Wales vs England tips: Betting preview with odds & predictions for Rugby World Cup warm-up

Wales vs England betting tips:

• England to win - 2/5 with Betway
• England to win by 6-10 points - 9/2 with Bet365
• Max Malins to be first try-scorer - 8/1 with Parimatch

A big couple of months begins in earnest for Wales and England when the two sides clash at Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday evening (5.30pm, Amazon Prime Video).

The past year has been difficult for both teams and a potential rematch could be on the horizon at the Rugby World Cup in France if progress from their respective groups is secured. 

Betting sites are taking a great interest in this warm-up game ahead of that forthcoming global tournament and we’ve found three top picks for you to consider backing.

Wales and England could be on World Cup collision course

At the World Cup, the winners of Group C will face the runners-up in Group D at the quarter-final stage with the same happening in reverse. 

In Group C with Australia, Fiji, Georgia and Portugal, Wales are hopeful of progressing to the knockout rounds despite a difficult start to Warren Gatland’s second stint as head coach of the side.

Meanwhile, England are in Group D alongside Japan, Argentina, Samoa and Chile. 

There are potential speed bumps for Steve Borthwick’s charges, but there appears to be a more than reasonable chance that these two big rivals could face off in the last eight of the tournament.

This has been a troublesome World Cup cycle for England and Wales despite them being winners of the Six Nations Championship in 2020 and 2021 respectively. 

While Eddie Jones and Wayne Pivac were at the helm for these successes, a series of poor results ultimately saw them being replaced at the end of 2022.

This year’s Six Nations certainly wasn’t up to the required standard for either side, but Gatland and Borthwick had a relatively short time in which to prepare their deflated troops for battle.

However, both coaches have had a lot more time to work their players in recent weeks and vast improvements are expected leading into the 10th edition of the Rugby World Cup.

When Wales faced England in February at the Principality Stadium in the third round of the Six Nations Ollie Lawrence recorded a 74th minute try that helped the visitors to secure a 20-10 success. 

This result saw the Welsh falling to 10th spot in the world rankings, equalling their worst-ever placement.

Wales retirements give England the upper hand on Saturday

Wales are now currently in ninth spot but this leaves them three places behind England heading into the weekend’s match.

While England suffered a major drubbing at the hands of France in the next round of the Six Nations, they produced a strong performance against eventual Grand Slam champions Ireland on the final weekend of the Championship. 

Despite losing Freddie Steward to a red card on 40 minutes, Ireland’s 13-point victory was only assured thanks to three tries inside the final quarter.

It is anticipated that Gatland will get a tune out of the Welsh players eventually. However, the retirements of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb in recent months undoubtedly came as a loss to the New Zealander.

It still seems like there is little to separate the two teams on paper, but UK bookmakers are nonetheless emphatic about England being favourites and Borthwick’s men are 2/5 with Betway to win.

Of course, Borthwick has been in this sport long enough to know that you should never underestimate a team that is coached by Warren Gatland. 

While this isn’t a do-or-die affair by any means, Wales will not want to produce another underwhelming display in front of their home supporters. However, it’s impossible to look past England taking the spoils here. 

Tip: England to win - 2/5 with Betway

Halfpenny reaches major milestone

There isn’t a magic wand that will fix all the problems that Wales have encountered both on and off the pitch, but with Leigh Halfpenny picking up his 100th international cap for the country this game will have plenty of emotion attached to it.

They are clear underdogs coming into Saturday’s game, but that isn’t to say a Wales win has been completely ruled out of the equation. At odds of 17/10, SpreadEx are giving the prospect of a home win due consideration.

While bonus points have been hard to come by in their recent Six Nations meetings, there is usually no shortage of tries when these two teams are pitted into battle.

Despite falling short to England in the 2022 Six Nations at Twickenham Stadium, Wales managed to come away with three tries that left them with a losing bonus to show for their efforts in a 23-19 defeat. 

Yet Borthwick's men do pose a significant threat and registered three tries of their own on the way to beating Wales by 10 points in this year’s Six Nations. 

England winning by a similar margin comes in at odds of 9/2 on Saturday and it’s a bet that might just be worth a punt. 

Tip: England to win by 6-10 points - 9/2 with Bet365

Malins a key attacking weapon for England

After claiming a brace of five-pointers in their loss to Scotland on the opening weekend of the Six Nations, Max Malins couldn’t add to his tally in three subsequent appearances for England in the spring international window.

Yet Malins was in excellent form for Saracens last season in the Gallagher Premiership and scored a total of 11 tries. 

This included a crucial score in a final win over Sale Sharks at Twickenham on May 27 and Parimatch are offering odds of 8/1 on him being the first to cross the whitewash this weekend.

Tip: Max Malins to be first try-scorer - 8/1 with Parimatch

Should you wish to take any of our betting advice on Wales vs England, be sure to check out what free bets are available to claim before placing your stake.