Wallabies Next Game, Latest Odds and Analysis
Following last week’s extraordinary events in Melbourne, arch rivals Australia and New Zealand will be looking to serve up more drama at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday and betting sites are ready for the big kick-off.
After winning a penalty close to their own line in the 79th-minute of their midweek tussle with the All Blacks, the Aussies looked set to claim their third win of The Rugby Championship and put themselves in a strong position for top honours.
The Wallabies were leading 37-34 at the time and found themselves within sight of a major victory, but then came a stunning decision from Mathieu Raynal.
Big Decision Alters Course Of All Blacks Clash
The French referee adjudged that Australian fly-half Bernard Foley had taken too long over his kick to touch – there was certainly an element of running down the clock on the part of the New South Wales native – and an attacking scrum was awarded to New Zealand instead.
This decision on its own was already guaranteed to be a major talking point and even more so when Jordie Barrett pounced for a game-clinching try.
Suffice to say, Raynal’s officiating during this dramatic finale didn’t go down too well in Australia.
Whatever your view on the decision itself, it has certainly altered the outlook of the Rugby Championship 2022 betting odds.
Rather than finding themselves second in the standings, the Wallabies are now third – just a single point clear of basement side Argentina.
New Zealand Expected To Achieve Repeat Result In Auckland
Conversely, the All Blacks are now in pole position ahead of South Africa on score difference and will be looking to complete the job on home soil this weekend.
The 2022 edition of the Championship has been unpredictable to date, but there is a clear favourite in advance of this final round clash in the eyes of online rugby betting sites.
As it stands, New Zealand are an astonishing 1.1 to come away with a third win on the bounce which may well help them to keep their hands on the Championship crown for another year at least.
By contrast, bookmakers are offering odds of 11.0 on an Australian victory, while Unibet are placing a value of 36.0 on the game ending in a draw.
Last Thursday’s game was the closest to date in this year’s tournament – in terms of the winning margin – and saw Australia becoming just the second team to pick up a losing bonus point from the eight games played to date.
The All Blacks did likewise in their third round tussle against Argentina in Christchurch, where the Pumas claimed the spoils on a final scoreline of 25-18.
A New Zealand triumph by between 1-5 points is rated at 7.5 by Ladbrokes, but the prospect of Ian Foster’s charges succeeding by a wider margin is viewed as the most likely outcome.
This is understandable given the All Blacks may need a comprehensive victory to claim the Championship title at the expense of South Africa.
Wider Margin Of Victory Could Be On The Cards
The Springboks have accrued two try bonuses thus far in the tournament and are more than capable of doing so again in Durban on Saturday.
An All Blacks win by between 11-15 points is rated at 7.5 with bet365 and the same odds are on offer for a 16-20 points success for the defending champions.
Meanwhile, there are prices of 11.0 on Australia triumphing by 1-5 points and 17.0 on their winning margin being somewhere in the region of 6-10 points.
Therefore, Australian betting sites believe the Wallabies are capable of coming out on top in a tight-run affair, but could come unstuck if New Zealand build up a head of steam.
There are shorter odds on Australia leading by 1-5 points at the midway stage in the action, with 7.0 on offer for those interested in alternative offers. New Zealand are 5.5 to have a half-time lead of similar proportions and 5.0 to be 6-10 points in the ascendancy.
Lots Of Encouragement In Wallabies Display Last Week
Despite how the game ended for them, the Wallabies can take plenty of heart from their performance in Melbourne – and a win at Eden Park would have a huge impact on this 2023 Rugby World Cup betting odds.
There was never going to be a lack of motivation for the fixture within their camp, especially with a Kiwi (Dave Rennie) in charge of the team.
Ordinarily, four converted tries and three penalties would be enough to win most test matches.
Squeezed in between five-pointers from back-rows Rob Valentini and Pete Samu, full-back Andrew Kelleway dotted down twice in the space of six minutes to put the Wallabies in a winning position.
14 points from the boot of Foley – and three more courtesy of replacement scrum-half Nic White – brought their tally up to 37, but it wasn’t quite enough for them in the end.
One aspect that Rennie and his coaches might be looking at coming into this weekend’s second Bledisloe Cup affair is Australian discipline.
Over the course of 80 minutes against the All Blacks, the hosts lost Tom Wright, Darcy Swain and Jake Gordon to yellow cards. The sin-binnings of Wright and Swain in quick succession left them with 13 players either side of the interval.
While they only conceded a single try in this juncture, the All Blacks conjured a brace of touchdowns when Gordon was temporarily dismissed.
New Zealand amassed 21 of their 39 points when playing with a numerical advantage and Australia can’t afford to give them any incentive in Auckland.
Leota Will Be Sidelined For Final Round
There is unlikely to be wholesale changes to the Wallabies team for their quick reunion with New Zealand, but Rob Leota has definitely been ruled out with a ruptured achilles.
Darcy Swain replaced him after he was withdrawn 34 minutes into last Thursday’s game, with Jed Holloway switching to the back-row.
Although this seems the most practical move for Rennie to take in Leota’s absence, Fraser McReight may also come under consideration.
The team Rennie has selected for their round six clash with the All Blacks, will need to produce a serious shift in order to come away with the spoils on offer.