http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...g-1517344.html
Paddy Power hit for €30k in suspected betting 'sting
By JOHNNY WARD
Sunday Independent; November 02 2008
EXCLUSIVE
Paddy Power Bookmakers was hit by a loss of close to €30,000 when a wholesale gamble was landed in an apparently insignificant eircom League first division match on Friday night.
Monaghan United trounced Longford Town 5-1, costing bookmakers in Ireland and England a considerable sum of money after what are being viewed in the industry as suspicious betting patterns.
United, who prior to the match had scored 27 goals in their 32 league games, were slashed from 6/5 into odds-on by all bookmakers, with Paddy Power eventually forced to suspend betting in the hour before kick-off.
The bookmaker's spokesman, Paddy Power, estimated that the match attracted approximately 20 times the turnover he would normally expect for a low-grade first division game in the eircom League.
"It's a very low-profile game and you tend to take a handful of bets on it but the fact that there was a widespread gamble would certainly raise a few eyebrows.
"When we priced it up, we thought we might lay Longford at 15/8 -- they've been playing quite well -- but in fact it was all Monaghan. And rather than one big bet, it was a spread of bets on Thursday in our north Dublin shops. It just looked like a well-organised sting.
"We literally didn't take one bet on Longford. In that type of game, you'd be amazed if you even took one bet in the north Dublin shops involved and you'd expect a handful across the country.
"The thing that makes it look suspicious was that it was people putting on small bets to stay under the radar. Bets of €500 at 6/5 wouldn't raise many eyebrows."
Successful punters who backed winners Monaghan with Paddy Powers had to wait until yesterday to be paid out, and were informed by the bookmaker that the delay was due to the match being "under investigation due to irregular betting patterns".
Betting exchange giants Betfair, who have in place a memorandum of understanding with the FAI which allows the association to investigate betting movements on matches under its jurisdiction if requested, also reported that there was a higher-than normal level of trading on the match.
Contacted by the Sunday Independent yesterday, a spokesman for the FAI confirmed it would be looking into the matter.
"The FAI takes any such claims very seriously," he said. "We will be contacting the bookmakers concerned to look into whether there is any substance to these claims and will investigate further if appropriate."
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Nobody knows us, we don't care
Life without Rovers, it makes no sense...it's a heartache...nothing but a fools game. S.R.F.C.
Can we bet on a penalty or sending off in the Galway-Harps game next week?
Galway ahve had 4 penalties in the past 5 league games so Im sure another one or a sending off is on the cards next week
Not that Galway need it against Harps. Galway have a great record against Harps anyway and after Harps beating Drogheda last week you can be sure Harps won't win 2 in a row
heard this from one of the sligo lads that posts on here rovers maniac straight away after the match.. I was gobsmacked when I heard the news thought he was messin with me at the time but boy was I wrong!!
Last edited by Martinho II; 02/11/2008 at 9:14 PM. Reason: error
Gary Cronin is he the right man to manage Longford Town?
LTID had this out with me today lads and he speaks the truth! Paddy Powers got stung by thir own lack of knowledge of the EL. Bet they lost more on the Dundalk Limerick game on thursdsay night where for some stupid reason Paddys had limerick at 7/1. Look longford maybe have a **** week in training and being from the northside of Dublin (hence the bets on the northside of the city) some very ****e comments in the article too "Longford have been going quite well"???what? more proof that they know nothing about the EL and certainly nothing about the 1st division
what Gael says is it in a nutshell. I've put quite a few people on to gambling on Eircom League matches because of the odds you can get at times. Basically PP has someone who looks at the teams at the start of the year and lays their odds down from there on in. The Dundalk-Limerick game being the prime example of this. If anyone from PP had bothered looking into recent history between the two sides and coupled it with the form Limerick have been showing in recent weeks there is no way they would have come up with 7/1 for us to beat them.
That said I'm suspicious of all sporting events being rigged to a degree *cough* Lewis Hamilton *cough*
I don't think it was fixed but for all I know there may have been whispers put out that a few changes were going to be made or that the players weren't too arsed about it and people lumped on it. Vinny Perth wasn't there, he was sick so maybe that affected it too. Nothing to play for, manager not there, a few changes, all legitimate factors which may have made Monaghan seem a good bet to some people. The performance was ridiculous though.
Upwards to the vanguard where the pressure is too high.
Theres nothing more bitter then a Bookmaker whos losing money.This is the same crap as Boyles is peddling now too.It was probably only around a handfull more bets then usual and maybe a couple of guys put alot on it so thats how it came to 30k,if it even did come to that.I have no sympathy at all for these guys.
BTW, Boyle are taking bets on the LOI. I enquired in the Sligo shop yesterday and they didn't mention anything about it.
Factor in that our Dunboyne Supporters Club (yup North Dublin direction) have 30+ people in it and we also have other fans living in the North Dublin area, we beat Wexford 3-1 the previous week and Longford havent been setting the league alight and sit behind us in the table and you would have an answer to why people in that area bet heavily on us.
1+1 = 30K according to the bookies!
When we played Mons in Mels a few seasons ago apparently a lot of money went on a 4-0 win to them ... laughed it off until David Lee popped up with a hatrick and cant remember who netted a 4th!
The fact that David Lee scored 1 never mind 3 is enough grounds for an enquiry!!!!
Larry Be Wyse
www.acsportsimages.com
Sorry...was going to post something objective....but I can't. It's hard to be objective when you're rolling around the floor laughing at a bookie getting screwed. This made my day when I read it. When I saw it first I thought they might have been taken for a million or something, but €30K and they're crying like babies??
great to see the speedy response from the fai press office defending the integetary of there league
I wish i did not know then what I dont know now
In fairness if there were loads of bets placed on the game in the North Dublin stores Id be fairly suspicious about the whole thing too! Isnt there a load of Longford players from Dublin too?
"Are those my feet" Fr Jack Hackett
There's being suspicious and there's throwing out wild accusations though. I'm suspicious of all organised sport after reading a quote by some random Mafia head a few years back about how only a fool doesn't realise that any sporting event that a crime syndicate can make money off isn't rigged in some way or other. I've also witnessed a very odd bet (4-4 on a Premiership game) come to pass after laughing about the foreign gentleman who put the bet on's lack of knowledge about football after I saw him wager a large sum of cash on that result one sunday. Still didn't make me run froim door to door shouting about the Premiership being rigged though, cause he might just be luckyOriginally Posted by Tir Oilean
4-4 for Newcastle/Villa tonight, get your bets on, boys!
I know a lad who works for Paddy Power in their head office, he was reckoning that most of the time when they're in the papers whinging about something it's just to get some cheap publicity. In answer to somebody above we don't actually have that many Dubs this year amongst the playing staff.
Upwards to the vanguard where the pressure is too high.
That Lewis Hamilton "win" yesterday did seem a bit dodge though.Of all the places for Timo Glock to "miss a gear" when he hadnt done it all year and hes an F1 driver FFS,they dont "miss gears".It was dramatic and i really really hope it doesnt prove to be fixed.
[OT]
Don't know where you heard he missed a gear. His teammate Trulli's lap was the same due to the tyres they were on.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/spo...cle5069249.ece
[/OT]
Don't let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Massa was robbed. Simple as.
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