England won't win the Final Test say William Hill

August 29, 2005

ENGLAND WON'T WIN FINAL TEST, SAY BOOKIES - BUT THEY WILL WIN THE ASHES!.......Despite the fact that an England victory in the final Test Match could give bookmakers a £30million hangover, William Hill are still prepared to make Freddie Flintoff's boys 2/1 outsiders to beat the Aussies in the fifth Test - but they are making England 8/15 favourites to regain the Ashes.

'Crucially, England do not have to win - only to avoid defeat in - the last Test to clinch the Ashes, so we are inviting England fans to prove us wrong to make England 2/1 outsiders by placing a patriotic punt on a 3-1 series win for Michael Vaughan's team' said Hill's spokesman Graham Sharpe.'We are already welcoming back to our shops cricket fans we haven't seen since Mike Gatting's side last won the Ashes!'

'This series has elevated cricket back into the betting prominence it once enjoyed when its inaugural rules contained stipulations about betting' said Sharpe, 'And with £50 million estimated to be gambled on the entire series we wish we could play the Aussies in at least one series a year. The potential cost to the bookmaking industry of up to £30million if England win again, is set to be worse than any similar national triumph since the 1966 World Cup'

WILLIAM HILL LATEST ASHES ODDS:

To win Ashes : 8/15 England

To retain Ashes: 11/8 Aussies

To win 5th Test: 2/1 England; 11/8 Aussies; 7/4 drawn match

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