Weekend Jottings!

The range of markets that bookmakers offer the poor punters to bet on these days never ceases to amaze me.  You can bet on just about evey sport from hurling (the Irish ball game - not something you do after a heavy Saturday night out!) to tiddlywinks as well as some more "speciality" markets such as who will be the first Premiership manager to ban their players from using social networking website Twitter, to who will light the Olympic Flame at the opening ceremony of London 2012.  The Olympic Flame market interests me and I see that some punters are keen to take on odds-on favourite (and five time Olympic gold medal winner) Sir Steve Redgrave with Sir Bob Geldof.  I just hope for their sakes that the opening ceremony is not on a Monday...I hear on the grapevine that Sir Bob is not too partial to those!

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England are fighting to stay in the second Test match against the Indians after they were bowled out for 221 in their first innings.  It could have been a lot worse for England though if their best batsman Stuart Broad had not stepped in with a very welcome 64.  Looking at the forecast, it doesn't look as though rain is going to play much of a factor so we should get a result...it is just a shame that England are already on the back foot.

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It will be interesting to see how Tiger Woods gets on in the WGC Bridgestone Invitational next week.  The former world number one has employed the services of a new caddy in a bid to revive his fortunes.  Tiger has been dogged by injuries to his knees and achilles and has looked a pale imitation of the golfer who used dominate the sport - I wonder if we will ever get the real Tiger back or if the arrival of Rory McIlroy has marked a new order in the golfing world?