Crew, Real battled to scoreless draw

Soccer Betting Lines

04/15/2007 - Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Crew and Real Salt Lake battled to a 0-0 tie on Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City Utah Saturday.

It was the second straight draw for both teams with RSL suffering a 2-2 draw in their opener against Dallas as Hoops' captain Carlos Ruiz scored the equalizer in stoppage time.

The Crew, on the other hand, earned their second scoreless draw in as many games after opening with a 0-0 tie with Red Bull New York at Crew Stadium to open their 2007 season.

Despite the scoreless draw Saturday, the game wasn't without chances.

The game's first real chance occurred when Eddie Gaven got a ball to Ned Grabavoy who then threaded a through ball to Jason Garey who touched ball wide around Columbus goalkeeper Nick Rimando but Eddie Pope got back to clear the ball out of the goalmouth in 13th minute.

The Crew's Gaven figured in another offensive chance in the 22nd minute when he crossed a ball diagonally into the box to Jason Garey, but his tough angle shot went wide.

Columbus flanker Andy Herron beat his defender 1-on-1 in the 40th minute before passing to Gaven in the box, but his shot was deflected by the defense and into Rimado's hands.

The Crew dominated most of the first half, but reigning MLS Golden Boot recipient Jeff Cunningham got the last chance of the half when he broke past the defense, but his shot was scooped up by Crew 'keeper Andy Gruenebaum.

The momentum switched to the home team in the second half as RSL peppered Gruenebaum with a number of shots. He finished the game with six saves with RSL firing 16 total shots in the game.

Cunningham had the first real chance of the second half just eight minutes in when he broke in past the defense, but Gruenebaum, who earned his second clean sheet in as many games this season, made a beautiful kick save to keep the game scoreless.

The Crew had a couple more opportunities on Rimando in the second half, but the 'keeper held strong, matching Gruenebaum with six saves in the game.

The contest was the fifth all-time meeting between the two teams with the Crew now leading the series 3-1-1.

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Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.