Suprisingly, the Argentina bet has been matched in full. Bet therefore is
Argentina - £46.00 @ 1.23 with
Betfair -
Argentina have been one of the most impressive sides in the RWC, dispatching both France and Ireland (plus respective minnows) to top the 'Group of Death', with the added benefit of avoiding the All Backs the quarter finals. Scotland looked as good as they could (particularly their pack) against Romania and Portugal and even their B side did moderately well against a full strength New Zealand team. However, they only just scraped past Italy to qualify out of the group, especially as the Italians had a chance to potentially win the game in the dying minutes (narrowly failed with a penalty). Whilst the Scots have the kicker of the RWC in Paterson, it is unlikely he will get enough opportunities to win this game with the boot alone. I can't see them scoring the necessary tries either against a mean Puma's defense that has only conceeded twice in the last 4 games. Scotland have not beaten the Argentians since 1990, losing the last 5 matches played since then between the two. Based on the IRB ratings, Argentina (85.78) should beat Scotland (77.09) at a neutral venue by around 19 points.
Sporting Index have the Puma's supremacy over the Scottish pitched at 12-15, whilst the average handicap mark on Argentina is -13.0 points at 1.90. Such is the importance of this game to Argentina, even the sacred Boca v River football fixture has been brought forward to avoid a timing clash. I'm reasonably confident the Puma's will win this comfortably, although I am reminded from my records that the path of my gambling life has often been strewn with cowpats from the devil's own satanic herd.