No handicap for Tonga

Tonga's surprising 19-15 victory over arch-rivals Samoa last weekend was the final piece in the jigsaw puzzle. Everything is clear now, and the Pacific Islanders rate a significant bet in receipt of Victor Chandler's generous 53-point head-start. Whichever way you look at it, Tonga put in a massive performance in Montpellier. They had not beaten Samoa in nine outings prior to that titanic encounter. They also finished with 13 men after blindside flanker Hale T Pole received a red card from referee Jonathan Kaplan. The South African arbiter also sent Epi Taione to the sin-bin in the 28th minute and Toma Tokje five minutes before he blew the final whistle. To win with such a disadvantage surely has been massively under-rated.The danger signals are, of course, that if they display a similar disregard for the rules against the Springboks, they will be heavily punished. South Africa coach Jake White, however, has named a team that is about as under-strength as a pint of Kaliber. It's not as if White has much confidence in the starting XV either. He said on Wednesday at a press conference: "To be fair to the guys, they haven't played much rugby together as a group. They probably don't get the same amount of continuity as the other group." There are more caps on the bench than there are in the run -on side. That blend of inexperience, and the need to get through the fixture unscathed against the hard-hitting Tongans, should ensure that the favourites struggle to make up such a massive deficit. Verdict: 2pts Tonga +53 @ 10/11 (VCBet) (Editor's Note: The Springboks will have too much for the Tongans but the bookies appear to have overestimated the Boks squad players. Get on the +53 handicap at VCBet!)