Daily tips for September 25

Feature: Norway the wrong way for thieving punter

The dangers of betting with an online gaming site not licensed in your jurisdiction (and the small matter of stealing the funds to do so!) were again confirmed this week when a Norwegian gambler who was suing an Australian sports betting company for his gambling losses has lost his case in the Northern Territory Supreme Court. The ABC reported that, in 2009, Bjarte Baasland filed a claim for damages against Centrebet, after he lost more than $15 million betting on sites including Centrebet.

Mr Baasland said Centrebet was negligent in allowing him to gamble the money. In 2010, the Supreme Court of Norway ruled it had jurisdiction to hear the matter because gambling on Centrebet was available in Norwegian currency. But Justice Graham Hiley has ruled Centrebet did not owe Mr Baasland any money and that Australian law prevailed. Mr Baasland also has to pay Centrebet’s costs.

The background to the case is fascinating, particularly because it involved two different international legal jurisdictions. Mr Baasland made his claim for damages Bet365 and Centrebet four years ago in a Norwegian court. By then he had lost more than 70 million Norwegian kroner, or about $AUD 15 million, in online bets. The money had been borrowed from family and friends, and Mr Baasland disguised the losses by saying he had made bad investments on dot.com start-ups.

The scandal made headlines in Norway. Mr Baasland is the son of a former Bishop in the Church of Norway, who was forced to resign when the case became public. The family went bankrupt and his mother, who had borrowed money from friends, was also accused of fraud. Mr Baasland claimed that he was a gambling addict and Centrebet should have stopped him from accessing the site, and not enticed him to bet larger amounts.

Centrebet argued that Norwegian courts did not have jurisdiction over the case, but the Supreme Court of Norway ruled in 2010 that it did have the right to hear the case. While Centrebet has no office in the country, it has a Norwegian bank account, home page and toll-free telephone number. Gamblers can use Norwegian currency to bet on Norwegian sporting events. Centrebet is registered in the Northern Territory, and is now owned by British wagering giant William Hill.

In the Northern Territory Supreme Court, Centrebet’s lawyer argued that Australian law should prevail. Alistair Wyvill SC said Mr Baasland had breached Centrebet’s online terms and conditions. To place a bet, punters must agree that they are gambling with their own funds. But Centrebet argued that because Mr Baasland had borrowed the money and disguised how he was spending it, the company was not liable for his losses. It said the company would have stopped Mr Baasland from gambling had it known it wasn't his money.

Racing for September 25

Horse racing: Sale (Vic), Canterbury (NSW), Eagle Farm (Qld), Murray Bridge (SA), Belmont (WA). Harness racing: Ballarat (Vic), Bathurst (NSW), Redcliffe (Qld). Greyhound racing: Albion Park (Qld), Richmond (NSW), Angle Park (SA), Bulli (NSW), The Meadows (Vic), Cranbourne (Vic), Cannington (WA), Ballarat (Vic), Rockhampton (Qld).

The weather is fine and warm for today’s seven-race program at Canterbury with the track condition rated a good (3). Race 5, the Hyland Race Colours Handicap (1250m) for horses with one metro win is one of the most competitive on the card with at least four live chances. I’m leaning towards Chris Waller’s hope #7 Foxbat. The four-year-old son of Jet Spur has progressed solidly this campaign and comes into this off a two-length third behind the talented Murder Of Crows two weeks ago at Warwick Farm. He was ridden a little more forward on that occasion, settling midfield and chasing steadily in the straight. He's third-up here, which is when he broke through for a maiden win last campaign, which happened to be at Canterbury over 1250m. Expect Jim Cassidy to try and slot in midfield again today. He'll need luck from the wide gate, but with Cassidy aboard that isn't too much of a concern.

Suggested bet: Canterbury R5 #7 Foxbat E/W 1x3 (two units) 2nd ($1.70)

Other tips

Sale R4 #5 McNulty (win) 1st ($1.90)

Sale R5 #2 Tabloid (win) LOSE (4th)

Sale R8 #2 Bachelor Knight (win) 1st ($2.10)

Canterbury R1 #2 Rivariva (win) LOSE (3rd)

Canterbury R2 #2 Quick's The Word (E/W 1x2) 2nd ($2.00)

Canterbury R6 #7 Wind Bender (E/W 1x3) 3rd ($2.90/$1.40)

Canterbury R7 #2 Gamba (win) 1st ($3.20)

Eagle Farm R1 #2 Danyme (win) 1st ($2.10)

Eagle Farm R4 #2 Royal Jester (win) LOSE (3rd)

Eagle Farm R6 #1 Vis A Tergo (win) 1st ($2.00)

Murray Bridge R6 #2 Seal No More (win) LOSE (3rd)

Murray Bridge R7 #4 Ferrari Star (win) 1st $3.40

Harness racing tip: Ballarat R5 #6 Goodtime Veejay (win) 1st ($1.30)
Greyhound racing tip: Bulli R1 #8 Cool Cat Charlie (win) LOSE (U/P)

Football (Capital One Cup) for September 25

Third round: Burnley FC v Nottingham Forest, Turf Moor, Burnley, Lancashire, UK, Wednesday, September 25, 4.45am

Burnley has a good recent home record against Nottingham Forest and the hosts are in buoyant mood ahead of this cup tie. Back-to-back wins against Birmingham and Leeds have elevated Burnley to second in the Championship table and maintained their best start to a season for 12 years. Burnley boss Sean Dyche (pictured) is likely to be forced to make a change to his starting line-up for the first time in four matches in the Capital One Cup tie against Nottingham Forest. The in-form Clarets have lined up with the same XI for each of their three previous contests and have taken seven points in that time to propel themselves into second in the Sky Bet Championship table. However, midfielder David Jones was withdrawn in the second half of the 2-1 win over Leeds United at the weekend after suffering a cut to his ankle. The Clarets are unbeaten at Turf Moor this season in all competitions, winning three and drawing two. They have scored in 20 of their last 21 League Cup matches, progressing into the next round 15 times in that period.

Forest, on the other hand, have been unable to maintain the early-season form that took them top of the table. They have won only one of their last five league matches and conceded two goals in each of the last four. Billy Davies is expected to follow the trend of previous rounds in making changes to his Nottingham Forest side. The former Derby County boss played an entirely different XI to that which started the previous league game in the second round win over Millwall in August and is likely to do the same this time round. That could mean starts for the likes of Danny Collins, Guy Moussi, Simon Cox and Matt Derbyshire who have so far been on the periphery of the squad during the league campaign. Defender Kevin Wilson sat out the weekend draw at Doncaster after suffering an injury in Forest's previous match and the summer signing from Celtic is unlikely to risked should he recover in time. Forest have been eliminated in five of their last six third-round matches, progressing only against lower league opposition in that run.

Suggested bet: Both Teams Score (2.5 units @ $1.61) WIN, Burnley WIN (1.5 units @ $2.50) WIN (2-1)

Other tips

Hull City WIN ($1.88) v Huddersfield Town WIN (1-0)

Sunderland AFC v Peterborough Utd +0.5 $2.00 LOSE (2-0)

Watford FC DNB $1.63 v Norwich City LOSE (2-3)

Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur +2.5 $1.79 WIN (0-4)

MLB for September 25

NL: New York Mets (71-85, 39-40 away) @ Cincinnati Reds (90-67, 49-26 home), Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH, Wednesday, September 25, 9.10am

With less than a week until the end of the regular season, I’ll be winding back my bets slightly until the start of the playoffs. Different levels of motivation are now in play – several clubs have secured their playoff positions while only a handful are fighting tooth and nail for a wild card spot. Of course, many sides will soon close the book on an unsuccessful 2013 campaign. Accordingly, the focus will be on “meaningful” games for the rest of the week, like this one. The Cincinnati Reds are headed back to the post-season, but that’s not enough. Mike Leake (pictured) is out to continue his dazzling stretch and help pull the Reds closer to the top of the NL Central against the New York Mets. Cincinnati (90-67) has qualified for the playoffs in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the ‘The Big Red Machine’ won World Series titles in 1975 and 1976.

The Reds and Pittsburgh have at least a wild-card berth, but both trail division-leading St. Louis by two games with five to play. Giving the ball to Leake (14-6, 3.21 ERA) should give Cincinnati a strong chance to close that gap, while the Cardinals host Washington. Leake has been utterly dominant of late, winning three straight starts behind a 0.84 ERA. He's thrown a career-high 20 1/3 scoreless innings over that stretch, becoming the ninth Reds starter to reach at least 20 since 1974 and first since Mat Latos went 21 innings from April 19-May 5. Leake is also trying to win a career-high fourth straight start, and he hasn't put together a longer single-season winning streak since beginning his career 5-0 over his first 11 starts of 2010. He was superb again last Tuesday; scattering five hits in eight innings of a 10-0 win at Houston. Despite that dominance, manager Dusty Baker didn't want to overextend Leake, who threw 105 pitches.

Leake's most recent complete game came at home against the Mets (71-85) on August 15, 2012, when he pitched a four-hitter in a 6-1 win. He beat them again on May 21, yielding three hits in seven innings of a 4-0 road victory. Leake's success against New York is partly why the Reds have a 1.88 ERA while winning nine of the past 10 meetings. The Mets will turn to Jonathon Niese (7-8, 3.81), who is 4-2 with a 3.06 ERA over eight starts since returning from a partially torn rotator cuff. The left-hander has yielded two runs or fewer in five of them. Niese is on schedule to start the Mets’ season finale against Milwaukee, and he'd like to finish strong and healthy. Niese is 1/3 with a 4.55 ERA in five lifetime starts versus the Reds, going 1-0 while allowing nine runs in 11 innings over two road meetings.

Suggested bet: Cincinnati WIN (two units @ $1.56) LOSE (4-2)

Other tips

IL: Red Sox* @ Rockies -10 $1.95 LOSE (3-8)
AL: White Sox @ Indians** WIN $1.45 WIN -7.5 $1.87 LOSE (4-5)
AL: Astros @ Rangers** -1.5 $1.71 LOSE (2-3)
AL: Tigers WIN $1.50 @ Twins WIN (4-2)
AL: Athletics* WIN $1.85 @ Angels LOSE (0-3)
AL: Royals** WIN $1.78 LOSE @ Mariners -7 $1.79 WIN (0-4)
NL: Brewers @ Braves* WIN $1.82 WIN -7.5 $1.78 WIN (2-3)
NL: Phillies WIN $2.02 WIN @ Marlins -7.5 $1.84 WIN (2-1)
NL: Pirates* WIN $1.63 @ Cubs WIN (8-2)
NL: Nationals WIN $2.08 LOSE @ Cardinals* -7 $2.09 WIN (0-2)
NL: D'backs @ Padres -7 $1.80 WIN (2-1)
NL: Dodgers* WIN $2.02 @ Giants WIN (2-1)

* = playoff spot, ** = wild card contender

• Prices with thanks to Centrebet, correct at time of publication – for most people gambling is an exciting and fun recreational pursuit. For others it can become a problem with devastating consequences for them, their families and friends. We want you to enjoy your gambling experience. We want you to stay in control of your gambling and not allow your gambling to control you.