Nations Championship Rugby Round 3 Tips & Predictions

As many Australian rugby fans know, beating the All Blacks at Eden Park is almost impossible. They haven’t lost at the fortress since 1994, which is a truly incredible statistic given how often they play in Auckland. That’s the task awaiting Ireland, which defeated Australia in their opening game before muscling their way past a gallant Japan. We believe the All Blacks have more improvement to come, and it should be enough to beat Ireland by 13+ points. They’re on the second line of betting for the Nations Championship, and it could be evident why after Saturday’s match.

Japan has been a talking point throughout the Nations Championship, and for all the right reasons. They scored an upset win over Italy to kick things off before losing 38-20 to Ireland last week. Scoring 20 points against a tough Irish defence is a great effort, and they should be proud of their standard of play. Returning to Japan should make a big difference, and although France is a top-tier nation, getting a +27.5 start is significant. Japan has a way of slowing things down, and it could be a real defensive battle in Tokyo.

Australian fans are waiting for something to cheer about, and although the 2026 Wallabies are better than previous editions, we don’t think they’re playing well enough to beat Italy by 17.5 points. Australia had its chance to beat Ireland in their opening game, but they have been outplayed in the second half by Ireland and France. Italy hasn’t played well, but they looked good in the first half against New Zealand, and a similar effort will result in a close game. The conditions in Perth should allow for running rugby, which suits both teams, and it could be a cracking contest that comes down to the final 10 minutes.

Scotland has a great chance of improving their record to 2-1 against a Fijian team that hasn’t come out of the blocks. They were hammered by England last week when allowing 73 points, but it has been their attack that has disappointed the most. We expect flair and passion from Fiji, but playing their home games on the opposing teams’ home is a bit of an insult. That’s the case again this week at Murrayfield, where Scotland should have a significant edge. The line could have been around -25.5 for the Scots, so the -17.5 line is a good rugby bet.

Wales haven’t played too badly so far, including a win over Fiji and a loss against Argentina. However, beating Fiji by only 15 points isn’t good enough considering England’s effort last week, and they could suffer a big loss to the Springboks on Sunday morning. It’s another game played at altitude for the Springboks, so the world champions are getting all favours with the draw. They didn’t play their best against Scotland last week, but as the current -40.5 line suggests, they could fire back against Wales. We’re picking SA to score an easy win with a second-half blitzbok.

It was good seeing Argentina get back to its best with a win over Wales last week, and they should prevail against England. It’s always tough to beat Argentina at home, and although they might not have the best team in the world, they find ways to win. England will be tough to beat after smashing Fiji last week, but the travel won’t help their chances, and Argentina plays an up-tempo game, which could fatigue the visitors. England is accustomed to losing to Argentina this week, and it could be another loss for the Brits. The $2.05 Rugby odds for Argentina is a good price for a team on the way up.