• Mallory Franklin is Great Britain’s most successful female canoeist

• The C1 discipline will be included at the Olympic Games for the second time this summer

• Franklin competed at the 2009 World Championships when she was just 15 years old

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The most successful British female canoeist of all-time, Mallory Franklin is a women’s C1 and K1 slalom canoeist and she won the silver medal for Team GB at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

While she isn’t one of the biggest sports betting names on the Team GB roster, Franklin has enjoyed plenty of success in slalom canoeing over the past decade.

With nine ICF Canoe Slalom World Championship medals, 13 European Championship medals and a World Cup crown to her name, Franklin is a leading figure in the sport.

Here, we take a closer look at Mallory Franklin’s canoeing career. Can she justify favouritism and win Olympic gold in the C-1 event this year? Only time will tell…

Mallory Franklin Canoeing

According to an interview conducted in June 2021, Mallory started canoeing alongside her oldest brother when she was just five years old.

Franklin took to canoeing like a duck to water and she enjoyed training at her local leisure centre during her early years in the sport.

Mallory soon started to compete at national level and was asked to represent Great Britain in 2009 – she was just 15 years old at the time!

Now one of the most established names in the sport, Mallory Franklin is a leading contender for gold in the C-1 canoeing event this summer.

A gold medal at Paris 2024 would be a deserved reward after committing over 20 years to the sport. Now, it is time for Mallory Franklin to confirm her status as a canoeing legend.

Mallory Franklin Lee Valley

Lee Valley is Mallory Franklin’s home course and the venue will always have a special place in her heart.

However, the affinity to Lee Valley grew even stronger in June 2019 as Mallory clinched the gold medal in the C1 and K1 events at the World Cup.

The 27-year-old is already Great Britain’s most successful female canoeist and the triumphs at Lee Valley cements her status as one of the leading contenders in the C1 discipline.

Mallory will hope that her success at Lee Valley stands her in good stead for her Olympics debut and British fans will be fully behind her – either at Paris 2024 or from home.

Mallory Franklin C1

While Mallory Franklin has enjoyed success in both the K-1 and C-1 events, the British canoe star is arguably better suited to the C1 class.

For any canoe slalom newbies reading this, the K-1 event refers to Kayak Singles while C-1 is Canoe Singles.

The vast majority of Mallory Franklin’s gold medals have come in the C1 event and it was no surprise to see Team GB select her for the canoe singles squad in Paris - can she go one better than the silver medal won at Tokyo?

Franklin has had to wait her turn to represent Great Britain at the Olympics but her meteoric rise to power suggests that she will be tough to beat in the C-1 event this summer.

Jessica Fox is ranked number one in the world in the C-1 event and has won medals at each of the previous two Olympic Games. That experience gives her an edge on Mallory Franklin but the British canoeist is hot on her tail.

Mallory Franklin Instagram

At the time of writing, Mallory has around 2,200 Instagram followers. If she wins a medal at Tokyo 2021, that number is likely to soar before the end of the summer.

Unlike some of her fellow Team GB athletes, the Mallory Franklin Instagram account is well organised – with several highlights containing photographs and video clips.

From wedding planning and lockdown training to canoeing snapshots, Mallory has a strong Instagram portfolio despite her relatively small social media presence.

If you enjoy the canoe slalom events at Tokyo 2021, feel free to follow Mallory Franklin on Instagram via @mallorysfranklin. Fingers crossed she brings back the gold medal!

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*Credit for the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*

• Chelsea hold the record for the fewest goals conceded in a Premier League season

• The 2008-09 season saw three teams finish with under 30 goals conceded

• Read below for the 10 campaigns with the fewest goals conceded

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We are perhaps as fans too enamoured by goal-scoring and too little enamoured by the art of keeping them out.

This of course is understandable, what with goals being the very currency of our excitement. It is a ball nestling in a net that we most fondly recall when we revisit a match. The strike. The micro-second of tension. The flailing arm of a goalkeeper. The eruption of pure joy.  

Check out our BTTS tips on the biggest upcoming football fixtures!

The magical moment was our reward for paying the entrance fee.

So it is that every August we run the rule over the top scorer Premier League odds and back Erling Haaland to bag a ridiculous amount, and marvel at Mo Salah for his prolificacy.

Best Defensive Seasons In Premier League History:

• Chelsea, 2004-05, 15 goals
• Arsenal, 1998-99, 17 goals
• Chelsea, 2005-06, 22 goals
• Manchester United, 2007-08, 22 goals
• Liverpool, 2018-19, 22 goals
• Manchester City, 2018-19, 23 goals
• Chelsea, 2008-09, 24 goals
• Manchester United, 2008-09, 24 goals
• Chelsea, 2006-07, 24 goals
• Liverpool, 2005-06, 25 goals

We hold a special place in our hearts for those who don’t score often but when they do they’re usually spectacular. 

Yet there is also a lot to be said about a brilliantly constructed defence. Their assembly. How each component makes it greater than the sum of its parts.

How two centre-backs, two full-backs and a goalie, via well-drilled organisation, can nullify the most lethal hit-men on a weekly basis all season long. 

These outstanding back-lines – the meanest in modern times – warrant our unreserved admiration. But we should also love them a bit too. 

Liverpool, 2005-06, 25 goals 

Liverpool were on the fringes of the title race in 2005-06, coming off their heroic Champions League win in Istanbul. Rafa Benitez’s football brought success, including the 2005-06 FA Cup, but it was rarely pretty.

The Anfield outfit scored 15 goals fewer than Chelsea and Manchester United in 2005-06, and only two players scored more than 13 goals in the campaign.

Sami Hyypia and Jamie Carragher were the bedrock of the defence, protected by Xabi Alonso and Mohamed Sissoko.

Chelsea, 2006-07, 24 goals 

Having won the league twice-over in Jose Mourinho’s first two seasons in charge, the Blues refused to stand still and went decidedly big in the summer, bringing in Michael Ballack, Salomon Kalou, Andriy Shevchenko and Ashley Cole. 

Crucially and pertinently though, the defensive triangle of Petr Cech in nets, and John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho ahead of him remained untouched.

Which largely explains how Chelsea again managed to concede the fewest amount of goals in the top-flight in what was otherwise a frustrating campaign.

Adapting to their overhaul, Mourinho’s men only lost three times but drew too often, resulting in Manchester United ultimately pipping them to the league crown.  

Manchester United, 2008-09, 24 goals

Winners of a third consecutive league title and Champions League finalists once again, Manchester United won the 2008-09 Premier League by four points.

The defence was less settled than previous seasons, with Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra both missing chunks of the campaign to injury.

The leadership of Nemanja Vidic and Edwin van der Sar was particularly important amid line-up changes, as the Serbian centre-back and Dutch goalkeeper each started 33 league contests.

Chelsea, 2008-09, 24 goals

The Blues have often shunned convention to good effect, winning the Champions League in 2012 with an interim manager, and elsewhere winning leagues amidst chaos. 

Here is another, more niche, example of a club that rarely makes sense, and rarely cares about doing so.

With Mourinho now gone, and Chelsea presided over by three different managers across the whole campaign, a new-look defence saw Alex and Jose Bosingwa join its ranks.

Perhaps this partly explains why the West London giants lost five games in 2009-09, all to top six rivals. Add in eight draws and they were never mentioned loudest in the football bet tips, eventually finishing third.

Yet despite these relative failures, a reimagined back-line was breached every 142 minutes, the seventh best return on record. 

Manchester City, 2018-19, 23 goals

After immortalising themselves as ‘Centurions’ the season before, racking up a momentous 100 points, Pep Guardiola’s formidable creation discovered new heights of excellence in 2018-19, driven to near perfection by a relentless and equally brilliant Liverpool. 

Just 23 goals were conceded along the away and though this was the sixth best defensive season in Premier League history, it still wasn’t the fewest goals conceded that term.

We really are talking here about two very special teams. 

Aymeric Laporte, Kyle Walker and Ederson were the constants in defence while elsewhere a more fluid approach allowed Fernandinho to switch roles for weeks at a time, dropping back to partner Laporte.

To put City’s dominance – and defensive fortitude – into context, they were behind this season for a mere 122 minutes.

Liverpool, 2018-19, 22 goals

Missing out in a remarkably tight and tense title race by a single point, Liverpool went toe-to-toe with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City juggernaut, conceding 0.5 goals per game all season.

Virgil van Dijk and Alisson played every league match. Andrew Robertson missed just two.

Van Dijk’s performances saw him named PFA Players’ Player of the Year, and he finished a narrow second to Lionel Messi in the 2019 Ballon d’Or.

Manchester United, 2007-08, 22 goals

A reasonable argument can be made that the late 2000s saw Sir Alex Ferguson’s United at their absolute peak and subsequently a Premier League and Champions League double was attained, each success forged on a centre-back pairing that has gone down in legend. 

Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand were as solid as it comes in 2007-08, and with the magnificent Edwin van der Sar in his prime between the sticks was it any wonder that only five sides managed to score more than a single goal past them all season?

The success of the defence allowed the Red Devils’ array of attacking talent to flourish and Cristiano Ronaldo announced himself as one of the best players in the world, as they pipped Chelsea to the league title.

Chelsea, 2005-06, 22 goals 

The second of Chelsea’s back-to-back titles wasn’t as lock-tight defensively as the first, but it still places as the third best defensive season in Premier League history.

Led by one of the best defenders in the Premier League in John Terry, the Blues were impenetrable for most of 2005-06 and with Frank Lampard reaching double figures from midfield, and Joe Cole conjuring up party-pieces off the left, the Blues strolled to another title with games to spare. 

Arsenal, 1998-99, 17 goals 

It’s strange to think that the second-best defensive season in Premier League history came from a team which finished runners-up.

Manchester United won the treble in 1998-99, of course, but Arsenal secured their own place in the Premier League records book courtesy of a miserly rearguard that feels atypical of an Arsene Wenger side.

A tally of 12 draws held the Gunners back but the 17 goals conceded was still a remarkable feat, and credit must duly go to their all-English collective of David Seaman, Lee Dixon, Nigel Winterburn, Tony Adams, Steve Bould and Martin Keown.

Chelsea, 2004-05, 15 goals 

Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea set plenty of Premier League records and conceding just 15 goals through a 38-match season is perhaps the most impressive of the lot. It’s telling that no other great champion in the 21st century have come within seven goals of the meagre tally.

It was a parsimony built on a foundation of John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho at its heart, in front of Petr Cech who seemed for all the world like he was unbeatable.

Claude Makelele sat in a screening midfield role, while Paulo Ferreira and William Gallas did the majority of the full-back duties.

This was very much a team effort, though, with the Blues having a commitment to defence that has rarely been seen in the Premier League.

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*Credit for the photos in this article belongs to Alamy*

• The modern-day Championship was formed in 2004

• Billy Sharp is the most prolific goal scorer in Championship history with 130 goals

• Find out the five players who have scored more Championship goals than anyone else below

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It is blatantly stating the obvious but goals win football matches! And they are particularly important in our EFL Championship which offers a massive financial carrot via promotion to the Premier League.

Before I outline the most prolific Championship strikers of all-time, let’s take a quick look at the top scorers in 2025/26:

• 19 - Joel Piroe, Leeds

• 18 - Borja Sainz, Norwich

• 18 - Josh Brownhill, Burnley

• 15 - Josh Sargent, Norwich

• 13 - Tommy Conway, Middlesbrough

• 13 - Josh Windass, Sheffield Wednesday

Moving on to analyse the situation historically, these are the top five goal scorers since the Championship was rebranded in 2004….

Seasons as Championship Top Scorer

Since 2004, only two players have finished as Championship top scorer on multiple occasions. Sylvan Ebanks-Blake achieved the feat in consecutive seasons in 2007-08 and 2008-09, scoring 48 goals across the two campaigns.

Ebanks-Blake spent the first half of 2007-08 with Plymouth Argyle before joining Wolves, where he scored 51 goals in 101 Championship appearances across two-and-a-half seasons.

Aleksandar Mitrovic joined Ebanks-Blake with two seasons as top goal scorer in 2021-22. Mitrovic shared the goal-scoring lead with Ollie Watkins in 2019-20, with the pair tied on 26 apiece.

After one season in the Premier League, Fulham dropped back down to the Championship in 2021, and Mitrovic finished as top scorer for the second time in three seasons with 43 goals in 44 outings. 

Most Goals In A Championship Season

Aleksandar Mitrovic’s dominant 2021-22 season was the most prolific in Championship history, shattering previous records. 

Glenn Murray’s 30 goals for Crystal Palace in 2012-13 were the record until 2020-21, when he was overtaken by Ivan Toney, who netted 31 for Brentford.

Mitrovic blew both of those seasons out the water in 2021-22, netting 43 goals as Fulham topped the table.

The Serbian international has been a dominant force whenever he has featured in Championship odds. Over 126 second tier appearances, the former Newcastle striker has netted a whopping 96 goals. 

Highest Scorers in Championship History

5th) Chris Martin - 114 goals

Norwich City, Crystal Palace, Derby County, Fulham, Reading, Hull City, Bristol City and Queens Park Rangers.

Martin is no longer a Championship player, but he's still banging in the goals in the Football League.

After receiving Player of the Month in League One a couple of seasons ago, Martin said: “I am confident I can continue to contribute so I don’t even think about my age! I hope to keep finding the back of the net when chances come my way. I just aim to score in every single match I play.”

4th) Ross McCormack - 120 goals

Cardiff City, Leeds United, Fulham, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest.

McCormack is currently playing his trade for Doncaster City FC in the Central Midlands Alliance League at the 11th level of English football. 

Reflecting on his fruitful past spell gracing the second tier, McCormack said: “Playing in the Championship, you had no breathing space to recover from games.

“Even if you hit a hat-trick for your team on a Saturday, you just couldn’t let it sink in because you went into training on the Sunday and then immediately had another match to face in midweek. But I enjoyed it all.”

3rd) David Nugent - 121 goals

Preston North End, Portsmouth, Leicester City, Middlesbrough and Derby County.

Nugent retired after a brief loan spell with Tranmere Rovers in 2021. 

He made his solitary England appearance whilst featuring in Championship predictions back in March 2007. Going on as a 79th minute substitute away to Andorra, Nugent scored in the final seconds.

He recalls: “It was a totally crazy international experience for me. I was at Preston at the time I got the call-up and no one expected it.

“Scoring for your country is top of the list for things you can do in football. I shot home merely a yard out and it was only against Andorra but no one can take that away from me. It was one of my childhood dreams which came true.”

2nd) Jordan Rhodes - 123 goals

Ipswich Town, Huddersfield Town, Blackburn Rovers, Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday and Norwich City.

Rhodes hasn't played in the Championship for several years. He last appeared for Mansfield Town on loan in 2025. 

1st) Billy Sharp - 130 goals

Sheffield United, Doncaster Rovers, Southampton, Nottingham Forest, Reading and Leeds United.

Nearing the end of his career, Sharp is no longer playing in the Championship. The veteran has an unrivalled record in the second tier, however, and remains top of the goal scoring charts. 

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*Credit for all photos in this article belongs to Alamy*

With a simple scoring system and limited set of rules, darts is one of the easiest sports to follow.

You don’t need to be a tungsten expert to get involved with darts betting and a packed schedule of tournaments can keep punters entertained.

The PDC World Championship is the darts competition that everyone wants to win.

As of 2024, the prize fund stands at a colossal £2.5 million, with £500,000 going to the winning player. Winning the World Championship is the dream for every aspiring darts player.

Best Darts Tournaments For Prize Money:

1. PDC World Championship - £2.5 million

2. Premier League Darts - £1 million

3. World Matchplay - £800,000

4. Grand Slam Of Darts - £650,000

5. World Grand Prix - £600,000

6. European Championship - £600,000

7. UK Open - £600,000

8. Players Championship - £500,000

9. World Cup Of Darts - £450,000

10. World Series Of Darts - £300,000

Some of the greatest players of all-time have flourished at these tournaments.

Take Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor for example – he had won an incredible 16 PDC World Championship titles when he retired following the 2018 event.

Without further ado, it is time to take a look at the top 10 darts tournaments for prize money.

Follow the latest darts betting news, tips and odds with 888sport and be sure to keep an eye on the darts tournaments schedule throughout the year.

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*Credit for the main photo belongs to Alamy*

• There are over 50 professional snooker referees, including the likes of Jan Verhaas, Tatiana Woollaston and Paul Collier

• Senior snooker referees earn a base salary of $25,000 per season

• Top male snooker referees can earn up to $250,000 per year while female snooker referees can earn close to $175,000

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It isn’t an easy journey to become a famous snooker referee. Years of work is required before appearing in the premium sports betting events, learning and perfecting the science of snooker officiating prior to any opportunity at The Crucible. 

Not every young snooker fan will aspire to referee at the highest level. Of course, enforcing the rules in any sport comes with pressure, scrutiny, and often some awkward situations.

Snooker in-play betting odds can swing on a poor decision, and you can find yourself dealing with some riled up players on occasion.

So, let’s learn a bit more about the role, qualifications and salaries of snooker referees.

What Does A Snooker Referee Do?

Snooker referees might not have to deal with the confrontation which is frequent in physical sports like rugby or football but their role is still vital.

They make sure each frame and match is played following the rules. Certain regulations can vary from tournament to tournament - it is important that the referees keep up to date.

An eye for detail is vital. While maintaining fairness and integrity throughout, snooker referees are encouraged to keep the pace of each frame at a decent level.

It is a sport of tactics, tension and calm, yet snooker is often pondering if the sport needs to be sped up. Referees should have a minor role in proceedings, with their interventions being subtler than their brasher peers in other sports.

At times, snooker referees will be forced to make big calls. These can be significant in high-stakes tournament play, leading to the occasional disagreement between players and officials. This is inevitably when they face greater pressure. 

How Much Do Snooker Referees Get Paid?

There is considerable flexibility when it comes to how much snooker referees get paid. A figure of £70 per match has been quoted for some tournaments in the past, but there can be significantly smaller sums for local tournaments. 

Naturally, the amount snooker referees get paid depends on the event’s revenue and the experience of the referee. The highest-profile officials will have a base rate, functioning much like a retainer, along with a figure agreed per match. 

At the higher levels, some take on snooker refereeing as a full-time occupation. World Snooker will cover expenses for travel, food and accommodation for big events, which supplements their salary and earnings per match. The exact figures that snooker referees earn are not publicly available. 

World Snooker Referees:

With all exams passed and the necessary experience accumulated, snooker referees can oversee official ranking events.

Not only do these matches impact the world rankings, they also carry significant prize money and can make or break careers. The pressure, as a result, is sky high for the referees.

Paul Collier, Olivier Marteel and Marcel Eckardt are three of the most famous snooker referees in the world. Between them, they have overseen six world finals. Former referee Brendan Moore has taken charge of three world finals, with the 2023 being his last before retirement. 

Of active officials, Jan Verhaas has the most experience on the biggest stage, refereeing six world finals throughout his illustrious career. 

Ascendant referees are always looking to make their names on the biggest stages. In truth, the most successful snooker referees are seldom recognisable, but keep the game ticking over while remaining even-tempered.

Verhaas, for instance, has professionally dealt with some awkward circumstances involving star players and chatty crowd members in the past.

Female Snooker Referees:

Female snooker referees have not always been prevalent in the men’s game.

The World Women’s Snooker Championship has been running since 1976, but it is only in recent years that significant progress has been made towards equality among snooker referees. 

Described as a trail blazer, and a well-known face to snooker fans worldwide, Michaela Tabb has been among the world’s best snooker referees for over a decade-and-a-half.

Tabb has cleared a path for others, including Tatiana Woollaston and Desislava Bozhilova. 

Tabb, however, remains the only woman to oversee a World Championship final after refereeing John Higgins’ 2009 win and Ronnie O’Sullivan’s triumph three years later. 

Since Tabb broke into a male-dominated role, a generation of female snooker referees have emerged across the world.

Malgorzata Kanieska, Maike Kesseler, Proletina Velichkova and Monika Sułkowska are just a few to have taken the responsibility of refereeing at tour events. 

Bozhilova is reportedly the highest-paid female snooker referee at the time of writing.

Snooker Referees Salary:

The salary of snooker referees at the professional level is a base rate of roughly £20,000.

Those refereeing women’s snooker have a lower base rate, but these figures are added to throughout the season with fees per match. Expenses are covered.

Those refereeing the biggest matches can receive over £500 per fixture, which racks up over a lengthy tournament like the World Championships.

Entry level referees have a base salary of roughly £4,000, and will be looking at around £50 per match when they are starting out. 

Snooker referees do not have wealth comparable to the game’s stars like Ronnie O’Sullivan or Mark Selby, yet the most accomplished will be on a more than comfortable salary throughout the course of a busy season. 

Some outlets claim the highest-paid snooker referees have a salary in the region of £200,000, though this is not widely reported.

Much like officials in other sports, exact figures for the salary of individual snooker referees are hard to come by.

Check out our BTTS tips on the biggest upcoming football fixtures!

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*Credit for all of the images in this article belongs to Alamy*