The Longshot: All Blacks a safe bet to secure fourth World Cup win
WE were all on the receiving end of a lecture last week: our internet passwords are not strong enough.
My father owned a briefcase (remember them?) when I was growing up and to open it the codes to flip the latches were ‘000’ and ‘000’.
Well, the AppleID didn’t fall far from the tree when it came time for me to protect my online access and digital belongings.
Recently I got an email from a gentleman who provided me with an older version of my programming prophylactic (as I like to call my password protection) and claimed he thus had “self pleasure video footage” of me he was considering forwarding “randomly to 7 people you’re friends with” unless I sent him $2000 in bitcoin within a day, and not to waste his “precious time”.
I gave him kudos for spelling it “you’re” and not “your”, but as I only came across this message in my junk mail many weeks too late, either several acquaintances have received some very different ‘junk’ mail, or it is likely to have been a hoax, because I usually smudge some of the vaseline on the webcam before I get down to business.
Anyhoo, if you want to check your own security weak spots, the ‘HaveIBeenPwned’ website houses over 613 million passwords taken from hacked accounts.
Apparently, ‘123456’ is as useful as a Lindt fireguard.
‘QWERTY’ is like sticking a fake moustache on Tom Selleck.
‘Password’ is the same as putting your wallet in your shoe at the beach (‘Password123’ if you stuff your sock over it; ‘Passw0rd123’ if your socks are brown and smelly).
Apparently ‘Glenroe’ is weak. ‘M1leysn0ggedf1delma’ is strong.
Putting down your favourite sports team will see hackers get through quicker than an All Black against Argentina.
The thing I’m weaker at than picking passwords (or identifying motorbikes in squares) is segues, so let’s rush headward toward the Rugby World Cup final before we run out of space.
New Zealand are 5/6 favourites ahead of the decider tomorrow evening. They have been gradually improving throughout the tournament since the opening loss to the hosts, and probably deserve to be slightly shorter against the holders South Africa, who have had a much bumpier journey, losing to us, and falling into the final after beating a far from outstanding English side.
It is 20/1 on a draw and these two needed extra time to separate them in the 1995 final, the only time they met before (anyone remember those poisoning rumours?). These two have met 105 times, with the All Blacks leading the series 62 to 39, and just four of the matches drawn.
The All Blacks were emphatic winners in their 44-6 semi demolition of Argentina. Will Jordan was the star this day last week, scoring three tries (he is 8/1 to get the first tomorrow), but the whole team were far more efficient and look likely to turn the tables on a tired side who beat them 35-7 as recently as September in a Twickenham warm-up.
The 7:1 forwards: backs bench split was first used by the Boks that day and they go with it again tomorrow (as they did against us).
Handre Pollard, who kicked South Africa to an emphatic victory in the final four years ago, and rescued them last Saturday, will start, with Manie Libbok missing out entirely, and hooker Bongi Mbonambi is free to play as World Rugby said it could find no evidence to charge him over alleged racist comments aimed at Tom Curry.
It’s the Kiwis all the way for me and I’d advise you get on them too. It’s as safe a bet as ‘asdfgh’ is a password.
DOES anyone care about baseball? I don’t really care about it. But you might as well ask does anyone care about jazz. It’s American, it’s bewildering, but only one of them is over here.
Anyway, the World Series will also begin tonight, with the first of its possible seven games, so it might deserve a bit of space, even if not many will be discussing it outside the Metropole while having a cigarette over the next few nights.
The ‘Fall Classic’, as it is called across the pond, will see the Texas Rangers go up against the Arizona Diamondbacks, a final fixture that was considered a 1750/1 shot when the season began. Starting with odds of 125/1, the Diamondbacks possessed the third-longest odds among all the contenders. Even when the MLB Playoffs began, the Phoenix side were still considered 50/1 shots.
Texas followed a similar path to the decider, sweeping their opponents in the wild card (this World Series marks only the third time in history that two wild-card teams have faced each other) and division series before rallying for a championship series triumph (the pennant), all the time being the lower-seeded team in each match-up, like the Diamondbacks were also.
The combined win total for the two teams this season is a mere 174 wins (that’s low, apparently - the lowest in MLB history for a full-season World Series matchup). It ranks as the most improbable final since the Diamondbacks’ last appearance in in 2001, when they were victorious against the dominant New York Yankees, ending the most famous franchise’s three-year Series winning streak (and they have only won one since).
The Texan side that is located between Dallas and Fort Worth have never won a final series, but are 4/6 favourites now.
Although Texas may have never claimed a title, they reached the final in 2010, when their current manager Bruce Bochy managed the San Francisco Giants to victory over them, and again in 2011, when they lost to the St Louis Cardinals.
Brandon Pfaadt is the rookie star pitcher for the Diamondbacks and you probably have a better chance of predicting who will win than I have of pronouncing that, but you might hear a similar sound coming from a trumpet on Leeside this weekend.
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SPURS will aim to end the week as they started it, being in the unusual position of playing on a Monday and a Friday (the two fixtures at least being on in London). After beating Fulham 2-0 at home, they travel to Selhurst Park to take on Palace this evening and they can improve on their best start in 60 years by surging five clear a the top with a win. They have kept a clean sheet in their last two league games and have beaten Palace to nil in their last three, and a clean sheet here would see them go the whole of October without conceding a goal. Roy Hodgson has a 5% win rate against them, his lowest against any side he’s faced at least five times, and only misfiring Bournemouth have scored fewer goals this season than Palace, who are outsiders at 16/5, while Spurs are at 4/5 to secure and eighth league win.
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JUDE Bellingham is a doubt for Saturday’s El Clasico with Barcelona after being subbed off in the latter stages of Real Madrid’s 2-1 win over Braga but according to Carlo Ancelotti: “He’ll be fine, he’ll be fit. He’s a bit tired but it’s normal.” Bellingham has been crucial to Real so far this season. He’s bagged 11 goals and assisted three. He also has nine man of the match awards!
Only a point separates Barcelona and Real going into the tie, with Madrid the league leaders and Barcelona in third (Girona surprisingly separating them). The game will be held at the Olympic Stadium as the Nou Camp is being redeveloped and the home side are 6/4 to win the game and the same price to hold on to their La Liga title and inch to seven behind Real.
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ALFE Inge Haaland broke a five-match Champions League drought with a double against Young Boys (enter boys versus men comment here) on Wednesday. Man United faced a bit more strife to overcome FC Copenhagen the night before with an almost slapstick ending that was only rescued by recent whipping boys Onana sticking his hand up at the right moment, and Maguire sticking his head in the right place.
They get to host an altogether different challenge this weekend with City arriving at Old Trafford. If they had lost midweek, you wouldn’t give Ten Hag’s side any chance of getting a result on Sunday, and in fairness, they still don’t really have any chance against what is simply a far better team. 9/2 doesn’t even look that generous on a home win.
THE South African scrum is quite something to behold, but given the spotlight shone on it in the aftermath of their semi-final win over England, Wayne Barnes will find himself under some pressure not to simply award penalties to them on every occasion it appears they are dominant.
The game is likely to find its own theme, but if the All Blacks manage to defuse the ‘bomb squad’, they could push out the scoreline.
Take New Zealand at 8/1 to win by 11-15 points.
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