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England v Wales Betting Preview

England v Wales Betting Preview

England 30 - 17 Wales

England got their Six Nations campaign off to a perfect start wth a 30-17 victory over Wales at Twickenham.

The score to some degree flatters the England performance, but it is true to say that they were the better team overall, but needed the Welsh side to be reduced to 14 men before they really piled on the points. They had led 20-3 at one stage, but a typical Welsh comeback, highlighted by a brilliant solo try by center, James Hook, got them back to within three points. However, England finished very strongly and scored a third try courtesy of Jamie Haskell(his second of the match) which gave them the victory.

Form

England are still smarting having suffered a rare Twickenham defeat at the hands of Wales two years ago. Before that Welsh fans will have to go back until 1988 for when they last won at ‘Twickers’. The signs therefore are all good for Martin Johnson and his team, who had decided to include British Lion, Ricky Flutey, until a training injury ruled him out for this game, instead they will play Toby Flood alongside Matthew Tait in the centre, with Mark Cueto, Ugo Monye and Delon Armitage forming that back three. Johnny Wilkinson retains the number 10 jersey and Danny Care will be at scrum half.

Most plaudits believe that this match will be won or lost in the front row, where clearly Wales have a decided advantage. Their front three all represented the Lions in the Second Test in South Africa and are a formidable unit.

England starting XV is as follows

15, Delon Armitage, 14, Mark Cueto, 13, Matthew Tait, 12, Toby Flood, 11, Ugo Monye, 10, Johnny Wilkinson, 9, Danny Care, 8, Nick Easter, 7, Lewis Moody, 6, Jamie Haskell, 5, Steve Borthwick (Capt), 4, Simon Shaw, 3, David Wilson, 2, Dylan Hartley, 1, Tim Payne.

Wales Team

15. Lee Byrne; 14. Tom James, 13. James Hook, 12. Jamie Roberts, 11. Shane Williams; 10. Stephen Jones, 9. Gareth Cooper; 8. Ryan Jones (Capt), 7. Martyn Williams, 6. Andy Powell, 5. Alun-Wyn Jones, 4. Luke Charteris, 3. Adam Jones, 2. Gareth Williams, 1. Gethin Jenkins.

England will start the match as 4/6 odds on favourites to win, with the Welsh not far behind at 11/8. The odds as usual are not particularly attractive so punters are advised to take a look at the Winning Margin market, where much better value can be achieved. For instance an England win by 1-5 points can be backed at 9/2, while a Welsh win, by the same margin is 11/2.

We think that home advantage will play a big part in who wins the Six Nations this year and believe that will be the reason why England win this match. It will be a close affair and the English defence will have to be on their game and prepared to defend for long periods if they are to claim the points.

Our prediction would be an England win by between 1-5 points. Click on any of the Bookmaker links to open an account and take advantage of a FREE BET on this match.