'Lucky' Dallas looks to stay unbeaten vs. Revs
Soccer Betting Lines
04/22/2008 -
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - FC Dallas striker Kenny Cooper admits the team
is "lucky."
FC Dallas hasn't lost through four games and is the only unbeaten remaining in
Major League Soccer.
But Cooper wasn't labeling the good start as "lucky."
"I feel we are lucky here to have a very deep squad," said Cooper, who leads
the team with four goals and is second in the league behind Los Angeles Galaxy
forward Landon Donovan.
Cooper has played a huge role in the fast start but Arturo Alvarez, Juan Toja,
Abe Thompson and numerous other players have helped Dallas has jump out to an
early lead in the Western Conference.
"I have so much confidence in everyone in the squad," Cooper said.
Coach Steve Morrow hopes the "team" effort that has been key for FC Dallas so
far this season continues Thursday night when the New England Revolution visit
Pizza Hut Park.
"It's still early in the season, it's still early days," Morrow said. "I still
think there's room for improvement with the team."
But Morrow also mentioned after the club's 2-0 victory at Chivas USA last week
that it was Dallas' best performance of the season.
"I think so, yeah. We're definitely starting to see things come together a bit
more," he said.
"I don't think we played as well as we can over the 90 minutes. But to win 2-0
and get a clean sheet (at Chivas), is very, very positive."
Cooper was responsible Dallas' early lead with his fourth goal of the year in
the fifth minute. Ricardinho and Dax McCarty assisted on the goal.
Abe Thompson scored his first goal of the season off an assist from Alvarez in
the second half.
Duilio Davino and Drew Moor anchored the defense to help goalkeeper Dario Sala
post a shutout.
With so many contributions from so many players, it's no wonder Cooper feels
so "lucky."
"Ricardinho came in and played a part in (my) goal, Arturo's gotten off to an
incredible start, Abe Thompson, you saw the quality of his finish," Cooper
said.
Dallas will try to pick up three points against New England before the league
runners-up get healthy.
Striker Taylor Twellman has missed the first five matches and midfielder Steve
Ralston has sat out the last four with injuries.
New England has still managed to win two of its first four games and earned a
1-1 draw at Red Bull New York last week despite playing with 10 men.
"The guys showed you what they're all about. Only 10 men and one-nil down, we
get a point. It shows you the character of the club," New England coach Steve
Nicol said.
The Revolution won the regular-season series last year, winning both games and
have won the two-game series in three of the past four years.
New England hopes to avoid losing too many points early in the season without
Twellman and Ralston, but Cooper has other ideas.
"Hopefully," Cooper said, "we can take this positive start and get better and
better."
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Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
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SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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