Daily tips for April 21

Racing for April 21

Horse racing: Ballarat (Vic), Gosford (NSW), Sunshine Coast (Qld), Naracoorte (SA), Narrogin (NSW), Wangaratta (Vic), Queanbeyan (NSW)

Harness racing: Muswellbrook (NSW), Kilmore (Vic), Hobart (Tas)

Greyhound racing: Sandown Park (Vic), Canberra (ACT), Albion Park (Qld), Sale (Vic), Strathalbyn (SA), Healesville (Vic), Wagga Wagga (NSW)

NSW tracks are still feeling the impact of a wet week with another heavy (8) on offer for today’s program at Gosford. Look for some genuine wet trackers at odds to provide some value, as was the case at Randwick yesterday.

For our best of the day, we’ve settled on the top weight in race 2, the Williams Premium Lager Class 2 Handicap, over 2600m. Most of these are stepping up to the distance for the first time as is our pick #2 Daruna.

The David Payne-trained 3yo gelding is a last start winner at Hawkesbury over 1800m on a dead track. He’s been placed on a heavy track over 2000m and looks the class runner in this company despite Hugh Bowman carrying 58.5kg

Suggested bet: Gosford R3 #2 Daruna (win two units) LOSE U/P

Other racing tips for April 21

Ballarat R6 #1 Anlon (E/W) 2nd $2.10

Gosford R7 #4 Complicate (win) LOSE 2nd

Sunshine Coast R6 #3 Play Luck (E/W) LOSE 4th

Harness racing tip: Kilmore R4 #2 Classic Life (win) WIN $1.30

Greyhound racing tip: Healesville R8 #1 Early Return (win) WIN $1.30

A-League Grand Final

Western Sydney Wanderers v Central Coast Mariners, Allianz Stadium, Sydney, Sunday, April 21, 4pm

After 27 rounds and two weeks of intense finals football, it's fitting that the season’s best and most consistent sides will contest the grand final. Western Sydney have stunned everyone by taking out the Premiers' Plate and are just one win away from securing am incredible double.

Coach Tony Popovic does have some selection headaches though, with in-form winger Youssouf Hersi unavailable through suspension while key midfielder Aaron Mooy (knee) is racing the clock to prove his fitness.

Central Coast are no strangers to grand final week, with the club getting set for their fourth decider in just eight seasons. But the club are still waiting to claim their first championship. Graham Arnold will be forced into one change with midfielder Nick Montgomery out after he was sent off in the semi-final win over the Melbourne Victory.

The first three meetings between the Western Sydney Wanderers and the Central Coast Mariners have seen all three possible results returned, with the Wanderers winning the most recent encounter. In total the three games saw just three goals, and two were goal-less at half-time.

With six of the previous seven Grand Finals having been goalless at the break, and five providing fewer than three goals, there looks to be plenty of value in both bets, particularly given these teams had the best defensive records throughout the season.

Both the Wanderers and Central Coast have had fewer than three goals in 17 of their 28 games this season, but the longer price on the half-time 0-0 offers greater appeal here.

Western Sydney has won 12 of their last 13 matches and deserves to be favourites. 

However, while we have previously been concerned about Central Coast suffering from fixture congestion due to their Champions League commitments, it is also a slight worry that the Wanderers have played just one game in three weeks coming into this.

They also lack the experience of their rivals, but as the higher-ranked side from the regular season has won four and lost only one of the past seven Grand Finals in 90 minutes, and won the other two on penalties, we'll be siding with the A-League Premiers to add the Championship.

Suggested bets: Wanderers WIN (three units), first half no goals (one unit), Wanderers WIN 1-0 (1/2 unit) LOSE (0-2)

AFL (rd 4) for April 21

Melbourne v Greater Western Sydney, MCG, Sunday, April 21, 1.10pm

Sometimes, it’s mighty hard to ignore the commentary and go just with the facts. This is one of those games. Kevin Sheedy will have his young Giants side primed for their first win of the season as they take on the crisis-ridden Demons. However, injuries and suspensions will mean GWS is well below full strength while Melbourne will be desperate for a win – any win – to keep the wolves away from the door for at least another seven days.

The bigger bodies of the Demons should get them the four points, particularly if the application they showed in the first half against West Coast last week can last that bit longer. Indeed, if the Demons find some momentum early, we fancy they could actually put the Giants to the sword. As Essendon has shown in recent weeks, sometimes the best place to forget about off-field troubles is on the field.

Suggested bet: Melbourne -15.5 (three units) WIN (144-103)

Other tips

Adelaide v Footscray -181.5 WIN (80-28)
Nth Melbourne v Brisbane +205.5

MLB for April 21

Arizona Diamondbacks @ Colorado Rockies, Coors Field, Denver, CO, Sunday, April 21, 10.10am

Trevor Cahill has pitched well in all three starts for the Diamondbacks without a win to show for it while Jorge De La Rosa of the Rockies has a 2.41 ERA in 16 appearances against Arizona. Look for this game to again stay in the single-digits in the chill and altitude when Trevor Cahill and the Diamondbacks (9-7, 4-3 away) pay a visit to Jorge De La Rosa and the Colorado Rockies (12-4, 7-0 home).

The Rockies won the series opener here 3-1 last night, marking not only the seventh straight win for Colorado overall, but also the fifth straight ‘under’ for an Arizona team that continues to get good pitching. Another reason why the ‘under’ is now 10-6 in all Arizona games is because the offence has been inconsistent, and it has been downright bad against left-handed pitchers, so we’ll also side with the Rockies to win outright.

Suggested bet: Game total -9.5 (two units) WIN, Rockies WIN (two units) WIN (3-4)

Other tips

Royals @ Red Sox WIN WIN (3-4)

Nationals @ Mets +7.5 WIN (7-6)

Athletics @ Rays WIN WIN (0-1)

Indians WIN @ Astros WIN (19-6)

Yankees WIN @ Blue Jays WIN (5-3)

• Place a bet on a ‘head to head’ market for any MLB match and if your team is ahead entering the ninth but loses the match, our sports betting partner Centrebet will refund your first bet up to $100 cash!

NHL for April 21

Phoenix Coyotes @ Chicago Blackhawks, United Center, Chicago, IL, Sunday, April 21, 10.30am

Already headed to the playoffs with the best record in the Western Conference, the Chicago Blackhawks hope to keep producing on the power play while closing in on the Presidents’ Trophy. The Blackhawks go for an eight-game winning streak here when they attempt to sweep the season series from the Phoenix Coyotes, whose playoff chances are dimming.

Despite Chicago’s considerable success, the power play has been an issue, ranking 20th in the league with a 16.5 per cent success rate while surrendering four short-handed goals. We’ve dropped units on Chicago betting the puck line, so let’s play it safe here and take the short-ish price on offer as we expect the Blackhawks to sweep the Coyotes for the first time since 2008-09.

Suggested bet: Blackhawks WIN (four units), -1.5 (one unit) LOSE (3-2)

Other tips

Maple Leafs @ Senators -5.5 WIN (4-1)

Red Wings @ Canucks WIN

Penguins WIN @ Bruins WIN (3-2)

Islanders @ Jets +5.5 WIN (5-4)

NBA playoffs for April 21

Game 1: Memphis Grizzlies @ Los Angeles Clippers, Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA, Sunday, April 21, 12.30pm

In a season of firsts for their franchise, the Los Angeles Clippers are opening the playoffs with a familiar foe. Only this time, they own home-court advantage against the Memphis Grizzlies. Both teams finished the regular season with identical 56-26 records and tied for fourth in the Western Conference.

A year ago, the Clippers opened at Memphis and fell into a 27-point hole. They rallied to tie an NBA record for largest deficit overcome in the fourth quarter and won by one point. Then, the Clippers won a Game 7 for the first time in franchise history in Memphis to advance.

The Clippers won the season series 3-1 this year, including two wins in Memphis. The Grizzlies led the NBA in allowing just 89.5 points per game, but the Clippers land in a solid situation here, as they’ve gone 10-4 SUATS as home favourites of 3.5 to 6 points the last two-plus seasons.

Suggested bet: Clippers -5.5 (two units) WIN (91-112)

Other tips

Celtics +7.5 @ Knicks WIN (78-85)

Bulls @ Nets -181.5 LOSE (89-106)

• Place a bet on a ‘head to head’ market during the NBA playoffs and if your team scores 100 points but loses the match, our sports betting partner Centrebet will refund your first bet up to $100 cash!