Come back Chris, all is forgiven

I got a text earlier this evening from an old mate who wanted to know why I wasn't at the Betview Annual Awards at the Hilton Park Lane. Not long after, he texted me again to ask me my tip for the Online Company of the Year.

The short-list, it transpired, was Betfair, William Hill, and Ladbrokes.

I texted him back pretty quickly: I said I thought it would be William Hill.

Well, I wasn't going to say Betfair - it would have been too predictable an answer, coming from me, it was unlikely we'd be a realistic option (and as I gather we were trading at 1000 on the night and were booed when the short-list was read out, I suspect that view was shared by many there).

Of the other two, it seemed a no-brainer: Hills have done a lot online in the last year, while Ladbrokes are considered to have done so little in comparison that they recently fired their CEO, Chris Bell, and - passing over their MD of e-Gaming, John O'Reilly, for the top job, and appointing Richard Glynn who was welcomed by the City on the basis that he has 'online expertise'.

Ladbrokes won.

I wonder what Chris, John, the Ladbrokes Board, and the City make of that?