Ireland Rugby vs Wales Rugby Preview
After a brief pause, the Six Nations returns this week, and we have an exciting fixture to look forward to. Ireland host Wales this Saturday, February 24, at 2:15 pm. The Irish are the team to beat in the competition, having comfortably dispatched the Italians in the last round. Wales has underperformed in the tournament so far, and they are currently battling with the Italians over the wooden spoon award.
The Aviva Stadium is an ideal venue for Irish Rugby to push one step closer to defending their title. Nobody has retained the Six Nations since England in 2016-17, but you would have to go back to the late 90s for a successive Grand Slam. Ireland intends to win every match and capitalise on this golden age of international rugby. Wales has declined the past couple of years, but a win this Saturday would be a much-needed consolation.
Ireland Rugby vs Wales Rugby Head-To-Head and Key Stats
Unsurprisingly, there is a deep history between these two nations. The first rugby union match between these countries was in 1882. Since then, there have been 134 matches, with the majority going to Wales. However, the tide has been turning over the past few years, and Ireland is the more dominant force in this matchup. In the last ten matches, Irish Rugby has been the champion on seven occasions. The three Welsh wins have all been in Cardiff, which bodes well for the boys in green.
The most recent match between the sides took place in the Six Nations last year. They faced off in the Millennium Stadium on February 4, 2023, in front of nearly 75,000 expectant fans. It was the opening game of the tournament, and the Irish side began the competition with a bang. With less than two minutes played, Ireland bulldozed their way ahead. One of the best Irish rugby players of all time, Johnny Sexton, pulled the ball quickly out of the ruck, and Caelan Doris punished the home side. Five minutes later, James Ryan doubles the Irish advantage. The third try came as Wales were finding their footing in the game. Lowe, who ran the entire field, caught a loose, uncontested pass to score Ireland’s third.
The second half started with a better showing from the men in red. They work the ball well from the line out, and a series of quick passes gives Liam Williams the chance to score. That was the only Welsh try of the game, but the Irish had one more up their sleeve. A high tackle by Williams meant Wales was a man down for most of the last 15 minutes. Ireland took full advantage, and van der Flier found a gap in the defence to score the fourth try right under the goalposts. It was a poor performance from the Welsh, but the Irish looked very sharp.
Ireland has looked immense in this tournament, especially after demolishing the French favourites in week one. A red card to Paul Willemse did not help France, but they had their best spell when down to 14. A yellow card for O’Mahony opened the door, yet Ireland looked dominant throughout. They outworked Les Blues and deserved the 17-38 win on enemy turf. When they faced Italy in round two, Irish confidence was sky-high. They welcomed the Italians to Dublin but did not allow the visitors to get a single point on the board. That was Ireland’s first clean sheet in the Six Nations era and Italy’s first game, where they failed to score a single point against the Irish.
Wales are yet to get started this campaign, having failed to win a single game so far. There are some positives for the men in red following a scintillating first game against Scotland. With 47 minutes played, the score was 0-27 in favour of Scotland. In front of their home crowd, Wales tried to mount one of the best comebacks we have seen in the Six Nations. With the away side down to 14 men, Wales scored four tries to get within one point, but they could not clinch a draw or steal it at the death.
Betting on the Six Nations has been incredibly exciting this year. There have been several impressive performances, and we are only in week three. Wales nearly completed a fantastic comeback in their first match but was on the receiving end of an English recovery in week two. They will need to pull off one of their best performances to stop this high-flying Irish side. Do they have what it takes to cause trouble for one of the best rugby union teams in the world right now?
Ireland Rugby vs Wales Rugby Predictions
Predicting this rugby union match is straightforward, as it looks like one of the most one-sided matches in the tournament so far. The bookmakers all agree that Ireland is the favourite for this event. Not only are the odds drastically in favour of the boys in green, but they are some of the least rewarding you will see all year. Placing a €10 bet on Ireland to win after 80 minutes has odds of 1/50. If you were to place a €250 wager for Ireland, you would only get five euros in profit back. Wales has odds of 11/1, which would give you €120 from a ten-euro bet. Draws are uncommon in the Six Nations, and the 50/1 odds are reflected.
Our prediction for the Ireland vs Wales fixture is for the home side to dominate from minute one. We expect Ireland to score the first try of the match and win by 15 or more points at the final whistle. Given that Ireland is one of the best teams in world rugby and Wales are struggling to find their own identity, there is only one way this fixture will go. It is not a case of who will win. Instead, it is by how much. Ireland knows they can’t let up now if they want to win consecutive Grand Slams at the Six Nations.
Betting on Ireland or Wales to win this fixture is not the best option. If you bet on the home side to win, you stand to make incredibly little in terms of profit. Or, if you decide to bet on the visitors, you might as well throw your money down the drain. Instead, we will have to seek profitable returns from other markets. One option to consider this week is live betting on this event. If you wait until the match starts, you can follow along with how the match unfolds. Betting on players like Josh van der Flier and Jamison Gibson-Park could be your best options come Saturday.
Anyone looking to bet on rugby matches that are as one-sided as this needs to consider how much they are staking. The most profitable wagers are all incredibly risky and involve betting against the trend. We predict Ireland will win by 15 to 20 points after 80 minutes. However, backing Ireland to beat a -20.5 handicap has poor returns and odds of 4/6. Instead, if you bet on Wales at +20.5, you can get odds of 11/10. Much better than placing an outright wager on either team.
Ireland Rugby vs Wales Rugby Betting Tips
As we have mentioned, this is an arduous week to place a rugby bet. If you are going to sign up for an online betting site and claim a welcome bonus, there are better fixtures to bet on. When one side looks guaranteed to win, the returns are usually very poor. If you are determined to bet on Ireland, you will need to look at other less likely markets. Handicap bets, winning margins, and proposition bets are one way to increase your returns, but they all have much higher risks.
An alternative to the markets we have mentioned so far is to look at the half-time result. Once again, betting on Ireland to lead at the interval does not have the best returns. Choosing the winning margin at the 40-minute mark is better value for money. If you think Ireland will start slowly, the odds of the boys in green to lead by one to seven points is 11/4. Or you could bet on Ireland to rack up a 15 or more-point lead after the first half with odds of 17/10. Both options return considerably more than most outright predictions.
Another useful bet to consider for this match is the odd or even market. This week, the odds for an odd or even result are the same at 17/20. Looking at the previous fixtures, the past two matches have seen even totals. Before that, there were two odd fixtures in a row, so it could be a good market for this match. You have a 50-50 chance of getting your prediction right, and a €25 wager would return €46.25.
If you are going to bet on this Six Nations game, you need to control how much you spend. There are very few wagers available online that have good returns and not much risk. Live betting could be a good option for this match, but you also need to watch what you spend. Ireland vs Wales is not the game to win big. Instead, watch what you spend and reduce your losses.
ℹ️ Oli Jager has joined the Ireland squad ahead of Saturday's match against Wales, while Thomas Ahern will train with Andy Farrell's side this week.#TeamOfUs
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) February 19, 2024
Ireland Rugby Team News and Lineup
Following the week break and brief return of the United Rugby Championship, head coach Andy Farrell was forced into a change. Oli Jager and Thomas Ahern have joined the IRFU for training this week. This is a direct response to Iain Henderson’s foot injury he picked up against the Ospreys on the weekend. The rest of the team looks unchanged, but they won’t release the official lineup until Thursday at 2 pm.
- Ireland Predicted Lineup: A. Porter, D. Sheehan, F. Bealham, J. McCarthy, T. Beirne, P. O’Mahony, J. van der Flier, C. Doris, J. Gibson-Park, J. Crowley, J. Lowe, B. Aki, R. Henshaw, C. Nash, and H. Keenan.
Wales Rugby Team News and Lineup
Warren Gatland has revealed his starting 15 to face Ireland this weekend. The team remains almost entirely unchanged, with one player dropping to the bench. Sam Costelow comes in with the chance to show what a talent he is on the international stage. Costelow steps up to replace Ioan Lloyd at fly-half, and the rest of the team remains the same. The Welsh players put in a shift against England but came away without the win yet again. Gatland is hoping he does not have to change much to get the boys in red to win.
- Wales Starting Lineup: C. Winnett, R. Dyer, G. North, N. Tompkins, J. Adams, S. Costelow, T. Williams, G. Thomas, E. Dee, K. Assiratti, D. Jenkins, A. Beard, A. Mann, T. Reffell, and A. Wainwright.
