Handcuffed

Just back from watching Robyn Hitchcock at the Birmingham Academy. He’s been around for years, but he still has an enthusiasm for the job and, as usual, an entertaining night was had by all. I can never go straight to bed after driving, so I thought I’d post an update of my less-than-exhilarating recent Betfair performances.

I started internet betting simply because of the challenge of picking winners and beating the bookies. I only became serious about winning money when I was put in a position where I needed an income. And I’ve always found it tough. Yes, I make profits more often than losses, but it’s rarely easy. The last week has been a slog, but necessarily so. Having had a poor March, I needed to build up my bank with minimum risk. And that has meant bypassing loads of potential opportunities, and placing small sums on the supposedly ‘safe’ wagers I’ve taken on to win £2’s, £3’s and £5’s. It really is like betting in handcuffs. It’s dull as hell, and needs plenty of discipline. It’s hard to maintain any great enthusiasm with these sort of amounts, but as I’m not prepared to deposit cash into Betfair, it’s the way forward for me for the coming weeks. But I’ve regularly had to check myself from sticking the lot on a punt just to relieve the frustration. I’m currently a huge £212 up on the month, but as that’s nearly doubled my bank balance I suppose I should see it as a success, even if it doesn’t feel like one! It wasn’t that long ago that I would think nothing of placing a 4 figure liability, but my betting has to be self funding, so if I’m to get back to that level I’ll have to earn the profit.

On a positive note, there have been enough weird football results in the last couple of weeks to make me think that my limited bets may have saved me from a major blow out. I lost £16 laying Tottenham against Chelsea, but apart from that have remained unscathed. I noted from today’s forum that £132 was matched at odds of 500.00 and over on a Wigan win. Ouch.

Finally, the Leeds United steamroller which ran out of gas in mid March is now limping towards the finish line in Division 1. Pressure continues to be such an important factor in sport. Both Swindon and Millwall were unstoppable during their rise to overtake Leeds in the table, but having reached the summit, both have now found winning much more difficult. So with three games remaining, Leeds simply have to win each match to gain automatic promotion. Simply? I doubt it. This will go down to the final game. Pity I’ve no nails left to bite.