Tomorrow the Boks take on Ireland in an attempt to hold onto an unexpected glimpse of recent form.

The media has been loud about the fact that the Irish are favourites, with Springbok coach Allister Coetzee even saying to SkySports:

“Ireland beat us here in 2014 and with an experienced coaching team and world class players, they are rightfully considered as the favourites and are one of few teams in the last five years that managed to beat the All Blacks”

Tsek.

But this is actually good news, because you were probably going to bet on the Boks anyway, right? And doing so can earn you quite a lot of cash.

Sometimes it’s lekker to be the underdog.

Let’s look at the stats:

The Springboks currently sit at number five on World Rugby’s official rankings, just one below Ireland. According to Sportingbet, the results odds are as follows:

So betting on a draw is most profitable, and maybe an easy way out of admitting that the Boks haven’t been at their best in recent years.

But rugby isn’t just about the result, is it? What about the moments of brilliance too often overshadowed by who won? Let’s take a look:

As always, a drop goal takes the cake. Odds sit at 51/1 on Sexton putting one over as the match’s first scoring play.

And if you think the green cloves have it in them to give it to us by 26-30 points, use the cash to drink away the blues. Odds sit at a casual 23/1:

Before you put money down, make an educated decision with a look at both teams’ line-ups:

South Africa: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Dillyn Leyds, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronje; 1 Tendai Mtawarira, 2 Malcolm Marx, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 4 Eben Etzebeth (c), 5 Lood de Jager, 6 Siya Kolisi, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 8 Francois Louw.

Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Wilko Louw, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Uzair Cassiem, 21 Rudy Paige, 22 Handre Pollard, 23 Francois Venter.

Ireland: Rob Kearney, Andrew Conway, Robbie Henshaw, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale, Johnny Sexton, Conor Murray; Cian Healy, Rory Best, Tadhg Furlong, Iain Henderson, Devin Toner, Peter O’Mahony, Sean O’Brien, CJ Stander.

Replacements: Rob Herring, Dave Kilcoyne, John Ryan, James Ryan, Rhys Ruddock, Kieran Marmion, Joey Carbery, Darren Sweetnam.

Catch it on Supersport tomorrow at 7:30PM.

[source:news24]