England vs Wales betting tips:

Just seven days on from their most recent test battle, England and Wales will square off in another enticing Rugby World Cup warm-up clash at Twickenham Stadium this Saturday evening (5.30pm, Amazon Prime Video).

Now that there is a new set of performances to judge, betting sites are offering their considered takes on how the latest showdown between these Six Nations rivals could pan out.

Strong second half turnaround gave Wales the spoils last weekend

Despite having an early lead cancelled out by a brace of penalties from Welsh centurion Leigh Halfpenny, England ultimately brought a 9-6 lead into the interval of their duel with Warren Gatland’s side at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff last weekend. 

Marcus Smith knocked over his third penalty in opening half stoppage-time and this left them in a decent position to push forward on the resumption.

Yet it was the hosts who pounced for converted tries through Gareth Davies and George North in the 47th and 57th minutes respectively, and this was enough to earn Wales an 11-point victory in the end. 

Given results had been difficult in the early stages of his second spell as Welsh head coach, Gatland will certainly be pleased to finally add to the solitary win his charges secured in this spring’s turbulent Six Nations Championship campaign.

Of course, his English counterpart Steve Borthwick had a tough Six Nations of his own after being drafted in to replace Eddie Jones towards the end of last year. 

While they did manage to get the better of Wales in Cardiff, England finished the Championship a distant fourth behind Ireland, France and Scotland.

England in search of morale-boosting win

After ending the spring with back-to-back reversals at the hands of France and Ireland (albeit there were some encouraging signs in the latter game), England could do with a win this weekend to boost their morale – particularly in advance of a meeting with the Irish at the Aviva Stadium on August 19.

Fiji will also pay a visit to Twickenham at the end of the month, but for now their focus will be on an improved performance and result in their swift renewal of acquaintances with Wales.

Indeed, despite last week’s loss to the same opposition, England are viewed as the favourites heading into their second World Cup warm-up on Saturday.

At the time of writing, new betting sites are offering odds of 2/13 on the hosts emerging triumphant over Wales on this occasion. 

In stark contrast, UK bookmakers are placing a value of 21/5 on the visitors recording a second consecutive success against the English.

A response is certainly expected from England and with the attendance more than likely set to exceed the 65,802 that passed through the Principality turnstiles a week beforehand it is easy to see why Borthwick’s men are expected to deliver a big display.

When they met in the Six Nations back on February 25, England’s margin of victory was 10 points. 

Although it was much tighter than that for the majority of the action, a try from Ollie Lawrence on 74 minutes ensured that the winners had a bit to spare in the end.

Tip: England to win – 2/13 with Betway

England a decent bet to lead at half time

In both of their games to date against Wales in 2023, England have been the ones in the ascendancy at the break. 

The trajectory of last week’s fixture went off in a different direction in comparison to that February tussle, but it is clear that England are more than capable of setting out their stall in the opening 40 minutes of test encounters.

For this reason, Betway are offering 1/3 on England being in the lead at half-time on Saturday. 

The odds on Wales being the team in the driving seat during the interval are 5/2 and while it doesn’t seem like a far-fetched notion, the game being a draw at the midway stage appears to be an outside bet at 14/1.

The home side being in front at the break seems the safest play to make here though.

Tip: England to lead at half-time – 1/3 with Betway

Home comforts could see England better the handicap

For those interested in exploring handicaps for Saturday’s game, there are also some very compelling odds on offer.

Parimatch is placing 2/5 on England -6.5 and a tastier 5/6 for England -12 points. Alternatively, there are odds of 2/13 on Wales +24.5 and 4/11 on Wales +18.5 available with the same bookmakers.

Parimatch are also delving into first half handicaps with 3/10 on offer for Wales +11.5 and 4/5 available on England -5.5 across the opening 40 minutes is well worth a look too.

Tip: England -12 points – 5/6 with Parimatch

Expectation on England and Wales to have good World Cup campaigns

While it is still early days for both teams as they bid to leave their woes in the past 12 months behind them, we can expect to have learnt a lot more about where England and Wales are at when this two-game saga reaches a conclusion this weekend. 

There will be pressure on Gatland and Borthwick to produce strong performances at the World Cup – even though both men are only in their respective roles for very short periods to date – and a victory on Saturday will give them something to build on.

Should you wish to take any of our betting advice on England vs Wales, be sure to check out what free bets are available to claim before placing your stake.