Coming in from the Side

Technically we're only halfway through the back-to-back series of games between Ulster and Northampton that were expected to decide Pool 4 of the Heineken Cup, but already the bookies have decided that the matter is done and dusted. Of the firms still betting on the outright winner of the pool, 1/100 is the best price available about an Ulster win - an incredible number when we consider that half the games still have to be played, and that Ulster weren't even the favourites to top the pool before a ball was kicked. (Though we will shamelessly point out here that they were tipped up by this column here on Betting.com!) First of all, from an antepost betting point of view - Castres at 25/1 is a crazy price. Ulster still have to travel to the French club, both teams still have two home games to come, and all that's needed for Castres to deny Ulster is for them to win out with maximum points and for the northerners to fail to collect a bonus point in either of their home games. ...

No fixture embodies the group stages of the Heineken Cup quite as much as Munster's home games against leading premiership sides. From the famous miracle match against Gloucester in 2003 to Leicester's famous victory at Thomond Park in 2007 that broke Munster's unbeaten run at the venue, these ties are always a special occasion and well worthy of attention. This evening at 6pm we have another classic on the agenda, with Saracens travelling to the Limerick venue on the back of an excellent home win over Gloucester at the weekend. Munster have already dropped points away to Racing Metro, meaning that they can ill afford to lose this one, while even allowing Saracens to stay within seven could be a fatal blow to their hopes of topping the pool. The bookies clearly expect Saracens to get that losing bonus point at the very least. Most firms are betting Saracens plus three or plus four on their handicap betting market, with Bet365 really standing out and offering Munster minus two ...

As this article from today's Guardian suggests, for a lot of supporters and players alike, this weekend's international tests are a bridge too far. Where once upon a time, games against Southern Hemisphere teams were special occasions that were to be treasured, they have now become all too common. For example, this Saturday's game between England and New Zealand will be the twelfth match between the two countries in the space of just over ten years. In the same time span, there have been eleven international matches between England and Scotland. Scotland might not be the All Blacks, but there is still something amiss when we see a statistic like that. The England vs Scotland games are heartfelt battles with historical resonance. England vs New Zealand test matches are simply revenue generators in this day and age. But of course, as is always the case, our raison d'etre here on Betting.com is to isolate betting value - and what is our take on this Twickenham test with that ...

Rugby supporters are faced with some tough decisions this weekend - not alone do we have the usual conundrum of putting together a betting portfolio, but there is also the issue of identifying which game to watch. Ireland vs Argentina, Italy vs Australia and England vs South Africa all kick off in the early afternoon, while there is also an overlap with the clash of Scotland and Tonga. Later, France meet Samoa and Wales play New Zealand, with just fifteen minutes in between the kick off times there. In terms of relevance, the battle between Ireland and Argentina could be the most significant. The loser here will almost certainly drop out of the top eight in the World Rankings, and since the draw for the Pool Stages of the next World Cup is being made next month, that would lead to a guaranteed tough pool with two other strong nations. Having said that, when we consider that the third tier will also contain Italy and Samoa, it might not be as significant as all that. Home advantage is massive ...

Perhaps the most interesting of today's November Internationals, both from a viewing and a betting perspective, is the clash between South Africa and Scotland at Murrayfield. Last night's shock win for Samoa over Wales has deepened the ongoing crisis in Welsh rugby and more than a few potential Welsh Lions must surely be starting to wonder if their seat on the plane to Australia next year is coming under threat. Certainly we can say that the English contenders for Lions places will relish the chance to put up a marker against a depleted Australia team today, while the Irish contenders will largely take a back seat and wait for next weekend's critical tie with Argentina. However for the Scots, this fixture will define their November. The Springboks are very highly rated and come here on the back of a win over Ireland at the Aviva Stadium, but some of the rugby played in that test was downright pedestrian. Scotland, for all their inability to contain New Zealand, hit the All Blacks ...

These next few weeks will be hugely testing for club sides all across the northern hemisphere, with international fixtures pulling players away and forcing managers to look deeper into their panel to come up with results. Consequently, betting on these games is both fraught with danger and full of opportunity. The bookies will find it very tough to predict how some teams will perform with reserve players in action and while form can never be completely dismissed, it still must be factored into our thoughts. The perfect example of such a game is the Rabodirect Pro 12 fixture between Ulster and Edinburgh, taking place tomorrow night at Ravenhill. On form, there is only one winner here. Ulster continue to set the pace atop the RaboDirect PRO12 table and they've recorded an incredible eight wins from eight games in all competitions this season. Meanwhile Edinburgh have slipped to six successive reversals in all competitions since beating Zebre 41-10 at Murrayfield on 14 September and coach ...

Now that two rounds of action have passed in Europe's premier club competition, the bookmaking community are no longer thinking of the Heineken Cup and have instead moved onto thinking about the Autumn internationals. Punters are no doubt doing the same, but as is often the case in the betting world, value is a lot easier to find in markets that aren't at the forefront of everyone's thoughts. Here's the Betting.com take on the antepost betting currently on offer in the six pools and a run down on how things stand after two rounds of action. Pool 1 Our suggested antepost bet on Edinburgh clearly didn't work out since the Scots were nothing short of appalling in their two games so far. Saracens clearly look like the best team in the group and if they can pick up at least five points from their two games against Munster in December, they will be in a great position. The odds look correct here. Pool 2 Nobody's lost a game at home and nobody's lost to Treviso yet ...

France has been an unhappy hunting ground for Leicester in the Heineken Cup in recent years and last weekend's reverse in Toulouse was their sixth successive defeat in the competition on French soil. Now the Tigers are under huge pressure to deliver a home win this weekend against the Ospreys, with a bonus point likely to be required as well, since they came away from the Stade Toulousain empty handed. However while last weekend's Pool 2 results weren't too surprising ,bearing in mind the betting odds that were on offer before the start of the game, Leicester's problems at the half back position make the Ospreys a very attractive betting proposition this weekend. Toby Flood has come under a lot of pressure from teenage sensation George Ford over the course of the last twelve months and events in France certainly won't have helped the England international. While Ford was sitting on the bench twiddling his thumbs, Toulouse were unveiling a future star to the world in ...

Pool One Betting: Saracens 13/8, Munster 7/4, Racing Metro 13/2, Edinburgh 12/1 From an outright betting point of view, it's difficult to make a case for any of these four sides. Munster are in transition, Saracens lack flair, Racing Metro don't have the same quality as some of the other French Sides and Edinburgh don't really have the depth to make a sustained challenge domestically and in the European game. However the Scottish side, while hugely inconsistent, did get to grips with the European game last year and they have the ability to raise their game on an occasional basis. With so many question marks over every team, Stan James' price of 12/1 is a genuine standout and we can see why Ladbrokes would prefer to lay the favourites at shorter prices and offer the Scots at 6/1. Take the 12/1 while it lasts. Pool Two Betting: Toulouse 10/11, Leicester 9/4, Ospreys 11/2, Treviso 325/1 Toulouse have an impeccable pedigree in this competition and they have to be respected, ...

Perhaps it's only a temporary reprieve, but for the moment, talk of a possible breakaway from the Heineken Cup by French and English clubs is on the back burner. The first round of competition is set to get underway this Friday evening in front of over 30,000 supporters in Swansea and Belfast, and with no World Cup on the horizon, this promises to be an excellent year of competition where several sides should make a real push for European glory. On the face of it, the English and French sides have little to complain about. The top ten sides in the antepost betting list include four English clubs, four French clubs and only two Pro 12 sides - Leinster and Munster. The Ospreys are perhaps a little unfortunate to be left out of that company based on personnel alone, however a fiercely tough draw alongside Leicester and Toulouse in Pool 2 has left them with an uphill battle just to reach the knockout stages. Indeed an argument has been put forward that regardless of who advances from a ...