Allardyce confident Blackburn will survive

Soccer Betting Lines

12/18/2008 - Blackburn, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sam Allardyce is confident of saving Blackburn Rovers from relegation after being unveiled as the new manager at Ewood Park.

Allardyce has been handed a three-year contract after being confirmed as Paul Ince's successor on Wednesday and the former Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United boss believes he can preserve the club's top-flight status.

Ince was axed on the back of an 11-game winless run which has left the club languishing in 19th place in the Premier League table.

Allardyce, who has brought in Neil McDonald as his assistant from Leeds United, admitted he jumped at the chance to return after almost a full year out of management.

He also revealed that he had turned down a previous approach from Rovers to take the reins before they appointed Ince last summer.

"Six months ago it was a case of speaking with (chairman) John Williams, going home and talking to my better half," he admitted. "After 15 years straight managing and coaching I decided it was too early to jump back into the mainstream.

"Now I can get going in terms of getting my teeth stuck into the job and improving results.

"It is an unexpected position that the team find themselves in, I don't think anybody expected the club to be in the position it is.

"But having been there before, I hope the players respond very quickly. I hope this is a blip and just a run of poor form.

"We have to get the players playing to the maximum of their ability and hopefully we can move up the table.

"You can never say you are too good to go down - clubs have fallen foul of that before - but the players have to play to the maximum of their ability to get us out of trouble."

Meanwhile, Allardyce claims he is under no pressure to sell players in the January transfer window.

Paraguay striker Roque Santa Cruz has been linked with a move away from Ewood Park, but the newly-installed manager is determined to keep hold of his best players.

"I've got to evaluate the squad before even venturing into what we might or might not do in January," he continued. "We don't want to have to sell anybody in the January transfer window.

"Why would I want to sell the best ones? Why would I want to do that?"

(Courtesy of sportbox.tv)

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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout

An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.

Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off.  Randy was not impressed though.  Paula thought he started off fantastic.  "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either. 

Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed.  Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact.  He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition. 

Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula.  Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.

Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next.  Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential.  Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell.  He sang "Careless Whisper".

22 year old Chris Richardson was up next.  He was listed with +1100 odds coming in.  He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great. 

Nick was boring and pitchy.  Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week.  Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition. 

Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds .  These of course were the early odds.  He was considered original for picking an "odd song".  He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night. 

Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good. 

Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds.  Great voice and a great sense of humor.  He's a real standout.  Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit.  Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig". 

Jared Cotter followed.  He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition.  The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good. 

22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next.  "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon.  Though the judges felt he performed okay.  Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.

Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition.  He was the last to perform.  He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start. 

Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys.  Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

El Duque expected to throw Tuesday

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.

Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.

El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.

MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds. 

Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.

New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.

Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''

Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

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