Scotland will be looking to round off their 2023 Women’s Six Nations campaign with a victory when they take on an Ireland side at the Edinburgh Rugby Stadium on Saturday that is aiming to avoid picking up the wooden spoon.
After a run of 12 consecutive Test defeats, Scotland claimed a 29-21 win over Italy last weekend to move up to fourth in the standings and a bonus-point success on Saturday will guarantee they finish no lower than that position.
For Ireland, only a victory in Edinburgh will give them any chance of avoiding a first wooden spoon since 2004, but even that may not be enough with second-bottom Italy hosting Wales earlier in the day.
Scotland vs Ireland Betting Tips
- Scotland to win with a -11.5 Handicap @ 6/5
Team news
After claiming their first victory of this year’s Women’s Six Nations against Italy, it is unsurprising that Scotland head coach Bryan Easson has largely stuck with the same starting XV for the visit of Ireland.
The only change comes at outside centre, with Emma Orr returning to the line-up in place of Lisa Thomson, who has been left out of the matchday squad altogether in order to link up with the GB sevens programme.
Orr missed the victory over Italy with the head injury she sustained late in Scotland’s week three defeat to France, but her return could well prove a timely one.
As for Ireland, head coach Greg McWilliams has kept faith with the same XV that started last weekend’s heavy home defeat to England after prop Linda Djougang was passed fit following a head injury assessment.
There are two changes on the bench, however, with Dorothy Wall and Aisla Hughes both earning recalls. Flanker Wall missed the 48-0 loss to England due to an ankle injury but she has proved her fitness for the trip to Edinburgh.
Scotland to win with a -11.5 Handicap @ 6/5
A bonus-point victory for Scotland on Saturday would guarantee they finish at least fourth in the final standings – a feat they haven’t achieved since 2017 – while third place could also be a possibility if Wales suffer a heavy defeat to Italy.
There should certainly be plenty of optimism within Easson’s squad following their victory over Italy last time out and they will expect to get the better of an Ireland team that have disappointed, to say the least, in this year’s Six Nations.
Not only have Ireland lost all four of their matches in the competition, but all four of those defeats have been emphatic, with their tightest match still ending in a 24-7 loss at the hands of Italy in Parma.
Ireland were also beaten 31-5 on the road against Wales, while their home defeats have been even more eye-watering, albeit they have come at the hands of Grand Slam contenders France (3-53) and England (0-48).
The two-time Six Nations winners have also accumulated just 15 points across those four defeats, scoring two tries, and it is hard to see them breaking down even a Scotland defence that has conceded the most points in this year’s competition.
This should prove to be a relatively routine win for Scotland, who are available at 3/10 in the Match Winner market, with value perhaps to be had in backing the hosts to win with a -11.5 handicap at 6/5.
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