2018 Six Nations Betting Odds Comparison: Can Anyone Stop England?

01/02/2018 11:35

with the 2018 six nations championships just around the corner, we are previewing the first three games, along with predictions about who we think will win the tournament outright. with four or even five countries (sorry italy) all fancying their chances of lifting the trophy, who will come out on top in this year’s rugby union showpiece event?

wales and scotland get the championship up and running with a tasty-looking fixture in the principality stadium in cardiff. later in the day, ireland travel to saint-denis to play france. england get their campaign underway against italy in rome the following day.

wales v scotland: scots to prevail in cardiff

by their high standards, wales had a pretty forgettable campaign last year, as the four-time six nations champions finished the tournament in a disappointing fifth place. however, after sitting out last year, warren gatland takes charge of the dragons again this time around.

scotland have improved year after year, and they will be looking for a fast start to this year’s six nations in cardiff. the scots impressed on their way to a fourth place finish last term, but how will they fare under the coaching of gregor townsend? the welsh head into this opener as the 8/11 favourites with bet365, while the scots are available at 7/5 (betfair).

despite a poor campaign last year and plenty of negatively surrounding wales going into this tournament, gatland’s men are very hard to play against in the principality stadium. the wales squad is not getting any younger, but they do have all the experience in the world.

scotland had a very impressive 2017, and they could be this year’s dark horses. the scots have never won the six nations, but a win in cardiff will set them up nicely to have a real crack this year. this team may be inexperienced, but we fancy scotland’s youthfulness to be too smart for the hosts in this one. back the scots to prevail at 7/5 in the welsh capital.

france v ireland: irish too strong on french soil

france showed signs of their former selves last year, finishing third behind england and ireland. after narrowly losing to england, the french went on to beat scotland, italy and wales. jacques brunel’s troops are priced at 8/5 with betfair to kick off this campaign with a win on home soil.

ireland pushed england all the way last year, finishing runners-up to eddie jones’ men. joe schmidt is in charge again, as the irish look to build on a strong 2017 and lift their first six nations crown since 2015. ireland make the trip to the stade de france as the 8/13 favourites at ladbrokes.

the irish will be hoping to battle england to the trophy this year, so kicking off their campaign with a victory is a must. france look as unpredictable as ever, and we can see them losing this one to the irish. last term, ireland beat france 19-9 in dublin, winning both halves in the process. the visitors to be winning at half time and full time this year is priced at evens with bet365.

italy v england: english to storm to the points in rome

this will be the battle between the weakest and the strongest sides in rome, as england start their campaign in the stadio olimpico against italy. as expected, the english are the overwhelming favourites to prevail, with betfred offering just 1/12 for an away victory. meanwhile, the italians, still managed by conor o’shea, are the 8/1 underdogs with coral to cause a big upset on home turf.

jones, who recently signed a new two-year contract extension at twickenham, will be looking for his side to come out of the blocks fast in rome. italy’s questionable tactics frustrated england in the first half of their meeting last year, which the english will be looking to avoid this time around.

the holders should be far too strong for italy, who are destined to finish bottom once again this year. it will surely be a case of how many england win by in rome, so have a punt on the visitors to come out on top with a -17 point handicap margin at the tempting odds of 10/11.

outright winner: can anyone stop the english?

in terms of the outright winner, the six nations title is usually a battle between the likes of england, ireland, france and wales. however, throw scotland into the mix and we could have one of the most open and competitive tournaments for quite some time. naturally, the english, who have won the last two versions, are the bookies’ favourites, with betfair offering evens for jones’ boys to retain their crown.

next up is ireland, who are available at the tempting price of 7/4 with coral. the irish are the only side to have beaten england in the last two six nations championships, finishing in the top two in three of the last four years. schmidt’s men will more than likely be england’s greatest challengers again.

as for the outsiders, scotland are priced at 11/1 with ladbrokes, wales 16/1 (coral) and france are a big price of 20/1 at betfred. the best odds you can get on italy are 1000/1 with betvictor. wales seem off the pace, while you never quite know which france will turn up. therefore, the scots could be the dark horses.

however, it’s hard to look past england, who seem to get better and better under the expert management of jones. the english are the team to beat in this year’s six nations, and they are certainly worth a punt at betting odds of evens.

triple crown winner: england the favourites

with such a competitive field, there’s a strong possibility we may not see a triple crown winner this year. in last season’s campaign, england were denied the triple crown and the grand slam in the final game of the tournament against ireland in dublin.

this time around, england host ireland at twickenham in the final match, but trips to italy, scotland and france await before then. the english are favourites to seal the triple crown at 13/8 with betfred, and they are capable of doing so. however, some may think the smart money could be on no triple crown at 9/5 with betfair.

grand slam winner: a repeat of 2016?

as we touched on, england were denied a second consecutive grand slam in their final game of the six nations last year. in 2016, jones’ men went through the card, scoring 132 and conceding just 70 along the way.

like the triple crown, if any nation is capable of winning the grand slam, it’s england – but it will be an extremely hard task for the current holders to see off the in-form irish and scots, as well as winning away in france. england are priced at 5/2 (betfair) to win the grand slam, with no winner available at evens with coral. nevertheless, if you are feeling brave, back england to be unstoppable again at decent odds of 5/2.


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