By Nigel Ridgway
March 31 2006

If West Brom are to repeat last season's great escape, it must start here and now at the Hawthorns, but they can expect no mercy from Liverpool. The Reds have got Champions League football to secure for next season and, have now rediscovered their goal scoring touch

GET IN THE GAME WITH NIGEL RIDGWAY 30-3-06

FOOTBALL
SHOW NO MERCY WITH REDS AT A TASTY 8/15
WBA v Liverpool
Sa Apr 1 - 5.15 pm ko (PremPlus)

If West Brom are to repeat last season's great escape, it must start here and now at the Hawthorns, but they can expect no mercy from Liverpool. The Reds have got Champions League football to secure for next season and, now that they've rediscovered their goal scoring touch, they can exploit any weaknesses in the Albion defence - and there are plenty.

Liverpool's seven-goal haul against Birmingham last week contrasts sharply with the Baggies recent draw against the same side, and another hatful could be on the cards here. Back the Reds with confidence at bet365's 8/15 and fill up on the 'Over' goals at a standout 21/20. Once the game kicks off, don't forget to check out our live markets (up to 14 available) via the In-Play Console on the bet365 homepage.

Live Game Picks:

Liverpool @ 8/15
Over 2.5 Goals @ 21/20

BACK CHELSEA CLEAN SHEET AT 4/6

Liverpool go straight into our Premiership Acca this weekend, along with Chelsea to beat Birmingham at 3/10. That may be a no-brainer as far as the 90 minute market goes, but there are other less obvious betting opportunities on the clash here at bet365. After a recent 7-0 thrashing, everyone will be expecting the floodgates to open at St Andrews, but only one of the Birmingham's six Premiership home games since the turn of the year have produced more than two goals, while Chelsea don't score many on their travels. Only twice this season have they scored more than two goals, so there's more than a smidgeon of value in bet365's 'Under' price of 19/20. A safer bet is Chelsea to keep a clean sheet at 4/6, as Birmingham haven't scored in five of their last six meetings with Chelsea. The match kicks off at 12.45 (live on Sky Prem Plus), so bet365's live In-Play Console is well worth checking out.

Chelsea to keep a clean sheet @ 4/6 & Under 2.5 Goals @ 19/20

VILLA COULD SURPRISE AT 9/1

Everton's home game against Sunderland should be easy pickings for the Toffees. They may have been exposed by a 10-man Liverpool at Anfield, but they're unbeaten in four matches at Goodison Park. Take the 4/11 here at bet365, but be wary of backing Arsenal at 2/7 to beat Aston Villa. The Gunners record in domestic games close to Champions League games is poor, and Villa might come away from Highbury with one of their best results of the season - 9/1 to win, 4/1 to draw.

POMPEY ARE UP FOR IT AT 10/3

There are a couple of away teams that may pull off surprises at tasty prices this weekend, starting with Middlesbrough (12/5) at Man City. Premiership safety still isn't totally certain for Boro after Pompey's return to form, but one more win should do it, and that can come at the expense of their opponents. Stuart Pearce's side don't have much left to play for this season, and a pumped up Boro could be too good for them. Meanwhile, Portsmouth are finally looking serious about avoiding relegation, and that extra edge will make all the difference against a Fulham side who are going nowhere fast. They look a value bet at bet365's 10/3 to take all three points at Craven Cottage. We'll perm any one from the two in an Acca this weekend, knowing we're assured of some extra value with bet365's Premiership Bonus, which pays up to 60% more on such bets every weekend.

Premiership Acca: Middlesbrough / Portsmouth (perm 1 from 2); Liverpool, Chelsea and Everton - best return £309.19 (£25 stake), including a bet365 bonus of 5%



HORSE RACING
FREE BETS A FEATURE AT bet365

Last week's Lincoln tip, Cesare, was rather disappointing in the end, but neither the track nor the ground worked in his favour, so he's not one to give up on yet. Hopefully we'll return to winning ways this weekend and bag a free bet (or two) here at bet365, courtesy of their brand new racing offer. Normally, we'd have to wait until the Channel 4 cameras were in action to take advantage of bet365's 4/1 Offer, but we've now extended this to include two Feature races every day of the week. To take advantage, simply back a winner at 4/1 or more in a bet365 Feature race and we'll give you a free bet to the same stake on the next bet365 Feature Race.

KEEP HANNON'S ASSET ON YOUR SIDE

The best advice for the early weeks of the new flat season is to follow the trainers in form. Some trainers will have their horses fitter than others, and Richard Hannon is well-known for dealing with more forward types and, after some good results on the All-Weather recently, looks sure to get his turf campaign off to a flyer. During the past week, he's saddled three winners plus as many placed, and he could have the answer to Saturday's Easter Stakes (3.50) with his colt Asset. Hannon has a great record in this early season 'Classic' trial, and his runner looks to have all the credentials to win here after a creditable third to the top-class Opera Cape on his final appearance as a juvenile last year.

BACK RAJEEM TO RETURN IN TOP FORM

Clive Brittain is another trainer whose win-to-run ratio is better at this time of year, and his hat-trick seeking Rajeem could well play a leading role on her return to action in the earlier Masaka Stakes (2.45). She was last seen finishing strongly over this 1m trip at Newmarket last backend. The race is one of six shown live on Channel 4, so bet365 customers can take advantage of our 4/1 Offer, while they can also watch the race on their PC by betting £5 and clicking on the 'Live Stream' next to the race.

Weekend Flat Picks: Asset (3.50 Kempton) & Rajeem (2.45 Kempton)

LOG ON TO ROSS COMM FOR NATIONAL GLORY AT bet365'S 25/1

Not forgetting the jumps action this weekend and there's a cracking card at Uttoxeter where Vaughan in the novice hurdle and Wellbeing in the concluding handicap are the two main fancies. However, we've already got one eye on next week's Aintree meeting which gets under way on Thursday. Look out for bet365's two Feature Races each day, and check back next week for a full betting preview on the big race itself. If you're looking for an ante-post bet now, then Sue Smith's Ross Comm looks interesting at the current price of 25/1, especially as we're paying out on FIVE places! The grey is lightly raced for a ten-year-old and is on the upgrade judged on his win over a barely adequate 2m 4f at Bangor last Saturday. He looks to have a handy weight too off just 10st 5lb and, with bet365's non-runner no bet policy, you've also got the insurance that if he doesn't run for any reason, you'll get your money back.

Grand National Pick: Ross Comm @ 25/1 - Non-Runner No Bet (Each-way ¼ odds 1.2.3.4.5)

GOLF
ROLLINS IS SWEET AT 40/1 FOR SUGARLOAF

Bell South Classic
Th Mar 30 - 22.00 BST (SS2)
Fr Mar 31 - 22.00 BST (SS2)
Sa Apr 1 - 21.00 BST (SS2)
Su Apr 2 - 20.00 BST (SS2)

This weekend, we'll be hoping to win some betting money for next week's Masters by finding the winner of the Bell South Classic. Hopefully, that should be easier than finding last week's 'shock' winner, Stephen Ames, who was a 100/1 shot pre-tournament and surprisingly easy to back In-Play here at bet365, until he turned the event into a procession in the final round.

He takes a well-earned break, but there's no such luxury for our main selection this week, John Rollins, who can be backed at a tasty 40/1 here at bet365. While last week's track at Sawgrass demanded accuracy off the tee, Sugarloaf, this week's port of call, is more suited to long hitters, and Rollins scores heavily there. He can also point to some good course form having finished top-six in 2002 and 2003, while his recent outings suggest that he's about to enter the winner's enclosure again. An eighth place a Sawgrass was his fourth good showing of the year, after a 4th at Torrey Pines, 5th in the Nissan and 15th at Scottsdale.

He's bound to put up a good show this week, and I've also got a sneaky feeling for Tag Ridings at a massive bet365 price of 100/1. We can ignore his last two missed cuts as they were at Bay Hill and the Players', and instead concentrate on his excellent 6th here last year (14th in 2004), and a superb 5th place finish at Doral this season. We'll also be having a saver on Retief Goosen at 15/2. While he'll no doubt have one eye on the Masters, it was only an inspired Ames that prevented him from winning last week and, with his game in such good nick, he'll be wishing that Augusta was this week. A good performance here will see his odds for the Masters trimmed and, as his record in the first Major of the year is so good, we'll also be backing him at 14/1 with bet365 to win there too. Check back next week for a full betting preview of the Masters.

Bell South Classic Three Off The Tee . John Rollins @ 40/1, Tag Ridings 100/1, Retief Goosen 15/2. Each-way ¼ odds 1.2.3.4.5

Get in the game and be lucky!

Nigel

NIGEL RIDGWAY, an experienced punter and betting shop owner of many years, believes that "The key to successful gambling is getting value for money." Nigel was once forced by local bookmakers, to stop writing a tipping column in a UK newspaper, because he was costing them a fortune. Find out what offers and lines are hot at bet365.



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