Round 3 of the United Rugby Championship brings two all-South African derbies this weekend, with the Bulls taking on the Lions and the Stormers hosting the Sharks.
After two rounds, the picture is a mixed one for the South African sides, with the Lions and Sharks both unbeaten and sitting on two wins from two, while the Bulls and Stormers each came up short in round 2 and will be looking to bounce back. With plenty of history between the sides and some interesting handicap angles on offer, here is our full round 3 betting preview.
Bulls v Lions — Click here to bet
After starting their campaign on the right foot beating Zebre 47-13 away from home, the Bulls fell short against Munster in Round 2 losing the match 26-22.
The Lions on the other hand got off to the perfect start. In Round 1 they beat Leinster 27-26 at home and followed it up with a 35-19 win over the Ospreys at home in Round 2.
Head-to-Head
The Bulls have the upper hand in the URC h2h between the two sides winning four of the last five matches. The most recent saw the Bulls win 52-17 in Johannesburg earlier this year. The last time the Lions beat the Bulls in the URC was in November last year where they won the match 43-33 in Pretoria. The two sides did meet in the Currie Cup back in August where the Lions won the match 42-19, however, these were vastly different squads that played that day.
Betting and Verdict
The bookies have the Bulls as favourites to win this weekend trading at 1.29 while the Lions are trading at 4.00 with the draw priced at 29.00. The handicap is the Bulls at -10.5.
The Jukskei Derby often produces an exciting game with plenty of points between the sides but over recent years in the URC the Bulls have dominated. In all four of the Bulls wins over the Lions since February 2024, they have comfortably covered the handicap and so although the Bulls are coming off the back of a loss I think they will be able to cover the handicap again.
Suggested Bet: Handicap, Bulls [-10.5] at 1.95.
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Stormers v Sharks — Click here to bet
The Stormers opened their season with a solid win against Connacht away from home in Round 1, with the match ending 29-15. They then travelled to play Edinburgh in Round 2 but unfortunately came up short losing the match 17-13.
The Sharks opened up their season with a 41-24 win over the Ospreys in Round 1 and followed it up with a more impressive 26-20 win over Leinster in Round 2, both matches played at home.
Head-to-Head
The H2H between the two sides is a close one with the Sharks winning three and the Stormers the other two. The most recent two were won by the Sharks, 36-24 at home and 30-19 in Cape Town both earlier this year. The only two Stormers wins saw them win 24-20 and 25-21.
Betting and Verdict
The Stormers are favourites to win trading at 1.31 while the bookies have the Sharks at 4.00, and the draw is priced at 23.00. The handicap is Stormers -8.5.
Looking at the last five matches between the sides, the Sharks often prove to be a tough opponent for the Stormers both at home and away. In all of the last five games the Stormers best result saw them win by just 4 points. The Stormers are coming off the back of a loss while the Sharks are riding the momentum of a win against Leinster and so for this reason, I can’t see the Stormers covering the handicap and I think we may even see a Sharks win in Cape Town.
Suggested Bet: Handicap, Sharks [+8.5] at 1.83.
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Note: All prices correct at the time of writing but are subject to change.
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