Bookies give Cowboys little chance with Jason Taumalolo sidelined

Can North Queensland win without the injured Jason Taumalolo? The Cowboys have been wound out from $11 to $19 for the NRL title and punters do not want a bar of them against Cronulla.

Can the North Queensland Cowboys win without Jason Taumalolo?

The Cowboys have been wound out from $11 to $19 for the premiership since their star forward was ruled out for 10 weeks due to a knee injury and punters do not want a bar of them against the Cronulla Sharks this weekend.

Jason Taumalolo arrives back in Townsville after aufferuing a knee injury in the loss to Brisbane.

Despite having home-ground advantage, the Cowboys are $2.05 outsiders and there has been four times as much money for the Sharks at their current price of $1.77.

Another side that has been well-backed this weekend are the Canberra Raiders. They are $1.70 to bounce back to winning form against the Newcastle Knights ($2.14).

Punters have been quick to desert the Knights following their loss against the Penrith Panthers last weekend, but they did win four of their 10 games as away underdogs last season for a clear profit.

South Sydney ($1.22) will start their Sunday afternoon clash with the Gold Coast Titans as the shortest-priced favourites of the season and the line has been set at a hefty 12.5 points.

The Titans have had a challenging start to the season, but they are a team that can produce the goods when not much is expected of them and they were also a profitable betting play as away underdogs last season.

West Coast’s AFL premiership defence got off to a poor start after being upset by the rampaging Brisbane Lions.

AFL

After the opening five games of the season, four favourites had been defeated and Round 1 finished 5-4 in favour of the underdogs.

This week we ask how much do we read into the opening week and whose poor performance has them over the odds and ready to rebound?

Sydney finished strongly last week but looked old and slow for much of the contest against the young Bulldogs.

Adelaide was also sub-par against the Hawks, but do look far more likely to bounce back and, as a road outsider, represent some good value.

The Giants are another side in the white shorts who are worth a bet.

The road trip to Perth is never easy and the Eagles will have the added hoopla of the flag unfurling but, given their final three-quarters last week against the Lions, the $1.45 for a West Coast win does not really appeal.

Finally, the line in the Bulldogs-Hawks clash seems an over-reaction to Hawthorn’s win and not giving enough credit to the Doggies for their win over Sydney.

Alediade Crows AFLW star Erin Phillips.

AFLW

Some might be spruiking the conference system has worked, given the top two teams from each made it through to the AFLW decider, but Ladbrokes bookmakers do not agree.

You will not see too many Grand Finals – or even finals for that matter – with a market as lopsided as the one for this clash.

The Adelaide Crows have been in the premiership market since it opened and assumed outright favouritism midway through the season following a big victory over the Kangaroos.

Now, as they head into a home grand final at the Adelaide Oval, the Crows have been crunched into $1.14 in the head to head with a line edging toward four goals, which is a significant margin in this competition.

Carlton, last year’s wooden spooners, must be commended for its effort in making it this far and continually defying the bookmaker’s odds.

But beating Adelaide in Adelaide for the most unlikely of premierships? That’s a bridge too far.

$1.14 is better than bank interest, as is the $1.32 for the Crows/Crows, Half Time/Full Time double.

Adelaide United players after losing to Perth Glory in Round 22.

A-LEAGUE

It looked like the A-League top six was settled weeks ago, but the recent form of Adelaide United has thrown that into question.

Adelaide have not scored a goal in their past three matches and they have not won a game since they beat the Brisbane Roar at Coopers Stadium more than six weeks ago.

They are $1.57 favourites with Ladbrokes to end their losing streak against the Central Coast Mariners ($4.80), and it would truly be panic stations if they failed to get the job done.

The Newcastle Jets are the only side with a realistic chance of taking sixth position from Adelaide and they face a tough assignment against the Wellington Phoenix on Saturday.

Adelaide remain at $17 in A-League futures betting and the Jets are $81, but the Jets odds could shorten significantly with an upset win over the Phoenix.

The Ladbrokes market suggests that there are now only three genuine championship contenders.

Perth Glory are favourites at their current quote of $2.50, but there isn’t much between them and the Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC at $3.75.

Waratahs forward Jack Dempsey during the Round 6 upset of the Crusaders.

SUPER RUGBY

Are the Waratahs genuine Super Rugby contenders?

Their upset win over the Crusaders last weekend suggests that, but they remain at $21 in title betting with Ladbrokes.

Punters are much more confident they will beat the Sunwolves tonight (FRI) and the Waratahs are $1.14 to make it two wins on the trot.

Any punters taking that price must have short memories, as the Sunwolves almost beat the Waratahs just over a month ago and have been far from disgraced this season.

The highlight of the weekend is set to be an intriguing Australian Derby between the Reds and the Rebels at Suncorp Stadium.

The Rebels are currently $1.67 favourites but the home side has won five of the past seven games played between the two sides and the Reds have an excellent record as home underdogs in the past 12 months.

BEST BETS

Vinery Stud Stakes – Nakeeta Jane To Win @ $6.50

Nakeeta Jane returned to the races with a fast-finishing win in the Light Fingers Stakes and she proved that was no fluke with an extremely tough victory in the Surround Stakes. She was far from disgraced when third behind The Autumn Sun and Fundamentalist and the step up to 2000 metres should not be an issue.

NRL – Manly Sea Eagles To Beat New Zealand Warriors @ $2.28

The Manly Sea Eagles showed some promising signs against the Sydney Roosters last week and they take on a New Zealand Warriors outfit that was very poor against the Wests Tigers. Manly have won seven of the past eight games between these two sides and the Warriors have lost three of their past five games as away favourites.

AFL – Western Bulldogs To Beat Hawthorn @ $2.90

The market has overreacted to the round one win of Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs are excellent value at their current odds of $2.90. The Bulldogs played some good footy to beat the Sydney Swans last weekend and they take on a Hawthorn outfit that was a losing betting proposition as favourites last season.

A-League - Wellington Phoenix To Beat Newcastle Jets @ $2.05

The Wellington Phoenix continue to be an outstanding side from a betting perspective this season and they are a safe bet against the Newcastle Jets. The Phoenix have won all five of their games as home favourites, while the Jets have won only two of their past eight games as away underdogs.

Originally published as Bookies give Cowboys little chance with Jason Taumalolo sidelined