Feelgood factor Can watching sport really improve your wellbeing? Science suggests it can

And still the feast goes on. Since Rory McIlroy won a Masters for the ages, fans with multiple satellite TV subscriptions – and irregular sleeping habits – have been able to gorge on an extraordinary amount of dramatic sport.

- Sean Ingle

And still the feast goes on. Since Rory McIlroy won a Masters for the ages, fans with multiple satellite TV subscriptions – and irregular sleeping habits – have been able to gorge on an extraordinary amount of dramatic sport. Seesawing shifts in momentum? Late twists? Huge shocks? We’ve had them all. It says something when Barcelona’s epic 3-2 victory against Real Madrid in a Copa del Rey final was only their third-most exciting match in the past month; and when my sober-eyed colleague Robert Kitson describes Northampton’s 37-34 Champions Cup win at Leinster as “one of the all-time great knockout heists”.

The insomniacs among us have also witnessed a staggering number of did-you-see-that comebacks in the NBA playoffs. The New York Knicks stunned the Boston Celtics twice as double-digit underdogs while the Denver Nuggets came back to defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder in their series opener when the odds, and basketball logic, suggested they were doomed.

The previous night in the NHL, the Winnipeg Jets won a double-overtime decider against the St Louis Blues after equalising with 2.2 seconds remaining – the latest goal to tie a series decider in the league’s history.