Union, Fire both in search of third win

Soccer Betting Lines

06/04/2010 - Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Saturday's Major League Soccer clash between the Philadelphia Union and the Chicago Fire will be a match between two-win clubs hoping to get on track.

The Fire (2-3-4) were one of the favorites in the Eastern Conference heading into the season, but after a 1-1 draw with FC Dallas in their last league fixture, they sit in fifth in the Eastern table.

"One point isn't acceptable against Dallas at home," Fire defender CJ Brown told mlssoccer.com. "I expect a little more from this group and we're not getting it right now."

While the team hasn't been completely out of sorts under new coach Carlos de los Cobos, it has yet to find its groove so far this season.

"A lot needs to change," Brown said. "You can't keep relying on saying that there [are] good moments in the game. We're not finishing. We're not winning games. We're out there and it's not what it should be."

The Union (2-5-1) have a different outlook after their most recent fixture, a 2-1 win at Houston for the expansion club's first road victory last weekend.

"I think for the team, it means the work paid off," Union coach Peter Nowak told mlssoccer.com. "It was a tough environment we played in, and a victory like that over the Houston Dynamo is very good because it's very difficult to play here. We come back to score a goal in injury time, and it's very special."

Now the club is hoping to build on the solid road effort at Chicago on Saturday.

"I feel like this is a work in progress," Nowak said. "This is still a very young group who wants to work and win the games, and for me it's a work in progress. We are eight weeks in the season, and we have 22 games in front of us."

While the Union don't have any reported injuries heading into the match, the Fire will be without forward Calen Carr, midfielder John Thorrington, and defender Tim Ward, while Brown and forward Brian McBride are probable with injuries.

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FOOTBALL BETTING LINES

NFL Football Sports Betting

Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.

New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.

His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.

HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.

The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.

RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.

First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.

The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.

These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.

New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.

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