But those long weekends of pretending to do DIY jobs around the house are thankfully just a memory now the season kicks off in the Championship and lower leagues.

The first whistle signals the start of a ten month battle between punters and the bookies as we look for mistakes in their prices.

And there will be plenty of them as the odds compilers overrate glamour teams and never react quickly enough to sides in and out of form.

Our winning tip on Spain in the World Cup shows that class teams will always win in the long run.

And on that basis it’s an easy jump from backing David Villa and the boys to putting our money on Middlesbrough to win the Championship.

Spain were simply the best side in this summer’s tournament. And the same can be said of the Boro in their current league.

Gordon Strachan’s boys were available at 8/1 for the title. But that has been backed off the boards and they are down to 11/2 with Paddy Power.

That’s still a price worth getting-on at because, quite simply, they haven’t got much to beat.

Strachan has assembled a team dominated by former Scottish Premier League stars who should be too good for those around them.

The relegated sides – Hull, Burnley and Portsmouth – are short of confidence, cash and star players so the biggest challenge could come from Nottingham Forest and QPR.

We’ll back Boro to get the better of that pair and a decent investment will give us a season-long interest in Strachan’s great Scottish experiment.

Saturday’s live game on BBC1 sees Leeds take on Derby at Elland Road in a match steeped in 70s tradition.

Derby manager Nigel Clough is sure to have the Rams fired-up for this one given his family history with Leeds.

Corals make Derby 3/1 to win this and that price is too big against a Leeds side who will struggle to score goals against Clough’s men.

Here’s to a successful weekend – and even if we lose cash, it’s worth it to keep the toolbox safely stashed back under the stairs.