Findley misses PK as RSL, Seattle battle to draw

Soccer Betting Lines

09/10/2010 - Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders FC battled to a scoreless draw in Major League Soccer action in front of over 36,000 fans at Qwest Field on Thursday night.

RSL (12-4-8) moves into a tie with Columbus and Los Angeles atop the league's overall table with 44 points, although it has played one more game than the other two.

Seattle (9-9-6) solidified its spot in the middle of the Western table with the draw, and looks to be in the driver's seat as far as advancing to the postseason as a wild-card team.

The game, which was the 29th-straight sell-out for Seattle, was the first for RSL at Qwest Field since winning the MLS Cup there last season.

The game, while fast-paced, featured very few clear-cut scoring opportunities for either team. Seattle goalkeeper Kasey Keller and RSL goalkeeper Kyle Reynish - starting for the injured Nick Rimando - combined for just five saves in the game.

The biggest save was credited to Keller when he denied RSL striker Robbie Findley on a penalty kick just after the half-hour mark.

Findley earned a penalty when Seattle defender Jeff Parke lost his footing on the edge of the penalty area with the U.S. international driving toward him. Parke then stuck out his knee and took down Findley, but he wasted the ensuing PK by firing right at Keller.

It was the first missed PK for RSL since May of 2008 at the club's old venue, Rice-Eccles Stadium, vs. San Jose.

Seattle midfielder Steve Zakuani had his team's best chance in the 53rd minute when he sped past a number of defenders into the RSL penalty area, but Kyle Reynish anticipated well and jumped off his line to grab the ball before the speedy winger could get off a shot.

RSL had another chance after the hour mark, but Andy Williams' left-footed shot from about 20 yards was saved by Keller.

Seattle will aim to get back into the win column when it travels to Columbus on Sept. 18, while RSL hosts Chicago earlier the same day in its next MLS fixture.

Marketwstch Soccer Betting News


<< Giants down Padres to being key series
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Cain threw eight-plus solid innings and was backed by an offense that smacked four home runs, as the San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres, 7-3, in the opener of a critical four-game series.

<< Saints start title defense with win over Vikings
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Drew Brees threw for 237 yards and a score and Pierre Thomas ran for the decisive touchdown in the third quarter, as the Saints opened their title defense and the 2010 season with a 14-9 win over the Vik

<< Johnson's homer lifts Astros over Dodgers
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Johnson's three-run homer in the sixth inning lifted the Houston Astros over the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-2, in the opener of a four-game series at Minute Maid Park. Bud Norris (7-8), who was winle

<< Report: Patriots, Brady finalize extension
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady have finalized a four-year contract extension worth about $19 million per season, according to a report from the Boston Herald. The report, which cites

<< Youzhny, Nadal reach U.S. Open semis
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mikhail Youzhny and eight-time major titlist Rafael Nadal won their quarterfinal matches on Thursday at the 2010 U.S. Open. Nadal, the world No. 1, handled eighth-seeded Fernando Verdasco 7-

United, TFC square off at BMO for 'important game' >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Last-placed D.C. United travels to take on a desperate Toronto FC club on Saturday afternoon in Major League Soccer action at BMO Field. The Reds (7-9-7) are in must-win mode if they have any hope of m

Colorado travels for inter-conference match-up with Red Bulls >>
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rapids travel to take on Red Bull New York on Saturday in an inter-conference clash between the two Major league Soccer clubs at Red Bull Arena. Colorado (9-6-7) is riding high after two straig

Giants down Padres to begin key series >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Cain threw eight-plus solid innings and was backed by an offense that smacked four home runs, as the San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres, 7-3, in the opener of a critical four-game series.

Brady's day starts with crash, ends with contract >>
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) - A loud crash. A crumpled front end. A brief stay in an ambulance.It was a very bad start to Tom Brady's day.A new contract. The highest average salary in the NFL. A deal that ties him to the New England Patriots through 2014

Packers' O-line expects to keep Rodgers upright >>
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - The Green Bay Packers' offensive line got off to such a bad start last year that it's even serving as a punchline for the satirical newspaper The Onion.In its tongue-in-cheek NFL preview this week, the paper's website wrote, `

NFL ODDSTop Football Betting Free Agents to Change Teams

NFL Betting

It’s time to see how the biggest NFL free agent signings will perform for their news teams. Some will work out and could be the difference that makes a difference in the win column.

We look at the best off-season signings and if they should influence your NFL betting this season. Julius Peppers – Peppers was the biggest prize available on the 2010 NFL free agent market and the Chicago Bears opened the bank to bring his talents to the south side.

Peppers is explosive, he can get around blockers and cause quarterbacks to lose their minds. We all remember the classic Peppers game last year against the Vikings where he hounded Brett Favre into his worst game of the season. Peppers joining the Bears could be the reason Favre retired for good Tuesday morning. In addition to Peppers, the Bears added Chester Taylor to back up Matt Forte, Forte didn’t have the same intensity in 2009 compared to 2008 and bringing in Taylor will challenge Forte to bring it every game or he’ll risk losing carries to Taylor.

Betting on the Bears is a good option this season because of Julius Peppers and to a lesser extent Taylor. Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens – The Cincinnati Bengals signed two former number one wide receivers to line up with Chad Ocho Cinco. Antonio Bryant had a huge season in 2008 catching 83 passes for over 1200 yards but regressed last season. Playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs last season was a large part of the regression, everyone was bad in TB last season.

Bryant should have a bounce back season if he can win the number two spot from Terrell Owens. If Bryant wins the number 2 WR spot, it will open up a completely new set of problems for the Bengals. If Owens is forced to the bench in favor of Bryant, his attitude will create trouble for Carson Palmer and head coach Marv Lewis. If Owens is the number two receiver, it means Bryant can’t live up to his past numbers and the Bengals are still limited in the passing game. NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. 2010 football betting lines for this can be found at this top online sportsbook. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense.

NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense. They signed away the Arizona Cardinals top linebacker Karlos Danby. In the past two seasons, Danby has totaled 228 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. The Dolphins are the forgotten team of the AFC East with the second longest odds to win the division but with the addition of Karlos Danby and a trade for WR Brandon Marshall makes the Miami Dolphins legitimate contenders in the AFC East and in the NFL’s Eastern Conference.

The Dolphins will make NFL wagering fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Wagering

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.