Newport granddad creates app to predict football relegations (From South Wales Argus)

Newport granddad creates app to predict football relegations

7:30pm Monday 4th March 2013 in Gwent news

HE'S GOT AN APP FOR THAT: Dave Winston

A NEWPORT grandad has become an entrepreneur with the development of a new football app.

Dave Winston, 58, of Allt-yr-yn, has applied his skills with coding and systems to produce a new mobile phone application.

The free app, called Football Relegation Wizard has taken nearly a year to develop and is used to help football fans predict who will be relegated and which team is safe.

Mr Winston hopes it will be popular with the millions of Premier League soccer fans throughout the UK, as the championship develops.

The app studies five-million calculations to produce its result in 90seconds, depending on network and phone speeds.

The crucial points that are collected in home and away games, with wins and draws, are all built into the calculations.

Dave Winston, computer systems analyst, said: ÒI have been writing computer programs for over 30 years and after a chance conversation with a football fan who wondered if his local side could be relegated or not last year I decided to apply my skills to the problem.

“Some said it could not be done and that the complexity of the championship would make it impossible, but I have tested it and it works and now I want to roll it out as this season approaches the vital last few months.”

Dave is now talking to a leading football magazine about using the app and having it marketed by them.

He added: "I don’t know of the app is unique I would be interested to know if the bookies could do it.

“There is no reason why it couldn’t be applied to other championships and even other sports where there is a similar sort of table and knock-out system operating.”