Salford need to be at their best on return

SALFORD will need all the guile and expertise of Morgan Escare – who I do hope will turn out for my home town club this afternoon – in their first game since the resumption of the Betfred Super League.

The French international ex-Wigan full-back is 14/1 with us to score the first try against Hull FC behind Headingley’s closed turnstiles.

Last weekend we had two pulsating clashes, notably Leeds’s comeback triumph over Huddersfield Giants preceded by Saints firmly putting Catalans in their place.

Later today the Rhinos are up against last season’s champions St Helens in what is sure to be a titanic clash.

Salford, meanwhile, are the underdogs against Hull at 9/4 to win with Betfred, although with the various rule changes the game will be even quicker, benefitting marquee players capable of injecting some x-factor such as Escare.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton may have won the British Grand Prix for a record seventh time, but he’s only second in the race to be named BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Hamilton won at Silverstone on only three tyres and now has a 30-point lead in his bid to be world champion once again.

The British superstar suffered a puncture on the final lap, but that didn’t stop him cruising to glory.

As a result, he’s been cut from 10/1 to 7/2 at Betfred to pick up the individual honour.

Heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury is the 13/8 favourite. Manchester’s selfstyle Gypsy King is set to defend the WBC title he sensationally won from Deontay Wilder in February in a trilogy fight with the American later this year – although a date has not yet been set.

The winner of Fury-Wilder 3 must then make a mandatory defence against Dillian Whyte.

Sharing second favouritism with Hamilton is United and England star Marcus Rashford.

The 22-year-old, who was brought up in Wythenshawe, led a campaign against child poverty that resulted in a government U-turn on providing free school meals for pupils during the holidays.

Rashford, who is to be given an honorary degree by the University of Manchester for his campaign work, has made it to the front page of British Vogue’s activist-themed September edition.

Meanwhile Jordan Henderson, who captained Liverpool to Premier League glory and was crowned Football Writers’ Player of the Year, is a 12/1 shot at Betfred for the BBC honour which will be decided by a live panel in Aberdeen on Sunday December 13.

At the same price is Ronnie O’Sullivan, one of snooker’s greats who made all the headlines earlier this week after a record-breaking win in the Crucible’s Betfred World Snooker Championship – while England’s talisman batsman

Ben Stokes, who many consider to be the best all-rounder in the world, is 33/1.

Also not without a chance is Judd Trump (20/1), Rory McIlroy (25/1) and Anthony Joshua (25/1) – while it’s 50/1 bar.