Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
06/19/2010 - Nelspruit, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both Italy and New Zealand enter Sunday's Group F FIFA World Cup contest at Mbombela Stadium on the heels of draws in their opening matches, but their emotions are quite different.
The Italians entered the World Cup as heavy favorites to win the group, but after their 1-1 draw with Paraguay, superiority is anything but assured, while New Zealand was thrilled to get a point in a 1-1 draw with Slovakia.
Paraguay took the lead after a first-half goal from Antolin Alcaraz against Italy, but it was the only shot on goal of the match for the South American side. Daniele De Rossi was able to equalize in the second half for the Italians to help them salvage a point, but there was some frustration from manager Marcello Lippi after the match.
"I'm happy because we played as a team, but it's a shame not to have won because we deserved to. By the end our opponents had handed us control and they didn't create any danger in the second period, we didn't even let them have a single shot on goal," Lippi said.
Making matters worse for Italy is the fact that goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon suffered a back injury and had to be taken off at halftime, and he will miss at least Sunday's match if not the rest of the tournament. Buffon will have surgery after the tournament.
Federico Marchetti will take Buffon's place in goal for the Azzurri, who must beat New Zealand to restore some order to the group.
The Kiwis will be happy to have claimed a point against Slovakia in their opening game, giving the team its first-ever World Cup point after Winston Reid scored three minutes into stoppage time in a 1-1 draw.
"It's terrific. Over the last five years, I've never stopped believing in this team," said New Zealand manager Ricki Herbert. "Playing at a World Cup was a dream come true, but this is even better. We came to South Africa with the intention of making a difference, and we certainly did that against a highly- rated team."
Slovakia is not as highly-rated a team as Italy, so it will take a big effort for the Kiwis to get anything from this match, but they have already proven capable of making a difference.
<< Slovakia hopes for better result against Paraguay
Bloemfontein, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Slovakia manager Vladimir Weiss
described a 1-1 draw against New Zealand as a "minor sporting tragedy," but on
Sunday, knows complete focus must switch to a crucial match against Paraguay.
Slova
<< Henin rallies to win Wimbledon tuneup
's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justine Henin finished
her prep for Wimbledon with a three-set triumph over Germany's Andrea Petkovic
in the final at the Unicef Open.
The top-seeded Henin rallied for a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
<< Cubs sign first-round pick Simpson
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs have signed their top pick of
the 2010 First-Year Player Draft, pitcher Hayden Simpson, to an undisclosed
contract.
Simpson, 21, was taken 16th overall in the first round.
The right-han
<< Jeter scratched with bruised heel
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter was
scratched from the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the New York
Mets because of a bruised heel.
Jeter has battled through a recent slump. He was
Flyers acquire rights to coveted Hamhuis from Predators >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired the
rights to pending unrestricted free agent Dan Hamhuis from the Nashville
Predators in exchange for defenseman Ryan Parent.
The Flyers have exclusive negoti
Phillies designate Mathieson, recall Sardinha >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday
designated pitcher Scott Mathieson for assignment and selected the contract of
catcher Dane Sardinha from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Mathieson appeared in his only
Safina withdraws from Wimbledon >>
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dinara Safina of Russia has withdrawn
from Wimbledon because of a back injury.
Safina was a semifinalist last year for her best result in seven appearances
on the famed lawns at the All England Club
Raiders' Seymour signs tender >>
Alameda, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oakland Raiders defensive end Richard Seymour
signed his exclusive franchise tender on Saturday.
The Georgia product recorded 47 tackles and four sacks in 16 games for the
Raiders last season. Oakland a
Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.
NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting