We take a look at the 4 URC matching taking place this weekend that involves South African teams.
Leinster remain firm favourites to win the URC at 9/20 with fellow Irish sides Munster and Ulster both at 6/1. The Stormers are the best of the rest at 15/1.
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FRIDAY
STORMERS v GLASGOW WARRIORS
Stormers are currently 5th on the table and their last match was against the Bulls in Cape Town and they won a close encounter 19-17, their 5th successive home victory and a result that has them up to 5th in the table.
They face a Glasgow side that sits 3 points and 2 positions above them in 3rd and Glasgow’s last action was a comfortable 40-12 victory over Zebre back at the start of April. Glasgow has had some disappointing results on the road thought including a 4 point loss to Cardiff and a 25 point loss to the Scarlets.
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Stormers
Draw 25/1
Glasgow Warriors
Handicap: Stormers (-7.5)
Suggested Bet: Handicap, Stormers (-7.5) at 9/10
Stormers are flying high at the moment and although this Glasgow side is capable of giving them a good game I think the home team are going to be too strong and will pull clear to win by a double figure margin.
SATURDAY
BLUE BULLS v BENETTON TREVISO
The Bulls are currently 8th on the log and after winning 5 matches in a row including 4 in a row at home they were disappointed to go down narrowly in a low scoring encounter to the Stormers in Cape Town last time out. Their 4 wins at Loftus were all fairly comfortable with only Munster getting within the score of the Bulls and they comfortably saw off the Scarlets, Dragons and Ulster.
Benetton are currently 13th on the table and out of playoff contention. Their last match was a narrow home defeat to Connacht, but prior to that they were well beaten on the road at Munster and thrashed 61-17 at home to Leinster.
Benetton beat the Bulls in the final of last season’s Pro 14, but the betting suggests an Italian victory is a very unlikely outcome here.
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Bulls
Draw 90/1
Benetton 28/1
Handicap: Bulls (-26.5)
Suggested Bet: Handicap, Bulls (-26.5) at 9/10
The Bulls will be too strong for Benetton at Loftus and while there is always a chance that the Italians can score consolation tries I fancy the home team to keep the hammer down to win this by 30 points plus.
LIONS v CONNACHT
The Lions were well beaten last time out against the Sharks in Durban going down 37-10, but prior to that they had won 4 home matches in a row against overseas opposition, most recently beating Edinburgh by 6 points in a low scoring encounter. Unfortunately the Lions made a really poor start to the season and remain in 12th place on the log.
Connacht currently sit 10th on the log, 2 points ahead of the Lions and last time out they went down 26-21 to Leinster. Prior to that they edged Benetton by 4 points on the road. Connacht’s away form has generally been suspect though and they did suffer a big defeat to Edinburgh and they also went down by 20 points to Ulster on the road earlier in the season.
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Lions
Draw 20/1
Connacht
Handicap: Lions (-4.5)
Suggested Bet: Handicap, Lions (-4.5) at 9/10
Connacht are well capable of giving the Lions a hard game, but the fact that the Lions are playing so well and Connacht appear to struggle on the road has me leaning towards the home team by 5 or more.
THE SHARKS v LEINSTER
Leinster are top of the table with 3 wins and 12 victories in their 15 games and they visit the Sharks currently sitting 6th on the log. The Sharks have won 4 out of 5 home matches in their last 5 games with their only slip coming against Edinburgh. Last time out they beat the Lions by 27 points and had comfortable victories over the Scarlets, Zebre and the Dragons.
Leinster have named a weakened squad for the South African tour, but they still pack plenty of class and will be on a high after progressing to the Heineken Championship Cup quarter-finals courtesy of a two-legged victory over Connacht. Their last away match saw them beat Munster by 15 points and prior to that they hammered Connacht by 37 points.
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Sharks
Draw 22/1
Leinster
Handicap: The Sharks (-3.5)
Suggested Bet: The Sharks (-3.5) at 19/20
Leinster need to be respected, but this Sharks team have plenty of quality and should beat what virtually amounts to a second string Leinster outfit.
Note: All prices correct at the time of writing but are subject to change
