Royally good

England deservedly beat Sweden to put it in a good position to go through the next. How Ibrahimovic and co can complain that the result was unfair is really beyond me. It's true the Lions let in 2 really ugly looking goals to allow Sweden to take the lead. As mentioned before, this England defence is weak and any potent strike force is going to score on it. But the encouraging thing is that they bounced back and found renewed inspiration in attack. Theo Walcott is one of the best wingers in the world on his best day and is one of the only few in the squad that can change a game. So he did.

Besides the Euros, a few events caught the eye this past week-end. The US Open in golf saw the crowning of unfancied Webb Simpson. Tiger prowled for the first 2 days and then his challenge petered out. He's still not there yet. Mc Ilroy didn't even make the cut. Anyone noticed that since he and Carol Wozniak, the ex-tennis No 1, have been dating, their results have gone downhill? The great thing about watching the Open was seeing Ernie Els challenge on the last day. The South African is one of my all-time favourites on tour and is at the dawn of a great career. I don't know if he'll be in a position to challenge at future golf Majors again, but it was great to see him bring back some of his best golf.

In racing, the Prix Diane produced a surprise result as the undefeated favourite Beauty Parlour was overwhelmed in the late stages by the Aga Khan second-string Valyra. These 2 look set to lock horns in the  Prix Vermeilles at 12 furlongs before tackling the Arc. That a filly wins the Arc again a year after Danedream, looks like a live possibility with the likes of Beauty Parlour, Valyra and Golden Lilac.

Royal Ascot starts tomorrow and the first race is no other than the Queen Anne Stakes where Frankel puts his unbeaten record on the line. Suffice to say that besides Excelebration, there does not seem to be a horse in the race that can possibly stop this being another procession for the Galileo colt. This is a race last year that Frankel nearly lost, having been run to the line by Zoffany, but that can safely be attributed to pilot zest more than anything. He was made to strike for home too early last year, and rider Queally will be all too aware not to make the same mistake. Frankel should win and Excelebration will have to contend with another Place spot again. Those are the recommendations.

Back to the Euros where England take on Ukraine in their last group match. One co-host Poland has already bitten the dust and failed to qualify and Ukraine looks set for the same exit. I don't see them beating an England welcoming back Rooney, and England look good value as a good draw-no-bet.

Win: Frankel

Place: Excelebration

Draw-no-bet: England

Classic impact

The predictions were good with Man City, Arsenal and Tottenham all winning on the last day, but obviously, fat chance played a big role. City finally won the game and the title after giving their supporters the biggest fright imaginable. Their title win and that of Real Madrid in La Liga made for a nice double that was fancied here for the last few months. Sports is a funny game where this kind of selection could easily have gone astray had the Citizens failed to score in injury time. It worked this time.

The excitement of the last day of the Premiership showed why it is the most thrilling league to follow. It's not the best anymore, in that the best 2 clubs in the world are in Spain. However, I don't think anyone in the FA will want to swap places with a league where the gap between 2nd and 3rd place are 39 staggering points!

Some news of the note over last week-end and in the last few days. The non-selection of Rio Ferdinand for Euro 2012 is a good one. He's become more a liability at the back nowadays and his game has slowed markedly over the past couple of years. One of the reasons Man Utd lost the title this year was because the loss of Vidic exposed the vulnerabilities of Ferdinand.

The selection of Terry is a good one too, the only reason being that there is no other accomplished central defender in the squad. Reality is there is a serious lack of a top-class English central defender and that even a regressing Terry is better than what is available. That said, with or without Terry, England will concede goals because the defence is poor.

On the racing front, the French Guineas saw the coronation of Beauty Parlour and Lucayan. The former is a daughter of Deep Impact and looks set to dominate the 3-year old division this year. If she has no rival at a mile, I wonder who will challenge her at longer distances for which her pedigree suits perfectly. This is oh-so sweet revenge for her sire, who was not given the best preparation to showcase his talent on his only foray on French soil.

Another Japanese sire that had a prominent runner in the male Classic was Hat Trick, sire of Dabirsim, the champion 2-year old. He did not have the best of trips, but he also showed he did not quite get the mile distance. He could be factor over the sprint distances in Europe this year if that is the route his connections choose for him. But all this is a far cry from the greatness he looked set for after his overly promising debut season.

This coming week-end is all about the Preakness Stakes in the US and the return of Frankel in the Lockinge at Newbury. I don't usually favour ante-post but with the race only 2 days away, the odds in that market for the superstar miler will not be reached again. It's impossible to go against Frankel, and the recommendation is to take Frankel now and on race-day as well.

Antepost win: Frankel