Weekend Review: England stutter against Scotland as bettors battle with bookies at Royal Ascot
Auld rivals play out 0-0 draw much to the delight of the layers as other Euro favourites fail to impress
The much-anticipated fixture between auld rivals England and Scotland at Euro 2020 ended in a 0-0 draw, much to the delight of the bookies and the Scots.
Comfortable pre-match favourites England, who were backed into 1/3, failed to break down the Scottish defence, with the boys in blue holding out resolutely and, in fact, having the better chances over the course of 90 minutes.
Manchester City defender John Stones came closest for England after his 11th-minute header bounced back off the upright, much to the frustration of England supporters.
Good morning.#EURO2020 | #SCO pic.twitter.com/gIH7Px7mUh
— Scotland National Team (@ScotlandNT) June 19, 2021
The Three Lions were not the only top nation who failed to dispatch lower-level opposition however, with world champions France (1/4) only able to muster a 1-1 draw against Hungary and Spain (1/3) drawing 1-1 with Poland after Robert Lewandowski’s equaliser.
Kindred Group’s Ali Gill said: “The Euros has been a bit of a roller coaster for layers and backers so far, but the weekend undoubtedly went our way.
“England’s dour 0-0 draw vs the Scots was right up there with Kindred-friendly results so far as players piled into all sorts, but not 0-0. However, the result of the weekend was France’s draw with Hungary, which saw us finish up way ahead.”
William Hill’s Rupert Adams revealed England and Spain’s woes helped the bookmaker recover somewhat after a difficult opening weekend of the tournament.
He said: “The Euros have been interesting as we got smashed on 13 June and have been trying to play catch up since. That said, the England draw and Spanish wobble were good though.”
Elsewhere, Ladbrokes’ Alex Apati reacted with both his heart and head following England’s draw.
He told EGR: “[Harry] Kane needs to start finding his scoring boots if he’s to repay punters’ faith, but with England having registered just three shots on target across two games, it’s arguably the best result for us; they’ve qualified and we’re yet to pay out fortunes on them.”
Betfred’s Alan Firkins detailed how the outright tournament winner market was shaping up as teams head into the final round of group stage fixtures.
He said: “France and England are colossal losers, but we got one back running for us the other day as Germany arrived, with that deeply impressive thumping of Portugal.
“Die Mannschaft would be a great result – not many times in the past at major tournaments could we say that. Belgium wouldn’t hurt us too much, either.”
Strong performance of @DFB_Team_EN ?
4:2 win against @selecaoportugal ⚽️??
This match was the right answer! @EURO2020 #Deutschland #PORGER #immerweiter pic.twitter.com/Wn960ynj2U— Thomas Müller (@esmuellert_) June 19, 2021
Elsewhere at Royal Ascot, there was a more mixed bag compared to Euro 2020, with bookies and punters sharing the spoils over the rain-sodden week of racing.
Hills’ Adams said: “Royal Ascot was also excellent both for turnover and results. The early week was all for the bookies but we gave a load of it back on Saturday with a number of favourites coming in for punters.”
Kindred’s Gill agreed that Saturday was a day for the bettors at the festival, with well-backed runners in the Chesham and the Wokingham doing the business.
Her Majesty The Queen arriving for the final day of #RoyalAscot 2021 pic.twitter.com/ZcJv4SDlue
— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) June 19, 2021
He said: “Saturday at Ascot was one for the punters though as they came away with heavy pockets. Point Lonsdale winning the Chesham at 10/11 was our biggest hit of the day, but a well-supported Rohan winning the Wokingham at 8/1 wasn’t too far behind.”
Finally, Smarkets revealed England v Scotland was the biggest match of the tournament so far, with £5m wagered across its betting exchange platform and sportsbook, while £4m was wagered on the Royal Hunt Cup at Ascot.