Grand National Betting

Choosing a winner from the 40 entrants into the Grand National can be a daunting task but if you take into account statistics from previous winners it can give you an idea of which horses have the required qualities to get around the track.

Generally the winner will be aged between 8-12 so you can rule out the younger and older horses and even trim the bracket to 8-10.

Weight is very important, the winner will normally be carrying 11 stone 5lb or under but I would go even further and cap the weights at 11 stone.

The distance needs to be taken in account as some horses won't be up to the challenge of the 4 mile 4 furlong course, make sure your horse has run over 3 miles before and preferably won as well.

Other characteristics from past winners see them with a handicap rating above 135, run in at least ten chases and won a chase worth at least £17,000.

After analysing this data and looking at the form of the horses I have four top picks. Oscar Time looks good at 14/1, I would expect him to be backed big and to go out as one of the favourites. I like the look of Silver by Nature but he would prefer soft ground so my top pick would be Ballabriggs who is available at around 16/1. I also have a soft spot for Calgary Bay who would be a decent each way bet.

Football Prediction League

I went looking for a selection of knowledgeable football fans to take part in a football prediction league which ultimately would lead to tips generated from a collective group rather than one individual. I was unable to find the knowledgeable fans I seeked so instead for week one I have called upon a few friends to give their predictions. I selected 10 games from Saturday and each was asked to predict home win, away win or draw.

Below will give you an idea of the most popular selections for the weekend.

(0%) West Ham vs (57%) Manchester Utd - Draw (43%)
(29%) Everton vs (14%) Aston Villa - Draw (57%)
(57%) Newcastle vs (14%) Wolves - Draw (29%)
(0%) Stoke City vs (86%) Chelsea - Draw (14%)
(14%) West Brom vs (57%) Liverpool - Draw (29%)
(14%) Wigan vs (57%) Tottenham - Draw (29%)
(43%) Middlesbrough vs (57%) Leicester - Draw (0%)
(86%) Leeds vs (0%) Nottingham Forest - Draw (14%)
(42%) Swindon vs (29%) Hartlepool - Draw (29%)
(57%) Burton vs (29%) Barnet - Draw (14%)

After the games on Saturday each tipsters hit rate will be published to start off the Betsave prediction league.