Six Nations: Week Three Betting Tips

The Six Nations returns after a weekend off, with the Calcutta Cup match between Scotland and England the highlight of the middle round of fixtures.

The annual clash takes place at Murrayfield at 16:45 on Saturday, with Ireland and Wales kicking off the programme in Dublin at 14:15.

It is then on to Lille, where France and Italy clash at 15:00 on Sunday.

Tip One - Ireland to beat Wales by 11-20 points @ 5/2

Ireland's 38-17 opening win in France has set them up for unprecedented back-to-back Six Nations Grand Slams.

Andy Farrell used the following week's dominant 36-0 victory over Italy to rotate his squad and experiment with their attacking patterns.

Saturday's opponents Wales have lost both of their games, almost coming from 27-0 down to lose 27-26 to Scotland, before their naivety arguably got the better of them in the 16-14 loss to England.

Warren Gatland was clearly pleased with what he saw at Twickenham, making only one change, with fly-half Sam Castelow recalled for the benched Ioan Lloyd.

Gatland will have identified areas for his team to target, but a first away Six Nations win in Dublin since 2012 appears unlikely.

Wales will look to frustrate the Irish, but Farrell's side have been brilliant this Six Nations. They might find things tougher than anticipated early on, but their class should eventually tell.

Tip Two - England to beat Scotland @ 5/4

Scotland have dominated the Calcutta Cup clashes recently, lifting the trophy in 2021, 2022 and 2023. It means they are the deserved 11/20 favourites heading into this Saturday's match, but that is a status they have traditionally struggled with.

Gregor Townsend's side were fortunate in their first game, almost squandering a big lead in Cardiff, while they were also the better side for long stretches of their 20-16 defeat to France.

They may feel they were on the wrong end of a final-play refereeing call, but had earlier chances to put Les Bleus away and the game should have been sewn up.

In contrast, England have edged to wins over Italy (27-24) and Wales and, although unlikely, are still in the running for the Grand Slam.

Winning at Murrayfield would give them tremendous confidence and there is a feeling that Steve Borthwick could pick a physical side, with even more muscle coming off the bench in anticipation of the Scots dropping off in intensity, as has been the case in both of their matches.

After employing a limited gameplan in guiding his side to Bronze at last year's World Cup, Borthwick promised they would play with more adventure in the Six Nations.

The Red Rose have been more expansive, but even with the forecast set fair for running rugby, winning is all that matters and they may turn Saturday's game into an arm wrestle.

If so, England's 5/4 to win is worth considering. Scotland have a more settled side, but the defeat to France exposed familiar fragility.

Borthwick's team are very much a work in progress but a back-to-basics approach may see them reclaim the Calcutta Cup.

Tip Three - France to beat Italy by 1-12 points @ 17/4

Finally, to Sunday's game between France and Italy in Lille, as the Stade de France undergoes a makeover ahead of this summer's Paris Olympics.

Les Bleus were outclassed in their opening defeat to Ireland before riding their luck in squeezing past the Scots.

After crashing out of last year's home World Cup, rumours immediately surfaced regarding the squad's relationship with coach Fabien Galthie and his team's performances have done little to quell the speculation.

Not having captain Antoine Dupont available has also been problematic, but his replacement at scrum-half, Maxime Lucu, was much-improved at Murrayfield and should be able to guide his team to victory over Italy.

Lucu starred in his team's 60-7 win over Sunday's opponents during the group stages of the World Cup, but the Azzurri showed signs of potential in their narrow defeat to England and should be able to recall some of the key names who missed the defeat in Ireland.

The handicap is set at -27.5 in France's favour, but the Italians look to be underestimated, especially after losing by just five points when the pair met last year in Rome.

If there is uncertainty in the French camp, Sunday's match will expose it.

Les Bleus should battle through, but there is real value in expecting Gonzalo Quesada's visitors to run them close and a home win by 1-12 points is a tempting price at 17/4.