Six Nations Predictions 2025 – Round 4

Scotland will have to be on guard when they welcome a reinvigorated Wales to Murrayfield in Saturday’s other fixture, while England will look to keep their slim title hopes alive when they take on Italy at Twickenham on Sunday.

Ireland v France

When: Saturday, 8 March – 16:15 SAST

It doesn’t get any bigger in Northern Hemisphere rugby than this mouth-watering top-of-the-table clash.

Confronted by a new-look and newly motived Welsh side in Cardiff, Ireland survived a scare to triumph 27-18 in the previous round.

The hard-fought victory saw the unbeaten Irish secure the Triple Crown and move one step closer to an unprecedented Six Nations three-peat.

The performance, however, was not as pleasing as the result and they’ll know they’ll have to up their game and be at their very best to beat Les Bleus.

In saying that, they overcame the adversity of Garry Ringrose’s red card and adapted like a champion side should. Their halfback pairing of Jamison Gibson-Park and Sam Prendergast starred, with young gun Prendergast in particular set to take a lot of confidence out of his pivotal performance.

France, meanwhile, took out the anger and frustration of their loss to England out on Italy, romping to a record 73-24 rout. Three points adrift log leading Ireland, it’s do or die for Fabien Galthie’s men.

They have the firepower and flair to beat any team on any given day, but they’ve only beaten the Irish in the Emerald Isle once in the last decade, a 15-13 triumph in 2021. Ireland won the last encounter on home soil 32-19 in 2023.

With two teams as evenly matched as this, home-ground advantage should prove decisive.

Prediction: Ireland by 2.
Suggested Bet: Ireland by 1.83.

Scotland v Wales

When: Saturday, 8 March – 18:45 SAST

Scotland will still be annoyed that they left Twickenham without the win in the previous round. For all their dominance in the first half, they should’ve had more points on the board going into the home stretch.

England deserve a ton of credit for their huge defensive effort, but the Scots slipped up on a number of occasions at key moments, which proved costly. Not as costly as Finn Russell’s wayward goal-kicking, though, which ultimately did them in. For them, the key word this week is accuracy.

Even though they suffered a 15th straight loss, it was a different Welsh side who threatened to do the unthinkable against high-flying Ireland in the previous round.

Playing their first game under caretaker coach Matt Sherratt, the Dragons were fuelled by newfound energy and showed heart for the first time in the championship.

They had Irish fans rattled when they led 18-10 and though they couldn’t complete what would’ve been one of the biggest upsets in Six Nations history, they had plenty of positives to take out of the loss for a change.

Sherratt made Warren Gatland look like a fool with his selections and tweaked attacking game plan, which finally gave Wales some sting, and the pack rose to the challenge. Now, it’s a case of replicating that promising performance.  

Expect a ton of effort from Wales but the more cohesive Scots to prevail.

Prediction: Scotland by 12.
Suggested Bet: Wales +16 at 1.90.

England v Italy

When: Sunday, 9 March – 17:00 SAST

After one of the great defensive displays in the championship to come away with a second one-point triumph in as many weeks, England would’ve welcomed the bye week and will relish this matchup with Italy.

That’s not to say the Azzurri are easy to contain. They have a few locksmiths in their ranks, but England are bound to have a fairer split of territory and possession than they did against the Scots.

The immense physicality they displayed last time out will serve them well here, but they could use more nuance on attack, as they were blunt as can be in Round Three.

For all the good Italy did in the first two rounds, they took three steps back in their humiliation at the hands of the French. Are they suddenly a poor side? No, but an England outfit who still have a mathematical chance of winning the title should put them away.  

Prediction: England by 17.
Suggested Bet: Italy +22 at 1.90.