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Munster and Leicester Tigers will take the field in a crucial Rugby European Champions Cup clash, as the two sides fight for the all important first place in Pool 4. Leicester has 10 points from two games, while Munster has 5 points from 1 game, with the other two teams in the group still without a single point.
Munster was having a great season, including a solid win over Benetton in the first round of the Champions Cup, but the Irish outfit lost the last two games in the Guiness Pro 12 and lost them in disappointing fashion. They suffered a very rare home loss against Connacht, 14-16 and they played very poorly, being lucky to be in the game until the end. That performance was followed by a 6-22 loss at Newport and there were also a couple of games before these losses in which Munster looked shaky, so there seems to be a problem with the hosts. The carrying game has been particularly poor, with Munster unable to keep territory or possession.
Leicester is flying high right now, having 2 consecutive wins in both the Champions Cup and the Aviva Premiership, where they are third in the standings. Morale is at an all time high with these 4 consecutive wins, particularly as Leicester came back from 0-17 to defeat Worchester 29-20 last weekend. A win today would virtually guarantee the first place for Leicester, so the visitors will surely come in ready to play at the same level as in their previous matches.
Bet on Munster vs. Leicester Tigers in the Rugby European Champions Cup at 18Bet
Lineups:
Munster: 15 Andrew Conway, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Francis Saili, 12 Denis Hurley, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Ian Keatley, 9 Conor Murray, 8 CJ Stander (c), 7 Dave O’Callaghan, 6 Robin Copeland, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Dave Foley, 3 BJ Botha, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 James Cronin.
Leicester Tigers: 15 Telusa Veainu, 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Matt Smith, 12 Seremaia Bai, 11 Vereniki Goneva, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Lachlan McCaffrey, 7 Brendon O’Connor, 6 Ed Slater (c), 5 Mike Fitzgerald, 4 Graham Kitchener, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs, 1 Marcos Ayerza.
There is big talk about Leicester producing an upset here and the odds on Munster are going up. Indeed, Leicester seems to be the team on the rise, while Munster is struggling, but I still believe the hosts will pull it off. Munster is fantastic at home and have won 62 of the last 66 European Champions Cup home matches. Still, it will not be easy.
Munster is in total disarray on the offensive end right now and they know the only way to win is to slow the game down and tighten up their defense – which can be absolutely brilliant on its day. Look for the home side to use a lot of kicking and be very sharp defensively after missing plenty of tackles in the last two matches. Leicester likes the fast paced wing play more, but not much more – they might well accept Munster’s gameplan here. And if they won’t, I believe they will be forced to. Munster can be an absolute defensive beast and they fully need to be so today.
Expect a very close, low scoring clash. The way it’s looking, Munster will be very lucky to get anywhere near 20 points, but they should limit Leicester to no more than 15, at best. My tip is under 33,5 points to be scored. The fact that Roman Poite is the referee should also help this total to go under on the under / over market, as he likes to fragment the game, usually not allowing a fast pace. Prediction: Munster – Leicester Tigers 16 – 11.
Pick: under 33,5
Odds: 1.93 @ 1xBet
Stake: 8
Possible profit: 7.44
Event date: 12 December
