IN Holland, there is a statue of a certain Hans Brinker.

Legend has it, this brave little boy used his finger to stem a leak in a dam which, otherwise would have flooded and wiped out his city.

Okay, so that's cutting a long story short.

Some say it never happened and that the story of Brinker was the result of someone's fertile imagination.

I am not going to throw any more light onto this story, fable, legend or what-have-you.

But I am going to suggest that Manchester United should seriously consider erecting a statue of another Dutchman whose recent exploits could very well save their campaign and bring them another Premiership title.

Unlike Brinker, who used his finger, Edwin van der Sar has used his finger, thumb, palm, hand, elbow, shoulder and every other body part to keep out the goals in 13 matches or - if you're into the 4-D lottery game - 1,212 minutes.

That's a British record. That's a huge achievement. That's surely deserving of a statue - even an itsy-bitsy one.

But don't ask for contributions from punters. Because, and depending on the betting slip you have stashed away in your wallet, the dexterous Dutchman is either hero or villain.

You see, on Sunday, there were two camps. One camp had wagered on a draw while the other had United beating the bogey that has been Upton Park and cruising to an easy win.

Indeed, most felt that Sir Alex Ferguson's men would easily clear the 1.5-goal handicap which would have brought in a $2.45 payout on the 1/2 Goal.

Well, that didn't happen - through no fault of Van der Sar. But the best goalkeeper currently in the Premiership, sure as ever, prevented a draw or, a West Ham win which would have paid $5.60 on the 1x2.

But Van der Sar wasn't the only goalkeeper who had a say in who won and who didn't win money from the bookmakers.

Shay Given was born across the sea from Holland and his birthplace in Donegal, Ireland didn't have a dam or a celebrated hero like the Brinker boy.

But he too deserves a little statue - if only for his heroics in Man City's match against Middlesbrough.

Wearing the colours of his new club, the Irishman was Superman and Spiderman rolled into one. He guarded his goal selfishly, diving left, right and centre to stop shots from Boro.

As a 1-0 City win and a 1-1 draw were the two most popular scores being hit on by punters, Given was either loved or loathed - depending, like I said, on the ticket you had stashed away in your wallet, purse or pocket.

Saviour

However, for those who had money on Newcastle who played West Brom at The Hawthorns, Steve Harper - Given's former deputy - was their saviour.

He prevented West Brom from claiming a draw and Newcastle backers collected the $2.77 on the 1x2.

However, few would have collected on the final score. With Michael Owen, their source for goals sidelined, few expected the Magpies to score three times. That, they did.

Not surprising, the payout on Newcastle's 3-2 victory was worth a hefty $32.

Another big payout on the Exact Score ticket was the $14 on Chelsea's match with Hull City ending goalless.

It did - and it burnt a hole in punters' pockets.