A $10 donation once a year on the Melbourne Cup is the extent of Sporting Declaration's gambling these days.
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But while I'm not in the habit of burning my hard-earned on three-legged racehorses or enigmatic athletes, I do like to keep tabs on the bookies' odds and what might be a shrewd investment.
So a few weeks back, when I noticed the Newcastle Knights were paying $5 to make the final eight, dollar signs started flashing in my eyes.
At the time, admittedly, the Knights were going like busteds.
They had just slipped to 14th rung on the competition ladder after back-to-back losses to Parramatta (40-4) and South Sydney (24-10) and, other than an upset 18-10 win against Manly in round 12, had scarcely played well in any game this year.
Struggling to score points and conceding plenty, the Knights appeared to be sliding into a deep hole.
Most of the so-called experts had already written them off as finals contenders, and all but the staunchest of fans were starting to have serious doubts.
Even coach Adam O'Brien seemed perplexed after a number of substandard performances, at one point querying if underlying issues were "ingrained" in his team after so many lean years.
For some reason, however, I still saw a glimmer of hope. For starters, the points table was so congested that any team capable of stringing two or three wins together was always going to surge forward.
The top six positions in the finals are expected to be filled by Melbourne, Penrith, South Sydney, Parramatta, Manly and Sydney Roosters, which leaves only two spots up for grabs.
But of the remaining 10 teams, who will emerge from this dog-eat-eat phase of the season and progress to the play-offs? Who's the best of the worst?
I've always thought the Knights had the most upside, followed by Canberra, because both sides have been underachieving.
If the Raiders have been distracted by internal issues, Newcastle's problem was more straightforward. They simply had too many key players injured at the same time.
Kalyn Ponga and Mitchell Pearce have both missed 10 games this season.
Edrick Lee hasn't appeared once. Lachlan Fitzgibbon was sidelined for the first half of the season, while Hymel Hunt (seven games), Bradman Best (six games), Tyson Frizell (six games) and David Klemmer (two games) have all spent time out through injuries and suspension.
When the Knights had their main men missing, they performed accordingly.
And that is pretty standard across the NRL, except perhaps for Melbourne and Penrith.
Even the Roosters, so stoic when the casualties mounted earlier in the season, are starting to show signs of vulnerability. And it wasn't that long ago a depleted South Sydney lost 50-0 and 56-12 in the space of three games.
It happens to most teams, most seasons, and those that are best able to ride it out, regroup and rebound survive to reach the finals, more often than not.
So the $5 top-eight long shots arrived for their home clash with the Warriors on June 19, and after winning a miserable bludger of a game 10-6 banked two much-needed points.
A fortnight later, boosted by Ponga's return, they smashed North Queensland 38-0 and suddenly the Knights are looking like a footy team. The bookies wound them in to $2.10.
There's still a long way to go, of course, and plenty of time for the wheels that were wobbling earlier in the season to fall off completely.
But put it this way. On the points table after last weekend's game, the Knights were ninth, but in terms of wins (seven) they were actually eighth, disregarding the two points some teams had received for the bye.
In other words, they're already in the eight, yet I believe they are still nowhere near playing to their potential.
The return of Ponga and Pearce - who against the Cowboys joined forces for the first time this year - is invaluable.
The mid-season signing of Jake Clifford has also been a major coup. He is shaping as the perfect foil for Pearce and his kicking game, in particular, has given the Knights a new attacking weapon.
Likewise, English teenager Dominic Young could hardly have been more impressive in his two-try showing last week. His emergence has provided the Knights with size, speed and strikepower out wide - and he should only get better.
On the opposite edge, it is no surprise that since the reliable Hunt returned from a hamstring problem, the Knights have won two games and conceded only six points. He's solid as a rock.
By all accounts, Tyson Frizell should be back next week and possibly Bradman Best soon after that.
And while Knights fans have learned never to take anything for granted, their team do have a handy draw, with remaining games against Melbourne (away), the Roosters (away), Canberra (home), Brisbane (home), Cronulla (away), Canterbury (away), Gold Coast (home) and Brisbane (away).
What odds some of those away games will be switched to McDonald Jones Stadium if Sydney's lockdown continues? Regardless, I fancy their chances of being involved in the business end of this season.
Just wished I'd backed them when they were paying five bucks.