The South African teams will aim to finish the second block of United Rugby Championship matches on a high this weekend before the competition pauses for the November internationals, writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.
The Bulls, Stormers and Sharks will look to remain in the top five, while the Lions will be desperate to get back on track. The men from Johannesburg will be the first local team in action when they face off with the Warriors in Glasgow on Friday night.
Saturday will see the Stormers square off against Ulster in Cape Town, the Bulls play host to the Scarlets in Pretoria, and the Sharks meet Munster in Limerick.
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Connacht vs Leinster
Friday, 30 October – 21:45
Connacht enter this encounter on the back of successive wins. However, those came over a weakened Saracens side (45-36) in the Investec Champions Cup and perennial URC wooden spoonists Zebre (48-27).
They’ve lost the last 13 games against Leinster and their charitable defence will extend that streak to 14. The two-time defending champions from Dublin are building serious momentum and will claim victory.
Prediction: Leinster by 10.
Suggested Bet: Leinster -3.5 at 1.86.
Glasgow Warriors vs Lions
Friday, 30 October – 21:45
A season that started so promisingly with back-to-back wins at home has quickly gone off the rails for the Lions.
They tragically lost lock Hyron Andrews on the eve of their first-ever Investec Champions Cup game and have lost three games in a row in all competitions. The sting has been taken out of their tail on attack, and their defence has eroded.
It’s been a nightmare of a tour and, unfortunately for Cash van Rooyen and his charges, they’re in for another long night. The Warriors fought back from 17-0 down to beat Benetton 24-20 last weekend and are second on the log.
Down in 11th place, the Lions have never won in Glasgow, and with everything going on both on and off the field, that’s not going to change on Friday night.
Prediction: Glasgow Warriors by 16.
Suggested Bet: Glasgow Warriors -14.5 at 1.93.
Stormers vs Ulster
Saturday, 31 October – 14:45
Both the Stormers and the Bulls made things much harder for themselves than it should’ve been last weekend.
One can’t blame John Dobson for selecting the game against the lowly Scarlets to build squad depth by giving several youngsters a starting opportunity, and as hard as it was to watch at times and as tense as it was at 40-all, the end result was a 52-40 bonus point win.
Robbed of their set pieces after losing not one, not two, but three hookers to injury, and with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s struggles continuing and the midfield being a revolving door, the clash went from one that should’ve been a cakewalk to one the Capetonians had to scrape out of the fire.
After leaking six tries and missing a whopping 42 tackles, the big focus for them this week will be on defence. Expect them to redeem themselves in this department. Having to rest Feinberg-Mngomezulu should be a blessing in disguise as it’ll give last weekend’s match-winner Yaqeen Ahmed a chance to start in the No. 10 jersey.
The lineouts will probably be a challenge, but the fourth-placed Stormers should be too strong for the visitors in all other areas and bank a solid win.
Prediction: Stormers by 12.
Suggested Bet: Stormers -11.5 at 1.92.
Bulls vs Scarlets
Saturday, 31 October – 17:00
Like the Stormers, the Bulls will be out to deliver a performance they can be proud of on Saturday.
Johan Ackermann’s men just couldn’t find their clinical edge against Ulster last weekend. Despite this, they still had a commanding 21-0 lead but regressed with every second and ultimately came away with a bittersweet 34-26 win.
Even though they lost, struggling Ulster would’ve gained confidence from their performance in Cape Town. Still, they’re a team the third-placed Bulls should easily beat.
The Herd will want to show more than just the power game that got them through last weekend’s game and tighten up in defence, and they should tick those boxes en route to a convincing victory.
Prediction: Bulls by 22.
Suggested Bet: Bulls -20.5 at 1.82.
Benetton vs Edinburgh
Saturday, 31 October – 17:00
Benetton finally burst to life last weekend and threatened to pull off a massive upset over the Glasgow Warriors after racing into a 17-point lead. It was not to be, though, as they succumbed 24-20 to remain winless, but at least they have something they can build on.
Edinburgh consolidated their place at the top of the table and remained the only team in the competition with a 100% win rate by lashing the Lions 31-10 last weekend. They won’t underestimate their hosts, given the scare they gave Glasgow, and will leave Treviso with their perfect record intact.
Prediction: Edinburgh by 10.
Suggested Bet: Edinburgh -0.5 at 1.84.
Munster vs Sharks
Saturday, 31 October – 19:30
The Sharks were the most impressive of the South African sides last weekend.
Sticking the landing after a rollercoaster of a game in Cardiff in which they were up 17-7 at halftime, relinquished the lead in the third quarter and hit back to triumph 36-21, they continued their growth under JP Pietersen.
The former Springbok wing has done an excellent job as head coach of the Durban club. Mainly, he’s transformed them from a group of individuals into a team. They have a singular heartbeat and a shared spirit. They’re in it together and fully focused on the task at hand.
Previous Sharks sides haven’t troubled Munster in Limerick. The 2021 vintage lost the first meeting between the teams 42-17, while the 2023 collective went down 34-21.
However, considering the current cohesion and fight of the Durbanites, which have powered them to wins in France and Wales, who’s to say they can’t make it an unbeaten tour with a win in Ireland this weekend?
Munster, who are coming off a 24-18 away loss to Leinster, are four places below the Sharks in ninth position and have just one win to their credit – a 26-22 triumph over the Bulls.
All things considered, it’s well worth backing the Sharks to pull off another win abroad.
Prediction: Sharks by 1.
Suggested Bet: Sharks at 3.05.
Dragons vs Zebre
Saturday, 31 October – 19:30
This game will struggle to pull an audience as it’s between two of the weaker teams in the league.
Interestingly, they’re tied at 5-5 in their last 10 meetings. However, the Dragons have won the last two games and haven’t lost to the Italian minnows at home since 2019.
Couple that with the fact that the Dragons have claimed a win and managed a draw while Zebre are winless this campaign, and the Welsh side should prevail with room to spare.
Prediction: Dragons by 11.
Suggested Bet: Dragons -10.5 at 1.92.
Ospreys vs Cardiff
Saturday, 31 October – 21:45
The two top-ranked Welsh clubs collide to close out the second block of tournament action.
Both are 2-2 after four rounds, but the Ospreys are three spots above their rivals in seventh place as they’ve bagged two extra bonus points.
Momentum is well and truly on the Ospreys’ side as their 31-14 win over the Dragons last weekend was their third in a row in all competitions, whereas Cardiff have lost three on the trot.
Throw in home ground advantage and the Ospreys should get over the line.
Prediction: Ospreys by 3.
Suggested Bet: Ospreys 2.5 at 1.81.
Note: Odds subject to change.
Quintin van Jaarsveld is a former MDDA-Sanlam SA Local Sports Journalist of the Year and a former three-time Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal Sports Journalist of the Year. Formerly the sports editor and Outstanding Journalist of the Year award winner at The Fever Media Group, deputy editor at eHowzit, editor at SARugby.com and senior staff writer at Rugby365.com, he boasts over 20 years of experience.
