RWC 2019 Will Make You Rich; Bledisloe II Will Be A Humdinger

Get Your Bets In For Rugby World Cup 2019

Never in my lifetime has predicting the next owner of the William Webb Ellis been so difficult, and thank goodness for this uncertainty! To break it down to odds in betting circles, New Zealand are still outright favourites, but at 2.3. They are then followed by England (5.5), South Africa (5.5), Ireland (7.5), Wales (9.0) and Australia (13.0), guaranteeing any gambler to at least double their winnings with a bet. I only started chancing my arm at betting recently, and with such handsome odds, join me in going for what might be a rather rewarding payday come the end of October!

Springboks Knock Rugby World Off Its Tilt

What was very surprising is how relatively easy South Africa's first ever Rugby Championship trophy (and fourth southern hemisphere Tier One title) was. A 16-16 draw with New Zealand notwithstanding, the Boks blew Australia away 35-17, before crushing Argentina 46-13. Contextually, they should have beaten the All Blacks after a very strong showing in the first half at the Westpac Stadium, and snatching a draw with a last-minute try by Herschel Jantjies - while thrilling - felt slightly bittersweet as the green-and-gold missed out on back-to-back wins in New Zealand. They scored a combined 97 points over the three matches while conceding 46, an average scoreline of 32-15 per match, and were the only team to gain bonus point wins in the six matches, which was two in total. The shortened nature of the tournament might take the shine off a little, but the Boks winning a first major trophy in 10 long years (through which all connected to them have felt like 30) is an immense boost going into the World Cup. This is an incredible turnaround for a team that was suffering record or otherwise embarrassing defeats less than two years ago, and will be a very loud warning to contenders in Japan that, not only are the Boks on the rise, they are back!

Front Row Poser

On any other day, Steven Kitshoff, Malcolm Marx and either of Frans Malherbe and Vincent Koch compose the starting front row combination for the Boks. In the space of four weekends, Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira, Bongi Mbonambi and Trevor Nyakane are not only the form loosehead, hooker and tighthead in the squad, but should also start the opening match against the All Blacks in Yokohama on 21 September. Of course this is the widely held opinion of an excitable fan, but what a wonderful selection headache for Rassie Erasmus to have! Considering how the likes of Lizo Gqoboka and Schalk Brits are likely to get starts this weekend against Los Pumas in Pretoria, I doubt any other coach in the world has such luxuries to choose from. The squad selection for the world cup will be an intriguing one, as some very good players are gonna miss out on a ticket to Japan...

Bledisloe II Will Be A Humdinger

No one in their right mind picked the Wallabies to ram nearly 50 points down the All Blacks' throats, let alone win, but we witnessed history in Perth as New Zealand suffered its joint worst loss by points (21) and worst concession of points ever (47). Don't let anyone try fooling you by stating that Scott Barrett's red card contributed to this humiliating defeat, for Australia was all over the visitors up to that point, anyway. The All Blacks are in an iffy position right now, and with almost no time to solve their glaring combination issues in the lock, loose forward and centre positions, will have to answer pressing questions quickly in the Bledisloe Cup decider on Saturday at Eden Park. Like South Africa claiming prestigious silverware before them, Australia would love nothing better than sealing their first Bledisloe title since 2002, which is much-needed momentum heading into their world cup campaign. These particular All Blacks would not want to suffer the ignominy of being the first to relinquish the trophy in almost two decades, so one must expect Auckland to deliver a volcanic spectacle for the ages!

What Are Laws There For?

To all of you still disputing Scott Barrett's red card for a high, armless shot on Michael Hooper: what the hell are you complaining about? Referee Jerome Garces followed the letter of the law in making his decision, and it is quite irritating to listen to observers splitting hairs in trying to justify why the Kiwi lock was not sent off. Furthermore, those who continue moaning about teams losing players permanently after a red card is dished out must understand that this is a deterrent from serious foul play. I suggest you make a noise as incessantly as is possible in between controversial sendings off for World Rugby to hear you. As custodians of the law, it is up to them to choose between a team losing a player for the rest of the game, or suffering for 10 - 20 minutes without one before a replacement is sent on for a full complement of 15 players. Stop picking and choosing when to be angry about it all.

Predict The Currie Cup Winner At Your Own Peril

I called the Cheetahs win the Currie Cup after their ominous wins over the Bulls and Griquas. They have since gone on to burst this hype by crashing to woeful consecutive defeats against the Lions and Sharks, all be it gaining losing bonus points from both games. This turn of events has resulted in a logjam for playoff spots, with log leaders Griquas separated from fifth-placed Sharks by five points, while the Bulls are barely alive in sixth, a point behind. A lot will transpire over the remaining two rounds to determine who heads to the semifinals, hosts one and possible a home final, so its worth your time to tune in or head to the stadium for a penultimate twist in this high speed drama.