Rugby Betting: South Africa v Barbarians

World Champions South Africa swept aside Wales last week in the Millennium Stadium and the black-and-white might of the Barbarians look unlikely to stop the Springboks at Twickenham. The Baa-baas line-up with no less than 15 of their match-day 22 hailing from the southern hemisphere and the likely lads are lead by the unlikeliest of them all in hooker Mark Regan. Regan has been refused permission to play by his club Bristol, but in defiance he takes to the field with just his club socks to show his Bristol allegiance. The likes of Matt Giteau, Joe Rokocoko and Conrad Smith start their first match since their humiliating defeats at the World Cup and all three will be keen to put in show-stopping performances. They have all been on holiday however since those defeats and Rocky Elsom, Jerry Collins and the retired Jason Robinson may lack match fitness and cutting edge. The Springboks however, will not be for turning in Middlesex, and after the pipe-opener against the disappointing Dragons last week, they will be looking to keep their unbeaten record as World Champion intact. The Welsh felt the full force of the Sprinbok machine in action last week and despite a slight change of personnel, the South African's should simply be too good and better prepared. To be fair, the South Africans are weaker than last week losing Bakkies Botha at lock but the side still retain decent presence up front which should provide a solid platform for the likes of Bryan Habana and Francois Steyn to plunder points. The Baa-baas are renown for their fancy approach to the game and it may well be that teams spurn kicks at the posts in favour of tries. The price therefore of either side opening the scoring with tries should be considered. A Springbok try is 4/1 with Bet365 while the Barbarians are 5/1 with Betfred. Punters who take their clues from bookies will notice that Stan James are 9/4 and 5/2 in both markets. South Africa give up eight-points in the handicap market and that doesn't look nearly enough against a scratch, yet talented team. Take a token bet on the winning margin if you can't stomach the handicap market at 10/11. Verdict: 1pt South Africa by 10-15 points @ 11/2 (Bet365)