Rugby fans and punters have been kept busy with plenty of Super 14 action over the last 4 weeks and there is no doubt that betting on a match between 2 quality outfits is great fun and has the potential to be profitable as well.

For those really looking to gain an edge over the bookmakers though it may be worth focusing your attention on some of the tournaments that take place at a lower level and with less media coverage.

I am thinking in particular of the Varsity Cup and the Vodacom Cup where the shrewd punter can gain a definite long term edge over the house.

When pricing up for a Super 14 match the bookmaker has loads of stats and history at his disposal, he would have seen both teams playing the previous week and team news will be only a mouse click away.

It is not so easy to find out about a crucial change to say the Maties pack or the Border Bulldogs backline though and while the information is out there somewhere your average bookmaker does not necessarily have the time to keep his finger on the pulse.

Enter the shrewd punter who does not have to worry about a host of football and cricket matches taking place simultaneously with the rugby and can focus his attention on gathering information and studying up on a fixture that many others would flick over due to a lack of interest.

This past weekend on the Goodforthegame Forum (specifically started to allow punters to share information) the punters were spot on with their calls with the Vodacom Cup value tip of the EP Elephants +6 coming home smoking (they won the game) and the 3 handicap selections for Monday nights Varsity Cup all arriving with room to spare and interestingly enough tipped by different but similar minded individuals.

That is not to say that you are going to hammer the bookmakers in every match but in an industry where margins are tight that extra bit of homework may well be the difference between holidaying at home with the family come December or a trip to the coast and a well deserved break on the beach.

So while I will certainly be studying up on the Stormers v Hurricanes this weekend one eye will also be on clashes like the UCT v Tuks match next Monday night.

This article was written for the CitiGaming supplement of the Citizen Newspaper and was first published on the 11^th of March 2010.

Brent Graham is a blogger on www.goodforthegame.co.za and presents a sports betting radio show every Thursday night from 22h00 – 22h30 on 1485AM Radio Today or Channel 169 of the DSTV Audio Bouquet.

You can follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/brentgraham or get on his mailing list by dropping him a line at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it