There was plenty of sporting action to enjoy this weekend as Croatia, Argentina, Morocco and France all progressed to the semi-finals of the World Cup, with referees the big story in two of the four matches.

There was also another thrilling win for England over Pakistan while Australia made light work of the West Indies, with both nations taking a 2-0 lead in their respective series. Just three of 11 scheduled race meetings went ahead this weekend with freezing temperatures causing havoc with the schedule, but the cold weather was no matter in rugby union as the Champions Cup pool stage got underway.

Please remember that unlike fixed odds betting, when spread betting losses can exceed deposits.

SALE v ULSTER – SALE/ULSTER SUPREMACY (SETTLED AT 39)

We start with action from the Champions Cup where Ulster made the short hop across the Irish Sea to face Sale Sharks at the AJ Bell Stadium. The English side were narrow favourites heading into the clash with the Supremacy spread at 0-3 come kick off in Salford.

With English internationals Manu Tuilagi, Tom Curry, Jonny Hill, and Bevan Ross all returning to action for the hosts, they added some additional class to the Sale side which overpowered an out of sorts Ulster.

Six tries were scored in total as the hosts ran out 39-0 winners with the du Preez brothers Dan and Rob both touching down during an inspired performance. With that 39-point winning margin in the bag, buyers on the Sal/Ulster Supremacy won 36x their stake.

AUSTRALIA v WEST INDIES – WEST INDIES 2^nd INNINGS RUNS (SETTLED AT 77)

Having been thrashed by 164 runs in the first Test with Australia in Perth, the hope amongst the West Indies camp was that they would at least put up more of a fight at Adelaide for the second match of the series.

It was not to be the case, and Australia have now been able to declare in all four of their innings against the Windies. Having hit 511-7 in the first innings, they were 199-6 in the second before opting to put the tourists back in to bat.

They were never likely to chase down a substantial target, but the spread on their 2^nd Innings Runs was 231-246 and they didn’t even get close to that. Four of the top order fell in the 5^th over, with Kraigg Brathwaite, Shamrah Brooks and Jermaine Blackwood scoring a combined three runs between them. Tagenarine Chanderpaul top scored on 17, with only four more players managing double figures.

The visitors eventually limped to 77 all out in another Test they would like to forget as sellers on the Windies 2^nd Innings won 154x their stake.

NETHERLANDS v ARGENTINA – SHIRTS x BOOKINGS (SETTLED AT 6660)

Back on Friday night, we had a thriller at the Lusail Stadium as the Netherlands and Argentina renewed acquaintances out in Qatar. The South Americans took a 2-0 lead before Wout Weghorst’s late double forced extra time. Ultimately, Argentina would progress on penalties, but the referee was the main talking point of the night as he doled out 14 yellows and one red card.

A card happy referee is manna from heaven for Bookings buyers and although there was profit for buyers in most Bookings related markets, one of the big wins came in Shirts x Bookings.

Nahuel Molina (shirt number 26) opened the scoring before Lionel Messi (10) increased La Albiceleste’s lead in the second half. Weghorst wore number 19 and his brace ensured shirt numbers made up at 74. There were a whopping nine yellow cards shown in normal time to make Bookings up at 90 with Shirts x Bookings settling at 6660.

The spread at kick-off was 950-1100 as buyers won 5560x their original stake.

Please remember that when placing Bookings related bets on either fixed odds or spreads that booking points will only be awarded to players receiving a yellow card whilst they are on the pitch playing. Bookings awarded after the full-time whistle also do not count.

Please note that these are examples of winning bets from the past week, and it is important to remember that spread betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and can result in losses larger than your initial stake/deposit.