Hanley commits future to Blackburn

Soccer Betting Lines

07/22/2010 - Blackburn, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blackburn has handed teenage defender Grant Hanley a new five-year contract.

The Scotland Under-19 captain made his Premier League debut in the final game of last season against Aston Villa and is now under contract at Ewood Park until summer 2015.

"It is brilliant, it is what I've aspired to, it is what all the hard work goes in for," Hanley told the club's official website.

"But as they say, the hard work starts now, now that the contract has signed.

"I started off with the academy then I worked my way through the reserves and I was lucky enough to get a start with the first team at the end of the season.

"But I know what I have to do, I have to keep my head down, work hard every day in training and do the right things.

"I've not set any targets or goals for myself, just to work hard and to take every day as it comes and see what happens."

(Courtesy of sportbox.tv)

Cybersportbook Soccer Betting News

<< Jol turns down Fulham job
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham will have to look elsewhere for a new manager after Martin Jol turned down the chance to return to the Premier League. The former Tottenham boss has decided to stay in charge of Ajax af

<< Newcastle adds former Everton midfielder Gosling
Newcastle, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Newly-promoted Newcastle signed former Everton midfielder Dan Gosling to a four-year contract on Thursday. Gosling, 20, is the second addition for Newcastle ahead of its return to the Premier League

<< Delahoussaye leads by two in Canada
Etobicoke, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brent Delahoussaye fired an eight-under 62 Thursday to take the lead after the opening round of the Canadian Open. Delahoussaye's 62 at St. George's Golf & Country Club matched the tournament's 18-hole

<< City coach Mancini interested in Donovan
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester City coach Roberto Mancini admitted he is interested in United States and Los Angeles Galaxy star Landon Donovan. Donovan played 10 games on loan at Everton last season and had two goals i

<< McCoy in fold with Browns
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns have reportedly signed quarterback Colt McCoy, a third-round draft pick. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports McCoy and the team's other third-round selection, guard Shawn Lauvao, bo

Mulumbu signs extension with West Brom >>
West Bromwich, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu has committed his future to West Brom after penning a new three-year contract. The 23-year-old DR Congo international made 46 appearances and scored three goals i

Paul to meet with Hornets Monday, trade rumors swirl >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Three-time All-Star point guard Chris Paul will reportedly sit down with management of the New Orleans Hornets on Monday, when he's expected to express his wishes to be traded. Several media outlets, inc

Shelton ousts Spieth, Lister at U.S. Junior >>
Ada, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Robby Shelton scored an upset victory over 2009 champion Jordan Spieth in Thursday's second round, then bettered Andrew Lister in the third round to advance to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Junior Amateur Champio

Chelsea's Alex to miss start of season >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea defender Alex will miss the start of the English Premier League season with a thigh injury that will sideline for one month, the club announced on Thursday. Alex was injured in training, joini

Westermann signs five-year deal with Hamburg >>
Gelsenkirchen, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Heiko Westermann finalized his move from Schalke to Hamburg on Thursday, as the German defender signed a five-year deal with his new club. Westermann, 26, had 12 goals in 92 matches for Schalke. H

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.

NFL Football Office Pools : NFL Football Contests

NFL Football Office Pool Printable Schedules

Welcome to our free football office pool page. Run your own NFL Football Office Pool. Create your own pool, invite your friends to join. Compete with your with co-workers, friends or family for bragging rights every week. Exchange some hard hits without risk of injury -- Trash Talk with your fellow co-workers.

Football Pickem Pools: Your basic office pool format, where you pick the winner of each game, either against the spread or straight up. Spice up your pool by using confidence ranks, key picks, and other options. Pick 5 pools available. You can print NFL Football Office Pools here. Custom ranks available. Custom point spreads. Use Pro and/or College games, even D1AA games can be included. Many many other options.

Football Survivor Pools: Also known as Knockout, Suicide, Eliminator, Survival and Loser pools. Pick one team each week. If they win you advance to the next round. If they lose, you're out. The catch: You can only pick a team once. Many options like Pick a Team Only [Once,Twice,Unlimited], [1,2,3,4,5] Strikes and You're Out, Double Picks, Bye Weeks, Alias Entries and more. Very easy to set up and manage.

Football Share Pools: Pick college and/or pro football game winners using Vegas odds in our own unique Share Pool format. Accumulate points by picking pointspread and over/under winners. Risk as many points as you want on any game. The person with the most points (shares) at the end wins. Perfect for the Playoffs and Bowl Seasons.

Fantasy Football Pools: Fantasy football pool managers love our easy to use interface and custom settings. Points and head to head leagues, custom points, offline drafts, live scoring, waiver wire, trades and more. Live customer service by email or phone. $50 flat fee.

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