The start of the week has seen a range of sporting action with the new SA20 league passing its halfway stage, two lower league sides in the FA Cup battling it out for the chance to host Leeds United and Southampton and Newcastle going head-to-head in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final!

As always, we have picked out three big winning spread bets from Monday & Tuesday’s action!

Please remember that unlike fixed odds betting, when spread betting losses can exceed deposits.

SUNRISERS EASTERN CAPE V PAARL ROYALS – SIXES SQUARED (SETTLED AT 64)

As the SA20 passes the halfway stage in its inaugural season, two sides in Sunrisers Eastern Cape and Paarl Royals faced off knowing a win would cement their position in the playoffs.

The Sunrisers elected to bat first and got off to a tricky start as both of their opening batsmen left the crease for a combined eight runs as the Royal's bowling attack piled on the pressure early on. South African JJ Smuts entered the crease and high-scored for the hosts with 65 from 49 deliveries to help guide the Sunrisers to a below-par score of 130 off their 20 overs.

It was then the Royals, who boast a formidable batting line-up with English duo Jason Roy and Jos Buttler opening the batting, turn to enter the crease. Roy has found runs hard to come by of late and his dismal form continued as he was caught for just eight runs from 16 balls whereas Buttler showed his class with a quick 51 off just 39 deliveries. Although the Royals stuttered towards the total, they did get over the line with seven deliveries remaining and leapfrogged the hosts in the league cementing their place in the playoffs.

But where was the value for the punters?

With it being a relatively low-scoring encounter, the total of sixes came to just eight over both innings meaning that the Sixes Squared market made up at just 64. With a pre-match spread of 150-170 offered, punters who decided to sell won 86x their stake!

ACCRINGTON STANLEY V BOREHAM WOOD – GOALS X SHIRTS (SETTLED AT 0)

Next, we travel to the Wham Stadium where National League side Boreham Wood travelled for a third-round replay against Accrington Stanley with both sides hoping to host Leeds in the next round.

Although the League One outfit dominated most of the play, the Boreham Wood defence stood strong meaning the game was goalless after 90 minutes sending the game into extra time.

Just seven minutes into extra time Stanley showed why they are 39 places higher in the football pyramid as tricky forward Sean Whalley was brought down to win a penalty for the hosts which Tommy Leigh calmly converted.

The hosts kept it tight for the remaining 13 minutes, denying their non-league visitors any clear sights at goal to give themselves the right to host Premier League opposition on Saturday.

With there being no goals in regular time the Goals x Shirts market settled at 0 (0 x 0 = 0). With a pre-match spread of 75-89 offered, punters who decided to sell won 75x their stake!

SOUTHAMPTON V NEWCASTLE – MULTI-BOOKINGS (SETTLED AT 2250)

Finally, we travel to St Mary’s as Southampton faced Newcastle in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final with the hosts on the quest for their first major trophy since 1976 while Newcastle haven’t won a major trophy since 1955.

As expected in the first half of a semi-final first leg the game was very tight with neither side wanting to give the other side the advantage. A ruled-out goal from Newcastle’s Brazilian midfielder Joelinton was the main talking point of the first half.

In the second half the game really took to life and Joelinton gave the away side a deserved lead in the 73rd minute as he tucked home after a brilliant bit of skill from Alexander Isak.

Southampton responded straight away as former Newcastle striker Adam Armstrong bundled home, however, the ball was judged to have come off the striker's hand meaning Armstrong's joy was cut short. The night got even worse for the hosts as Croatian defender Duje Caleta-Car was shown his marching orders after being awarded a second yellow card meaning Saints ended the game with a 1-0 defeat and 10 men on the pitch.

With there being three bookings in the first half and five yellows and a red being brandished in the second, the Multi-Bookings market made up at a whopping 2250 (30 x 75 = 2250). With a pre-match spread of 235-305 offered, punters who decided to buy won a massive 1945x their stake!

Please note that these are examples of winning bets from the past week, and it is important to remember that spread betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and can result in losses larger than your initial stake/deposit.