Rugby Betting: Heineken Cup second round

There are some glamour ties this weekend in the Heineken Cup with Gloucester taking on the Ospreys at Kingsholm, Llanelli hosting Wasps, and showcase Sunday, when Stade Francais travel to Bristol, former Heineken Cup champions Munster clash with European Challenge Cup holders Clermont, and Toulouse try to make up for their humiliating quarter-final defeat to Leinster in 2006. It's all a bit much really, and punters will need to be ultra-selective if they are to prevent their war chest from leaking to the bookmakers. With such an array of attacking talent on display, total points could go through the roof in both Gloucester's match up with the Ospreys and Toulouse's fixture with Leinster at the Stade Ernest Wallon. Gloucester have been fine exponents of free-flowing rugby this season and with most of the Welsh national side filling Osprey jerseys, this should be an entertaining fixture. The Cherry and Whites have often lacked a certain nous when it has come to Europe and this could work to our advantage as although Gloucester are fancied to win this, they may not be streetwise enough to fully close out the game early on. The spread firms have pitched their total points' quotes at 40-43 and although Skybet go 44.5 over/under in the match, there could still be some value to be had in that price. It may be best to have your bet quite close to the time of the match however, because fog is forecast for the area tonight and you wouldn't fancy both fly-halves to splice the posts when they can't see them. Toulouse and Leinster played out a titanic tussle two seasons ago when the Irish side came away with a magnificent 41-35 victory. It was an immense match and with Toulouse's fixtures in the Stade Ernest Wallon averaging just under 55, and their record against Irish teams also making up a similar number, punters should be looking to be long of points in this contest as well. The bet of the week however, is Saracens against Biarritz in France. The visitors look massively over-priced at anything over 3/1 and the early birds snaffled up Bet365's 7/2 in the rugby betting on Thursday. The French side have been on the decline for some time now, and although they boast some of the best players in the world, their patterns are not conducive to putting teams away. They have been pretty turgid in the Heineken Cup for the last two years and losing to relegated Northampton last season in the quarter-final was just shy of a disgrace. They have fared little better this time around, failing to beat lowly Albi at home in the Top 14, and struggling markedly to beat Italian side Viadana 19-11 in the Heineken Cup last week. Saracens are riding high in the Premiership at the moment and are scoring points for fun. Coach Alan Gaffney has got his side playing an all-out style and Biarritz could simply struggle to contain them this weekend. For those who want to play it safe, the handicap of 11-points looks almost double what it should be. Verdict: 3pts Saracens @ 10/3 (Bet365)