Wales vs Scotland
Wales play host to Scotland at the Principality Stadium in these teams opening round match of the 2024 Six Nations. The home side have been decimated with retirements and injuries since the World Cup and will be fielding a severely under strength team. Scotland have never won the Six Nations and will feel this is their best opportunity with several of the other teams going through a rebuilding phase. They can beat anyone on their day especially with Finn Russell pulling the strings from the pivot position. Wales have given the all-important flyhalf position to young Sam Costelow which is a risk considering he has been out of action for most of the season.
TIP: Scotland will be without two of their most dangerous backline players in winger Darcy Graham and fullback Blair Kinghorn. They do however have very able replacements in Kyle Rowe and Kyle Steyn although the former has only worn the 15 jersey on a few occasions. Wales will need Costelow to be intelligent with his kicking game as the visitors can be deadly on the counter attack. The bookies have Scotland as favorites and I’m also tipping them for the win. The best odds on this bet are as follows: Betway 1.70 Gbets 1.71 and Hollywoodbets 1.71
HEAD-TO-HEAD STATS
Wales vs Scotland
- Wales have won five of the last seven matches between the sides.
- The home side have only won two of the last five matches.
Latest results for both teams
Wales beat Barbarians 49-26 in their last match while Scotland lost 36-12 to Ireland in their last match.
PREDICTION
Wales despite missing so many of their stars from the World Cup can still put out a team that will not be easy to beat. The visitors love keeping ball in hand and will be looking to their excellent centre pairing of Huw Jones and Sione Tuipulotu to get them over the advantage line. The match will be decided in the forwards and Scotland seem to have the edge especially at scrum time. The home side will be counting on their experienced players like George North and Josh Adams to produce a special display to see them home. I am predicting a Scotland win by 10 points.
Probable Starting XVs
Wales
15 Cameron Winnett, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Rio Dyer, 10 Sam Costelow, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 James Botham, 5 Adam Beard, 4 Dafydd Jenkins (c), 3 Leon Brown, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Corey Domachowski
Scotland
15 Kyle Rowe, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell (c), 9 Ben White, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Jamie Ritchie, 6 Luke Crosbie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Odds for this bet
The best odds on the Scotland victory are as follows:
Betway 1.70
Gbets 1.71
Hollywoodbets 1.71
Odds comparison on the Scotland handicap:
The complete odds on the Scotland handicap:
Betway 1.90 (-2.5)
Gbets 1.87 (-2.5)
Hollywoodbets 1.89 (-2.5)
Predictions and Odds in details
There are decent odds on the Scotland outright win therefore we suggest backing the away team on the handicap for better odds. The best odds on this bet are as follows: Betway 1.90 (-2.5), Gbets 1.87 (-2.5) and Hollywoodbets 1.89 (-2.5)
Other tips for the weekend (Predicted winners are in BOLD text)
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La Rochelle vs Montpellier
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Toulon vs Bordeaux
Sports crazy fan that follows all major sport but the game with the oval ball is my real passion. Was an age level rugby coach and a huge supporter of the Springboks and diehard Liverpool man. I’m an experienced punter and sports writer whose predictions/tips are sure to stir up the emotions. I love the occasional wager on the underdog.