On the day that the Australian Open gets underway in Melbourne, we look back through a thrilling weekend of sport which saw Manchester United, Nottingham Forest, and Arsenal come out on top in their respective derbies. There will also be an Old Firm derby in a few weeks with Rangers and Celtic both winning their semi-finals as the first piece of silverware in Scotland will be handed out.

As ever on a Monday, we have reviewed the weekend’s action to find three big winning bets, this time from the worlds of football, cricket, and rugby union.

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

ATALANTA v SALERNITANA – GOALS CUBED (SETTLED AT 1000)

Buyers on goal-related spreads would have found it difficult to come out on the wrong side of events yesterday in Bergamo as Atalanta beat Salernitana 8-2 to keep themselves in the race for Champions League qualification.

The hosts led 4-1 at the break and the second half was a carbon copy to leave the score at 8-2, with former Charlton, Fulham, Leicester, and Everton man Ademola Lookman bagging himself a brace for La Dea.

Before play began in northern Italy, the Goals Cubed spread was 65-75, meaning buyers needed at least five goals to come out in profit. They were duly rewarded with ten leaving them winning 925x their stake.

INDIA v SRI LANKA (3^RD ODI) – LAUNCH! (SETTLED AT 3818)

Recent limited overs matches between India and Sri Lanka have been regular features in this blog, and the pair were back at it again on Sunday with India claiming a record 317 run victory over the tourists (buyers on the Match Supremacy won 263x their stake).

Helped by Shubmam Gill and top scoring Virat Kohli, the hosts blitzed their way through the Sri Lankan attack, finishing on 390-5 after their 50 overs. In reply, Sri Lanka offered almost no resistance as they fell to 73 all out in 22 overs.

A day to forget for The Lions then, but a day that will live long in the memory if you bought the Launch! spread at 1800-1900. Thanks to Virat Kohli’s score of 166 and 23 runs being scored in a single over, this spread settled at 3818 with buyers landing a win equal to 1918x their initial stake.

LONDON IRISH v STORMERS – BOOKINGS (SETTLED AT 70)

In a weekend that saw five red cards dished across the Champions’ Cup matches, two of them were shown to London Irish players as Ben Loader and Ciaran Parker were sent for an early bath. The Exiles were forced to play nearly half the match with 13 men as they went down 28-14 to their South African visitors at the Gtech Community Stadium in West London.

Exiles’ Argentine youngster Juan Martin Gonzalez and Stormers Springbok Steven Kitshoff were both shown yellow cards during the match as well with French referee Ludovic Cayre having a busy afternoon.

Two yellow cards and two reds left the Bookings spread to settle at 70 against a pre-match spread of 16-19, with buyers winning 51x 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.