South Africa World Cup Rugby betting preview

South Africa have been the big recent movers in betting on the Rugby World Cup in Japan.

And it’s not hard to see why. They recently secured the Rugby Championship title for the first time in a decade. Their run of matches included a tough draw with New Zealand away, an impressive win against the improving Wallabies and a thumping of Argentina away.

The Springboks also have a history of striking form at the right time for the pinnacle of rugby, having twice lifted the William Webb Ellis Cup.

ALSO READ:

Where South Africa will finish in the 2019 Rugby World Cup

WGL prediction: Top four. This a no-brainer. While they could be considered unlucky to have come up against New Zealand in the group stage, it also means they can’t then play the All Blacks again until a possible final between the teams. If they are good enough, the South Africans should have every chance.

Previous best World Cup result: Champions in 1995 and 2007.

South Africa’s remaining pre-World Cup fixtures

September 6: v Japan, Kumagaya Rugby Ground, Saitama

South Africa’s Rugby World Cup draw

Match 4: New Zealand v South Africa, Saturday, Sep 21, Pool B, International Stadium Yokohama
Match 15: South Africa v Namibia, Saturday, Sep 28, Pool B, City of Toyota Stadium
Match 23: South Africa v Italy, Friday, Oct 4, Pool B, Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa
Match 29: South Africa v Canada, Tuesday, Oct 8, Pool B, Kobe Misaki Stadium

South Africa’s most recent results

August 17: South Africa 24 d Argentina 18, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, South Africa
August 10: South Africa 46 d Argentina 13, Rugby Championship, Salta, Argentina
July 27: New Zealand 16 drew with South Africa 16, Rugby Championship, Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington, NZ
July 20: South Africa 35 d Australia 17, Rugby Championship, Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg, SA

South Africa’s record against Pool B rivals

New Zealand: Played 98: won 36, lost 58, drawn 4. Points for: 1564, Points against: 2027
Italy: Played 14: won 13, lost 1. Points for: 652, Points against: 171
Canada: Played 2: won 2, lost 0. Points for: 71, Points against: 18
Namibia: Played 2: won 2, lost 0, drawn. Points for: 192, Points against: 13

South Africa squad for 2019 Rugby World Cup

Coach: Rassie Erasmus

Forwards: Schalk Brits, Lood de Jager, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Steven Kitshoff, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi (captain), Francois Louw, Frans Malherbe, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, Tendai Mtawarira, Franco Mostert, Trevor Nyakane, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman, Duane Vermeulen.

Backs: Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Faf de Klerk, Warrick Gelant, Elton Jantjies, Herschel Jantjies, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Makazole Mapimpi, S’bu Nkosi, Willie le Roux, Handre Pollard, Cobus Reinach, Frans Steyn.

Leading try-scorer prediction for South Africa

Cheslin Kolbe: You can secure about $20 for the diminutive former Sevens star to be the leading try-scorer in that tournament and that is OK with us. Kolbe will never die wondering and is elusive and gets involved a lot. His cousin is Wayde van Niekerk, who won gold in the 400m at the 2016 Olympics, so you know there’s plenty of speed in the family!

South Africa betting predictions – Can the Boks bring up a hat-trick?

As mentioned, drawing alongside the All Blacks in Group B could actually work in their favour. And who is to say they won’t beat the Kiwis first-up and go on to win the group. If we take a line through the All Blacks, the Springboks are trending upwards. Since they were humiliated by the Blacks 57-0 in September 2017, their matches against them have been a 24-25 loss, a 36-34 win, a 32-30 loss and a 16-16 draw. That tells us there is very little between the teams lately, and on neutral soil South Africa could easily be celebrating a third World Cup triumph come the start of November.

Relevant news