Gambling? UEA Bet!

The old maxim is that green is the colour of money but, if you read on, you're likely to feel green with envy!

Lucky stable lad, Connor Murphy, recently made national news after turning a £50 bet into £1,000,000 by betting on just five horses.

So, with this in mind, we asked UEA students about their betting habits, the most they had ever won and, the most they had ever lost.

The most popular moneymaking method for many students is the football accumulator. For those that don’t know, this is where you predict the result of as many games as you like and place them in one bet. Quite often a small bet can return a large profit.

UEA third year, Ed Bohling, once won £280 from a £1 bet, although he did admit that it was his only victory in three years!

Film and Television student, Fraser Carr, was one result away from winning £450 from a £2 fourteen-fold accumulator. Since being robbed of his massive payout by Burnley, the FTV student has harboured a fierce hatred for the Lancashire club.

Whilst losing bets can create animosity towards certain clubs, victory can also create unnatural bonds. This writer has a special love for former Portsmouth striker, John Utaka, since his 98th minute equaliser secured a £208 payout.

Whilst accumulators can provide irregular payouts, some students prefer the lower-profit, yet more stable, first goal scorer bets.

Third year, Tom Hughes, secured a stunning £3.10 profit by backing Michael Owen to score the first goal in Manchester United’s League Cup clash with Leeds United this season.

Meanwhile, Nico Bryant painfully recalls his £2 bet on Norwich’s Russell Martin to open the scoring against Liverpool at a massive 200-1. Martin headed inches wide in the first ten minutes, leaving him heartbroken.

Whilst most students favour the security of lower stakes betting, some enjoy the risk of higher stakes. Second year, Luke Hoban, once placed £200 on Barcelona to win, hoping for an easy victory, only for the Catalan club to draw.

He also placed a £200 Trixie bet on Villarreal, Barcelona and Valencia to win, with the potential of winning £3000. However, Villarreal drew, meaning that the Economics student only secured £550 profit.

Despite the preference towards higher stakes, it seems that nobody at UEA has emulated the shenanigans of the student who placed his entire student loan (£4,400) on Angola to win against Mali.
With Angola 4-0 up with twelve minutes to play, Mali mounted a spectacular comeback, drawing the game 4-4.

Shockingly, the student would have only made £44 had Angola held on!

Finally, aside from football, it seems that roulette and poker are also student favourites.

History student, Luke Kelly, recalls winning £30 in his most profitable session at the roulette wheel. Whilst another student admitted to winning over £1000 in just one sitting!

And it isn’t just boys either.

Danielle French once won £65 when betting on Tottenham and Francesca Eastwood secured a £30 payout from a recent online poker session.

Naturally, gambling can be a slippery slope but when students are struggling to make ends meet, you can’t blame them for having the occasional flutter.