Macca

It's nearly always a curious week (week 17) ... the teams in contention that have to win, usually win, and those teams that don't have to win, don't usually win. Teams that have secured a playoff berth and can't move from that spot often rest their starters and other teams that are completely out of it only have pride & future contracts on the line. It's reflected in the betting markets. The lines & head-to-head odds are a lot different to what we normally see - it's actually a good betting week if you can get your head around what is going on. It wouldn't surprise to see the Bills, 49ers, Titans, Denver & Dallas all win ... all 5 of those teams are favoured to win where as ordinarily they'd nearly all be underdogs. And every season in week 17 it's a similar story. It's hard to see any of the Ravens, Chargers, Vikes, Pats, Steelers, Seahawks & Saints losing either.

Ha ha ha! That's probably a more interesting link Wadda ... sent the link out to a mate who follows cricket fairly closely. It is a good extensive list in that it breaks up the captaincy records series by series. Here's the proper link (fingers crossed) ... Bernborough Hcp Doomben 5.40pm For what it's worth my top 3 picks are the 2, 3 & 6

The winner looks a decent horse ... running good times too. The horse looks like it now knows how to win after being in contention for a lot of it's runs. Bad luck for the Zephyr .. never really in it but the horse has had a lot of runs of late. Had the winner but didn't have the 2nd or 3rd horse ... ah well, it's on to the Bernborough Hcp Doomben 5.40pm

Drawing against England is like a win given the circumstances ... and it looks like we're going to get out of this match with a draw Losing anytime to England is like the Demons losing anytime to the Pies, Dons, Tiges, Blues, Hawks etc etc etc! Not long to race time ... let's hope we all get a collect!

The topweight has claims as well given it's great record but meets this lot with a big discrepancy in the weights. The race being only 1400m helps 'Burning Front' though But we need the Zephyr to feature D77 ... Go the Dan!

2 scratchings so we have a field of 9 Wadda. However, the multiple dividends can still pay well with the right combo. A number of horses can win whilst all of the runners are genuinely capable of running a place or in the first 4. I do like Ozi Choice to win though. Thelberg is another to watch out for ... ran 2nd to Ozi's Choice last start and will only carry 51kg again.

Yep ... that's the idea! There's a meeting at Doomben on Saturday which has a few feature races on show as well - including the listed Bernborough Handicap - 1600m $300.000 There's also a couple of Group 3 events for the 2yo's & 3yo's on the card - both races are lead-ins to the mid January Magic Millions meeting on the Gold Coast. I might leave the latter 2 races alone but the Bernborough Hcp has a half-decent field ... I like the 1600m races too. The formline is a bit easier for me to read in the middle distance races - I like to compare times & weights over the distance (more so 1400m - 2000m)

3 wins from 7 rides by Michael Dee according to racenet. Of course the 'Dee' in the jockeys name doesn't go unnoticed either! Quite a good open betting race too - Tri & F4 dividends could be healthy. I'll be including the Zephyr in my multiples D77.

While I think of it, here's the line up for the Perth Cup next Monday (Jan 1) ... Racenet.com.au Race 8 Ascot (Perth Cup) 16 runners so it isn't a small field ... Pounamu, Material Man, Trap For Fools, Royal Star, Dark Alert & Zarantz have all accepted and because of the extra distance & handicap conditions, the race could well be fought out by the aforementioned horses and a few others. And I'll be looking out for the Zephyr race at Sandown on Saturday too! (if it runs) By the way, Racenet.com.au is a more than decent website for form & odds (Thoroughbreds only by the looks of it) The site provides a few interesting links and the race fields, form & odds are up a number of days in advance.

Saints Carolina Dallas

So it's down to 2 in the tipping comp ... 3 points to play for and we're either going to have an outright winner or joint winners. Good luck gentlemen! Leaderboard in the comp 15 - Clintosaurus 12 - Go the Biff 10 - Dappa Dan 7 - Macca 4 - JV7, Gorgoroth You'd reckon the Saints are morals although their game is at Tampa and it is a divisional game. Other than that game, it's hard to find clear-cut road winners Most of the teams have nothing to play for with just pride on the line (and contracts of course) Buffalo & Carolina do have a lot to play for same for a number of home teams (Seattle, Atlanta, Ravens & the Chargers) There is no SNF this week which is a questionable decision ... of the late games, the teams needing to win can easily slip up.

It may not be an overly big field but it could be a good betting race (Perth Cup) ... a few horses have been saved for the race whilst Pounamu & Material Man have been raced keenly in the lead up. 'Trap For Fools' was scratched from Saturday's 2100m G2 race to save it for the Perth Cup and those aforementioned 3 horses will probably be favoured. Royal Star & Dark Alert next in line? Have a great Christmas and safe New year to all.

Got the Tri in the last in Japan so ended up being a good day - the good old Christmas Cup! The first 3 were my 3 top fancies but I'll take 33% of that dividend any day of the week. So what have we got now? The Summer Cup at Randwick on Boxing Day? ha ha

That's the thing about the big G1 races ... the best of the best are often in the finish and today was no different. Betting away from the best horses is high risk so they have to be included and respected. I couldn't find the form for the 2nd horse though ... I suppose all these top quality thoroughbreds have all got a good run in them though. None of my outsiders threatened but that's racing.

Kitasan Black led from start to finish - won by a length or so. Cheval Grand ran 3rd whilst an outsider (Queen's Ring) ran 2nd. The other top fancy (Suave Richard) ran 4th. The winner was impressive - just too good. Popular win too - it's a real fan favourite.

Settled on 3 horses to win ... Kitasan Black, Cheval Grand and for a bit of real value Satono Chronicle in today's big race from Japan (The Arima Kinen) Also reckon Suave Richard, Bless Journey & Mikki Queen could all run on and feature ... but it's a wide-open betting race apart from the top 3 in the betting. The race is on at 5.25pm AEDT.

I did it again today D77 (not watched the race live) and whilst I only got money back I might have won a bit if the 2 outsiders had have squeezed into 2nd, 3rd or 4th (instead of 5th & 6th) I often just bet on the 1 or 2 races so it's easy to be otherwise occupied anyway ... so I'll be on 'delay' again tomorrow! Out for a bit regardless with so much going on at Christmas.

Big chance for the quinella with those 2 but I like chasing the big dividends Wadda! ... 'Suave Richard' is also quite well fancied and there's a few others that are worth looking at (for the Tri/F4) Might have a go at the aptly named 'Christmas Cup' at Japan tomorrow as well - Bowman is on a horse called 'Saffheiros' (which is at good odds) I'm assuming that Hugh also travels the world riding in all the big Group races yeah? Europe as well or just HK & Japan? I sometimes bet on the big races in Europe but haven't done so for a bit. There's a stack of keenly contested Group 1's that often gets my interest. The 3yo classics dominate the calendar over there in May, June & July.

Pounamu didn't have much to beat in the end but won the race with another strong finish ... it's set for the Perth Cup now (Jan 1) but will have to carry 59kgs over the 2400m. Pounamu, Material Man (2nd) & Trap For Fools (withdrawn today) will probably all be running around on Monday week. Anyway, didn't lose and didn't win so that's a win of some sorts! Nakayama (Japan) tomorrow awaits ... the 2 feature races will be much better betting races so here's hoping. Bowman is a big chance to salute the judge again on Cheval Grand.

I know the races from Japan are on Sky racing (cable) but not sure about racing.com Wadda. The Trifecta pools were very high for that Sha tin meeting a fortnight back so if that happens again, there can be some excellent dividends to be had. Both Bowman's mount (Cheval Grand) and the fans favourite (Kitasan Black) should feature but there's a number of good horses in the race. It's a good betting race if one can reduce the 16 horse field down to 6 or 7 realistic chances

Tips ... Detroit Steelers Jacksonville Here are the games again ...

Ted Van Heemst Stakes (Ascot) - G2 WFA 2100m I'd like to be able to find a horse at good odds that can win this race but the only non-fancied horse that I reckon might feature is Dark Musket. But I don't believe it can win up against Pounamu, Material Man or Trap For Fools. So I'll throw Dark Musket & the other 2 outsiders into the mix in a trifecta & F4 and hope for the best ... otherwise the more fancied runners will fight out the finish and the dividends won't amount to much. Stranger things have happened though so you never know. I might have a few trifectas at Japan on Sunday all the same ... there's at least 2 feature races on show including the big G1 race over 2500m - Arima Kinen (The Grand Prix) Preview (Hugh Bowman rides Japan Cup winner Cheval Grand in the $6 million classic) Anyway, good punting to all!

Leaderboard in the comp 14 - Clintosaurus 11 - Go the Biff 10 - Dappa Dan 7 - Macca 4 - JV7, Gorgoroth Only 1 point on offer this week but week 17 has 3 points up for grabs ... Any of the top 3 can still win (outright or joint winner) but Clint does hold a strong advantage. Some excellent match-ups again this week ... Bills @ Pats, Falcons @ Saints, Rams @ Titans & Seahawks @ Dallas amongst them. 6 road teams stand out as potential winners ... The Rams, Pittsburgh & the Chargers are strongly favoured.

NFL Pro Bowl Selections 2018: Voting Results and Full List of Players Announced Here's all the Pro-Bowl selections (Asterisks denotes starters) NFC Quarterback: Carson Wentz*, Eagles; Russell Wilson, Seahawks; Drew Brees, Saints Running Back: Todd Gurley*, Rams; Alvin Kamara, Saints; Mark Ingram, Saints Fullback: Kyle Juszczyk*, 49ers Wide Receiver: Julio Jones*, Falcons; Adam Thielen*, Vikings; Michael Thomas, Saints; Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals Tight End: Zach Ertz*, Eagles; Jimmy Graham, Seahawks Offensive Tackle: Tyron Smith*, Cowboys; Trent Williams*, Redskins; Lane Johnson, Eagles Offensive Guard: Zack Martin*, Cowboys; Brandon Brooks*, Eagles; Brandon Scherff, Washington Center: Alex Mack*, Falcons; Travis Frederick, Cowboys Defensive End: Everson Griffen*, Vikings; Demarcus Lawrence*, Cowboys; Cameron Jordan, Saints Interior Linemen: Fletcher Cox*, Eagles; Aaron Donald*, Rams; Gerald McCoy, Buccaneers Outside Linebacker: Chandler Jones*, Cardinals; Ryan Kerrigan*, Redskins; Anthony Barr, Vikings Inside Linebacker: Luke Kuechly*, Panthers; Bobby Wagner, Seahawks Cornerback: Xavier Rhodes*, Vikings; Patrick Peterson*, Cardinals; Marshon Lattimore, Saints; Darius Slay, Lions Free safety: Earl Thomas*, Seahawks Strong Safety: Landon Collins*, Giants; Malcolm Jenkins, Eagles Punter: Johnny Hekker*, Rams Kicker: Greg Zuerlein*, Rams Return Specialist: Pharoh Cooper*, Rams Special Teamer: Budda Baker*, Cardinals AFC Quarterback: Tom Brady*, Patriots; Philip Rivers, Chargers; Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers Running Back: Le'Veon Bell*, Steelers; Kareem Hunt, Chiefs; LeSean McCoy, Bills Fullback: James Develin*, Patriots Wide Receiver: Antonio Brown*, Steelers; DeAndre Hopkins*, Texans; A.J. Green, Bengals; Keenan Allen, Chargers Tight End: Travis Kelce*, Chiefs; Rob Gronkowski, Patriots Offensive Tackle: Alejandro Villanueva*, Steelers; Taylor Lewan*, Titans; Donald Penn, Raiders Offensive Guard: Kelechi Osemele*, Raiders; David DeCastro*, Steelers; Richie Incognito, Bills Center: Maurkice Pouncey*, Steelers; Rodney Hudson, Raiders Defensive End: Joey Bosa*, Chargers; Calais Campbell*, Jaguars; Khalil Mack, Raiders Interior Linemen: Geno Atkins*, Bengals; Jurrell Casey*, Titans; Malik Jackson, Jaguars Outside Linebacker: Von Miller*, Broncos; Jadeveon Clowney*, Texans; Terrell Suggs, Ravens Inside Linebacker: C.J. Mosley*, Ravens; Ryan Shazier, Steelers Cornerback: A.J. Bouye*, Jaguars; Jalen Ramsey*, Jaguars; Aqib Talib, Broncos; Casey Hayward, Chargers Free Safety: Eric Weddle*, Ravens Strong Safety: Reshad Jones*, Dolphins; Micah Hyde, Bills Punter: Brett Kern*, Titans Kicker: Chris Boswell, Steelers Return Specialist: Tyreek Hill*, Chiefs Special Teamer: Matthew Slater*, Patriots

Here's the final field for the CB Cox Stakes to be run on Saturday at Ascot ... it's a G2 WFA event over 2100m and the race is often used as a lead-in to the Perth Cup (G2 2400m - Jan 1) Here's a bit of a write-up ... 2018 Perth Cup Horses Head Ted Van Heemst Stakes Field (Formerly the CB Cox Stakes) It's only a small field but I don't mind races with just the 8 starters # Horse Barrier Weight (kg) Rating Jockey Trainer 1 POUNAMU 4 59 107 PATRICK CARBERY ALAN MATHEWS 2 MATERIAL MAN 5 59 102 LUCY WARWICK JUSTIN WARWICK 3 ZARANTZ 8 59 98 CHRIS PARNHAM ADAM DURRANT 4 DARK MUSKET 2 59 74 CLINT JOHNSTON-PORTER GRAEME BALLANTYNE 5 SUNSET SUPERMAN 1 59 62 DANIEL STAECK BRETT POPE 6 TRAP FOR FOOLS 6 58 94 ALAN KENNEDY LINDSEY SMITH 7 COSMIC STORM 3 57 93 JARRAD NOSKE GRANT & ALANA WILLIAMS 8 SHINTA MANI 7 57 85 JASON WHITING SHARON MILLER