The 2019 Rugby World Cup kicks off this week and Before You Bet will have extensive coverage of all of the Australian games plus some of the key brackey play matchups later in the tournament! Today, however, we take a look at the competition as a whole and give our best futures and outright betting tips below.
2019 Rugby World Cup Tournament Betting Tips
Outrights
Pool A
The Irish are the team to watch in Pool A and they come into the tournament with solid form. While England embarrassed them at Twickenham in August, Ireland rebounded with back to back close wins over Wales. Their first game of the World Cup should be a great contest against Scotland considering that rivalry. The host nation is always a dangerous prospect and the Japanese start the tournament with an expected easy matchup against Russia. So they offer good value if they can manage to upset Scotland in the last Pool game. Ultimately, Ireland is the best bet to finish 1st but watch out for Japan in second place.
Ireland & Japan to qual.
$4.50
Pool B
The highlight of the Pool games will be the clash between the All Blacks and Springboks. We don't have to wait long either as they meet this Saturday night (Sep 21). After the Springboks won the 2019 Rugby Championship and secured a thrilling draw against the All Blacks in Wellington (16-16), they do offer value if they can produce an upset on Saturday. The All Blacks obviously deserve favourite for tournament winner and this Pool as they've won the last two Rugby World Cups. So the winner of that game will likely finish atop Pool B and it’s hard to go past the All Blacks. The other 3 countries - Italy, Namibia and Canada - will enjoy the World Cup experience but on the field, it'll get ugly against South Africa and New Zealand.
TIP: New Zealand WIN - No Value
Pool C
Having failed to reach the knockout stage as the host nation in 2015, England will be out for revenge in 2019. They've warmed up for the tournament with back to back thrashings of Italy (37-0) and Ireland (57-15) in England. But the question is whether they can translate that form away from England. Argentina is a real treat in this Pool group. They've been building a solid squad since finishing 3rd in 2015 and the Super Rugby success of the Jaguares has helped. Meanwhile, France should be fired up for their last Pool game against England. But they probably just lack the points scoring ability to compete with the top sides. So we're liking the value for England and Argentina to reach the next stage with good oods at BetEasy.
Argentina & England to qual
$2.40
Pool D
There's much to like about Wales after a clean sweep of the Six Nations in 2019 and their defence is the key to their success later in the tournament. They conceded just 65 points in those 5 games and kept England to just 6 points in one of their last warm up games. The Wallabies can turn it on as they showed in Perth this year with a 47-26 thrashing of the All Blacks. But the fact they were shutout 36-0 in the very next game, shows that consistency is their biggest flaw. So in a World Cup format, they need to apply themselves in every game. It's been a long 20 years since Australia lifted the Cup so if they can upset Wales in this Pool, they could be a darkhorse side. Fiji are a bit of a wildcard team and could do some damage if they perform well in their opening game against the Wallabies. Looking at the two top sides in this Pool, Australia has a massive advantage in the head to head against Wales with 13 wins in the last 14 meetings. So the winner of their matchup on September 29 should win this Pool and we like Australia's winning trend against Wales.
To Make The Final
Predicted Quarter Finals:
- England (Winner Pool C) vs Wales (Runner-up Pool D)
- New Zealand (Winner Pool B) vs Japan/Scotland (Runner-up Pool A)
- Australia (Winner Pool D) vs Argentina (Runner-up Pool C)
- Ireland (Winner Pool A) vs South Africa (Runner-up Pool B)
Looking at how the Quarterfinals shape up, Ireland faces a tough path to the final as they have to face the Runner-up of Pool B. If Argentina can finish 2nd in Pool C, they'll be confident of beating the Wallabies. England against Wales in the Quarters would be a great spectacle but both sides would have a tough time beating the All Blacks in the next round. So a New Zealand vs South Africa final is a good chance of occurring.
If the Quarterfinals go to plan, South Africa does have a tough likely matchup against Ireland. But considering the Springboks have won 18 of 26 meetings against the Irish, it's not as daunting. Also, there is a chance South Africa finish atop Pool B if they upset New Zealand and they would face an easy quarter-final against either Japan or Scotland. Even so, the Springboks carry great form into the World Cup after winning The Rugby Championship and should be favoured to reach the final against the All Blacks or England, we'd say.
Top Tournament Tryscorer
If there's one player to watch in this World Cup, it should be All Blacks winger Sevu Reece. The Fijian made an immediate impact in Super Rugby this season with 15 tries, along with 2 tries in 3 appearances for the All Blacks already. With the All Blacks expected to reach the final, there will be plenty of opportunities for Reece to find the try-line. Especially with easy matchups against the likes of Canada, Namibia and Italy in the Pool stages.
