NFL: Three Hail Marys - Week 4

by Seán Coffey

My name is Seán Coffey and I am a drug addict. It just happens to be that my drug of choice is being a die hard 49ers fan.

Aside from ripping off Steve Austin promos, at times I can live or die based on the result of Niners' games. Last weekend in the NFL was one of the worst, for both the Niners and myself, in recent memory.

San Francisco made all the wrong calls except the obvious bread and butter choice in giving the ball to Frank Gore on one drive for our only score of the game.

Seán Coffey (Ed's Note: Oooh, third person wanker) made all the wrong calls except the obvious bread and butter choice of Peyton Manning against the Raiders, my only correct prediction of the weekend. Like Jim Harbaugh being unable to take much satisfaction from the one drive that went well, I can’t say a whole lot for predicting an obvious Raiders loss. 

With nothing clicking against the Colts on Sunday, it’s back to the drawing board and tape for the Niners... and that’s exactly what I’m going to do to to find out where the hell it all went wrong!

Premier League Darts Quick Picks

by Rick Nash

Ignore the MVG hype, put your money on the unbeatable Barney

I've loved the first two weeks of the new-look Darts Premier League. The shorter format (without a break in play) has given games a new leash of life, as matches are now blink-and-you'll-miss-it and players are punished for poor starts with little chance of recovery. This leaves favourites like Phil Taylor vulnerable and 'The Power' is fortunate to still be second after having to come from behind in Week One to draw with a sickened Michael Van Gerwen.

That said, the league is taking shape and now is the time to start feeling somewhat confident in your accumulators. The short format still leaves upsets likely, but at least we now have a feel as to how the players are finding form (or not) in front of the big crowds.

As for tonight, I didn't have the bottle to pick between Andy Hamilton and Gary Anderson, simply because in this kind of inconsistent form they're essentially the same player: either a mess or unstoppable depending on whether a crucial double goes their way or not. We've no idea what to expect from either from week-to-week, so given that both are paired together tonight I'll take it as a hint to avoid, avoid, avoid. Let's get to brief quick picks before I'm back later with a full column and the weekend's accumulator tips.

RBS Six Nations 2013 Weekend 1 Picks

by Daniel 'Pitchside' Pitcher

FM104 Sport's, Dan 'Pitchside' Pitcher gives his picks ahead of the opening weekend of Six Nations action...

Wales Vs Ireland

Saturday 2^nd February; Millenium Stadium; K.O 13:30

I don’t think a Six Nations campaign has been more highly anticipated from an Irish perspective in recent memory. Since the miracle Grand Slam win in the Welsh capital in 2009, Irish international rugby has failed miserably (while the provinces have continued to do really well).

For the second year in a row, Ireland kickstart the campaign against Wales, looking to hit the ground running. For the players, this campaign is not simply just about the Grand Slam (though of course that would be great). For them it's about impressing the British and Irish Lions selectors, headed up by Welsh coach Warren Gatland, for the summer trip to Australia.

Last year the drive for the Slam, or Triple Crown, ended early following a close loss in the Aviva Stadium against Wales. This time, it's personal. And for Declan Kidney, this could very well be his last shot at achieving greatness at international level. He has thrown everything at this campaign.