South Africa Too Short
The current favourites to win the Rugby Championship are South Africa, who are odds-on at 8/13. I was a little surprised that they were that price, and I would have thought that New Zealand would have been closer in the betting, but they find themselves a generous 6/4 chance.
On the other hand, there is no disputing that South Africa are one of the heavyweights of world rugby after they retained the World Cup in France last year. However, they only just got the better of the All Blacks in the final, with only one point separating the teams.
This summer the Springboks have found life fairly easy in their warm-up games, but they did lose to Ireland last month, so they are not invincible.
The Almighty All Blacks
Meanwhile, the All Blacks have dominated the majority of their warm-up matches, and they have come out on top in all of them. Furthermore, they are the kings of this tournament and have won it ten times since 2012. They just seem to turn up every year and get on with the job.
The last two matches between South Africa and New Zealand have gone the way of the Springboks, but I think New Zealand will get the better of them in the Rugby Championship.
The Aussies Aren’t What They Used To Be
Incredibly, Argentina do not find themselves as the outsiders at 20/1, as Australia are slightly bigger at 25/1. The Wallabies actually haven’t done badly this summer in their warm-up games after breezing past Wales and Georgia. Their record against the powerhouses of South Africa and New Zealand, on the other hand, has been disappointing in recent years, so they are likely to be fighting for minor honours this year.
Plucky Pumas
Argentina come into this tournament in fair form. They beat Uruguay very easily, and they managed to take the scalp of France. Though they probably won’t be good enough to win, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made things tough for the likes of New Zealand and South Africa in their upcoming matches.
Overall though, I do think New Zealand represents the best value, and I think they will take all the beating.
Rugby Championship Selection
New Zealand (6/4)