The third week of the Vodacom URC takes place this weekend and all four South African sides will be playing on Saturday which is where we focus our preview.
The Lions will host Edinburgh followed by the Bulls hosting Ulster with the Sharks taking on the Dragons and the Stormers playing Zebre on the road.
Let’s look at the Outright Betting where Leinster are the 1.66 favourites to win the Championship with the Blue Bulls at 6.00, Munster 7.00 followed by the Stormers and Glasgow Warriors both at 13.00. You can get 19.00 and better the balance.
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SATURDAY
Lions v Edinburgh – Click here to bet
The Lions are coming off the back of their first match in the URC. They hosted Ulster last weekend and won the match 35-22 bouncing back nicely from their Currie Cup defeat.
Edinburgh are yet to win a match this season with two losses so far. The played against the Bulls last weekend in Pretoria and managed to put up a fight but ended up losing the match 22-16 and in week 1 they lost a high scoring encounter to Leinster at home.
Head-to-Head
The two sides have played each other 3 times before in the URC with the Lions winning two and Edinburgh winning the other one. The only match between the two sides in Johannesburg was back in 2022 where the Lions won 15-9.
Betting and Verdict
The Lions are favourites to win and are trading at 1.30 while Edinburgh is trading at 4.20. Edinburgh have lost their last two matches by 6 points or less on both occasions and the handicap could be a good bet for this weekend.
Handicap: Edinburgh [+8.5]
BET: Handicap, Edinburgh [+8.5] at 1.85.
Bulls v Ulster – Click here to bet
The Bulls are coming off the back of an opening win last weekend at home where they beat Edinburgh 22-16. Ulster opened their season two weekends ago with an impressive win over the champions at home, beating Glasgow 20-19 but fell short last weekend against the Lions in Johannesburg losing the match 35-22.
Head-to-Head
Ulster have won the last two encounters between the two sides however, the Bulls won the last match they played at Loftus back in 2022, winning the match 34-16.
Betting and Verdict
The bookies have the Bulls as heavy favourites to win and have them trading at 1.14 while Ulster are trading at 7.50.
Loftus has become a fortress for the Bulls with them only losing 2 of their last 10 matches there and I expect them to be too strong for an Ulster team that was disappointing last week.
Handicap: Bulls [-13.5]
BET: Handicap, Bulls [-13.5] at 1.91.
Dragons v Sharks – Click here to bet
The Dragons will look to bounce back after suffering a big loss last weekend to Leinster, away from home, with the match ending 34-6, exactly where the bookies had priced it.
After winning the Currie Cup two weekends ago against the Lions, the Sharks lost their opening fixture against Connacht away from home last weekend. The match ended 36-30 despite the Sharks having gone into the sheds with a big half time lead.
Head-to-Head
The two sides have played each other four times over the last two years with the Sharks winning all four fixtures. The most recent fixture was in January this year in the Challenge Cup where the Sharks won 9-29 away from home.
Betting and Verdict
The Sharks are favourites to win the match and are trading at 1.30 while the Dragons are trading at 4.20.
Although the Sharks are coming off the back of a loss, they should be too strong for an injury hit Dragons side.
Handicap: Sharks [-8.5]
BET: Handicap, Sharks [-8.5] at 1.95.
Zebre v Stormers – Click here to bet
Zebre managed to pull off a brilliant win last weekend, beating Munster 42-33 at home having given Cardiff a good match on the road in week 1 where they lost by 5 points.
The Stormers are coming off the back of a 37-24 loss to the Ospreys away from home in their opening game.
Head-to-Head
The two sides have met three times over the last three years in the URC with the Stormers winning all three matches. The last time Zebre hosted the Stormers the match ended 20-37 in favour of the Stormers.
Betting and Verdict
The bookies have the Stormers as favourites to win and have them trading at 1.28 while Zebre are trading at 4.50.
Although Zebre have never beaten the Stormers, taking last weekends results into account and the fact that they are at home, gives them a huge opportunity to pull off their first win over the Cape Town team.
Handicap: Zebre [+9.5]
BET: Zebre to win at 4.50.
Note: All prices correct at the time of writing but are subject to change
