After the final break in the calendar, the Six Nations enters the home straight.
After Wales crushed England’s Grand Slam dreams last time out, they have the advantage, but still have to play Ireland – with so much to play for, it is sure to be a thrilling end to the tournament.
Our rugby expert guides you through the best bets from round four of the Six Nations.
Scotland v Wales
Wales enter this game off a real high. They produced a gutsy display to beat England in Cardiff, whilst Scotland are reeling after a poor display in France. The Scots, however, welcome the return of influential fly-half Finn Russell, and he could be a catalyst for change.
Wales are a comfortable 8/5 favourites, but Scotland need to produce a complete performance this tournament, and this could be the opportunity. In the intimidating Murrayfield atmosphere, Scotland are capable of great things. If they can force the Welsh to play an expansive game, and keep their discipline, Scotland have a real chance of victory. They are 7/5.
I think, regardless of the victor, it will be an incredibly tight game, which makes either team to win by 7 or less at 11/10 a no-brainer for me.
England v Italy
England fell apart in the second half against Wales, and have added some serious heavy artillery to their backline as they look to return to winning ways against Italy. Joe Cokanasiga, Manu Tuilagi and Ben Te’o weigh more than the current top three heavyweight boxers in the world, and they will be running at defenders ceding over 30 kilograms in some cases.
This will be an incredibly direct England team, and they will look to put the Italians to the sword at Twickenham. Italy are 19/1, but I think it is a case of damage limitation for them. The handicap is around -33 for England at the moment, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was north of 40 points come full time.
Back England with a -39.5 handicap at 6/4 with Grosvenorsport.com
Ireland v France
Ireland have an outside chance to claim the 6 Nations title, but after a shaky tournament, they will be looking towards the World Cup and trying to build momentum for that. France looked excellent against Scotland, with a thrilling, dynamic young core of the team, and fans will look forward to seeing a similar performance.
It will be good to see the cavalier, high risk strategy of France face Ireland’s extremely methodical, calculated rugby, and it could be the game of the weekend. Ireland are healthy favourites at 1/8, whereas France are 9/2, but it could be a good game.
I would think that Ireland would have too much for an inexperienced French team, and expect them to win by 13 or more points, available at 8/11.
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