RaboDirect Pro12 Preview

The RaboDirect Pro12 is not a fancy hoover but rather the name of an annual Rugby Union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. It gets underway this Friday evening (31st) and we have the best of the bets available.

The market is headed by Leinster at 6/4 (SkyBet) who coasted to victory by ten points last season in the league before coming unstuck to the Ospreys in the final. It was the third straight year that Leinster had lost out in the grand final. The club will once again be in the mix this year as they have retained the bulk of their squad. The Kearney Brothers, Brian O’Driscoll and Jonathon Sexton are the heartbeat of a side that have won the last two Heineken Cups. The league looks once more to belong to them as no side has the depth of talent that Leinster do. I would prefer to take them at 6/5 (BetVictor) to win the regular season rather than the 6/4 on them to win the grand final. The class side will win out over the season while the nature of play-offs mean that a shock is always possible in a one-off game.

At 4/1 (ladbrokes/william hill) bookmakers think the Ospreys will provide the closest challenge to Leinster. The Grand Final winners last year got it right on the big game however I am not convinced they have the depth to match Leinster over a season. The loss of Tommy Bowe is a big one (he has gone to Ulster) and it may be hard for them to perform so well without such an influential player. Coach Steve Tandy has a touch of the Roberto Di Matteo about him as he guided his side to a big trophy last season but will take charge for his first full season. Although expected to still be in the mix I think the Welsh side might take a small step backwards from last season and finish around third or fourth.

Munster are 9/2 (general) third favourites and could be much better this season under new coach Rob Penney. The strength of the club lies in their forward line where players like Paul O’Connell, Donnacha Ryan and Donncha O’Callaghan feature. If the back line can perform a little better than last season then they should improve. Munster is a ground nobody likes to visit with their big crowds and strong vocal support. I expect Munster to be dangerous again this season.

The value in the betting is probably Ulster at 17/2 (BetVictor). The signing of Tommy Bowe (from Ospreys) will be massive for the club. If the European finalists can improve on their away form they could be a much better proposition this year and could once more be bound for another final with Leinster (though this time the Grand Final). You can either take them each-way at 17/2, back them at 7/2 to make the Grand Final (both BetVictor) or even better than that is the Evens (paddy Power/william hill) on the side to make the play-offs.

These four sides are expected to be head and shoulders above the rest with the next four in the betting hoping to take advantage of any slips to grab a place in the play-offs. The head of the pack will likely be Cardiff Blues who are 5/2 (william hill) to make the play-offs which is also the price of Llanelli Scarlets (Skybet), Edinburgh are 13/5 (paddy Power) and Glasgow 100/30 (Skybet).

At the other end of the table Treviso, Connacht, Gwent Dragons and Zebre are expected to struggle.

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30/08/2012     © Frixo 2024