France and New Zealand get the Rugby World Cup under way on Friday and @Olimp_SA also take a look at Saturday's clash between England and Argentina
Rugby World Cup 2023 has finally arrived and the action gets going in Paris on Friday night. Our man “The Don” takes a look at the betting for the France v New Zealand opener as well as the England v Argentina clash.
France v New Zealand
In the outright betting the French side are priced at 29/10 to win the tournament on their home soil. They managed to secure three wins in their four warmup games, with their only loss coming to Scotland in the first of those games when they fielded an inexperienced side.
They were pushed hard by Scotland at home winning with a late penalty but the victories over Fiji and Australia were by 17 and 24 points respectively.
New Zealand come into the World Cup as the only team ahead pf France in the outright betting trading at 28/10 to win the tournament outright. This is despite the fact that they suffered the biggest loss in their history in the last warmup game against South Africa losing by 28 points at Twickenham.
They did however win their other warmup game which was actually Bledisloe 2 and they won all three of the Rugby Championship games by convincing margins.
Head-to-Head
2017 Stade de France, France 18-38 New Zealand
2018 Eden Park, New Zealand 52-11 France
2018 Westpac Stadium, New Zealand 26-13 France
2018 Forsyth Barr Stadium, New Zealand 49-14 France
2021 Stade de France, France 40-25 New Zealand
Verdict
Even tough New Zealand have largely dominated France in recent years (their last clash aside) they have been in better recent form and have the advantage of playing at home. I am backing France to open up their campaign with a win.
The Dons Play
France to win at 9/10
To bet on France v New Zealand – Click Here
England v Argentina
England played four warm up games and were only victorious in one against Wales at home. Lost to Wales on the road and were also well beaten by the Irish in Dublin with the biggest shock the home loss to Fiji.
They are only sixth in the outright betting at 14/1 to win the World Cup despite having a favourable draw.
Argentina only managed to win one of their three games in the Rugby Championship but it was an impressive away win in Australia. They only played two warmup games losing to South Africa by 11 points at home before a 62-3 thumping of Spain. They are just behind England at 23/1 in the outright betting.
Head-to-Head
2017 Estadio Bicentenario, Argentina 34-38 England
2017 Estdio Colon, Argentina 25-35 England
2017 Twickenham, England 21-8 Argentina
2019 Tokyo Stadium, England 39-10 Argentina
2022 Twickenham, England 29-30 Argentina
Verdict
The winner of this game is almost certain to progress to the quarter-finals and we will most likely see a very close contest this weekend. Argentina have shown better form and there has been plenty of money for them in the lead up to the tournament, mainly as a result of England’s poor run.
They should be able to take the win in their first game to start their campaign on a good foot and put the English under all sorts of pressure.
The Dons Play
Argentina to win at 19/20
To bet on England v Argentina– Click Here
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