in the end the cream always rises to the top. That's why I am keeping track of my results thorughout the season, eventually predictions based on sound logic have to bring results. At least that's what I'm going to keep telling myself.

Week 3 Results: Total Wager £10
                          Money Returned £4.77
                          Loss £5.23

Total Loss after 3 weeks: £6.50


No comments:

Post a Comment