AllBlacks80A preview of Saturday's Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup clash between New Zealand and Australia including best bets and tryscorer specials with @Olimp_SA

 

 

 

 

New Zealand vs. Australia, Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship – Saturday 14 August 09:05

 

New Zealand were looking good to cover the handicap last week, but a late surge by the Aussies saw the deficit being reduced to only 8 points. Luckily the Aussies did help the over on the total points come in and Richie Mo’unga crossed the whitewash to give us something extra to smile about. It’s now on to match two of the Bledisloe Cup which will also double-down as the opening match of the Rugby Championship.

 

New Zealand

 

The All Blacks had a slow start last week but after getting the pistons warmed up they proved as lethal as ever. However, things died down for the men in black after the 60th minute and this spoiled what would have been an excellent performance by letting in three late tries. Perhaps Ian Foster was a little too hasty with bringing on the changes. Another concern for the All Blacks would be the number of penalties that they gave away. In total they gave away 18 and had Lolesio not had an off day with his kicking for the Aussies they may just have snuck this one at the end.

 

Anton Lienert-Brown is the only change to the starting line-up for the men in black this week and rightly so. The forward pack looked solid up front and completely dominated Australia in the scrum and lineouts for the first 60. Although there were some handling errors in the beginning the backs finally got the rhythm going and Aaron Smith had a solid 100th match at 9, throwing some great passes and getting a few try assists. Sevu Reece was electrifying as ever, dotting down once but also missing out on what would have been an amazing team try that nearly went the length of the field. McKenzie played his role at fullback perfectly and added another try to his name after shooting up in the line when New Zealand were close to the tryline. I expect much of the same this week and hopefully the All Blacks can go the full 80 minutes this time around.

 

Will Jordan joins the team this week, while Rieko Ioane shifts to number 13. TJ Perenara also returns to the bench and as always you can expect the nippy little scrumhalf to have a say in the second half.

 

Australia

 

You have to give Wallabies credit where credit is due. After being completely outplayed in the first 60 minutes they managed to comeback and make the scoreline a lot more respectable. Keeping some experience on the bench last week was a smart move by Coach Rennie as veterans like To’omua and Hodge were able to come on and make a big impact once the All Blacks had made all their changes.

 

Likewise, Australia have opted to keep things similar to last week but have a few more changes than New Zealand. Philip comes in at lock for Salakaia-Loto who moves to the bench, while Swinton brings back some physicality to the Aussie pack when he returns at flank. Harry Wilson has been moved to the bench for this one but he will no doubt be brought later in the match.

 

In the backline, To’omua gets the start at 12 after his impact from the bench last week and might even be given the kicking duties after Lolesio’s poor performance last week. This leaves the Aussies with an extra playmaker in the midfield alongside Paisami and it will be interesting to see if they can crack the Kiwi defense with this variation. I am also expecting a big performance from Koroibete after he finished serving his suspension. I feel that he will want to prove that it was a mistake leaving him out of the side last week and we could very well see the big man go over in the corner. Tom Banks started the Wallabies’ late surge last week and will try to repeat his double when he returns to fullback.

 

Once again the Aussies have kept some experience on the bench with Reece Hodge, but look out for Nic White who joins for his first international game of the year. If he gets a run you can be sure the feisty scrumhalf will be making a menace of himself.

 

Prediction

 

I expect this match to be a lot closer than last week, but New Zealand will prevail once again. The Wallabies have brought more experience into their side compared to last week and I see the likes of To’omua and Koroibete in the starting line-up making a huge difference for the visitors. The Aussies won’t leave it as late as what they did last week and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them score a try or two in the first half. You can still expect New Zealand to crack the Australian defense and Australia will let in a lot of points, but the visitors will hit back and avoid the game getting away from them this time around. For me the handicap is too generous for New Zealand so I will have to take Australia on the plus.

 

I also see Koroibete wanting to make a statement and I expect him to dot down at some stage of the game. Since the over on the total points has now arrived in the All Blacks’ last four matches and I see a few tries from both sides, I will have a crack at it once again if the line comes out around 51.5 points like it was last week.

 

BetOlimp Best Bets

 

Australia +21.5 – 1.88
Anytime Tryscorer: Marika Koroibete – 3.00
Last Tryscorer: TJ Perenara – 21.00

 

(Note, all odds quoted are subject to change)

 

Claim your 1st deposit bonus up to R3,000 here

 

Click here for details of our all current promotions

 

App Download Android

 

App Download Apple