The Heineken Cup bursts back into life again this weekend, and as it is a competition that boasts teams from France and Italy, there are few dangers that any of the games will be called off.

Last weekend 12 of the 15 scheduled league matches were called off in Britain and Ireland in comparison to the one that was called off in the French and Italian leagues combined. Not only does this mean that the traditional myth of laissez-faire that our Continental chums seem to propagate has been smashed, but that the British and Irish teams have had a week’s break when the French and Italians were knocking ten bells out of each other.

Only Leicester and Wasps played in the Guinness Premiership last weekend, which means punters who think a lay off is a good thing for rugby players should look at the matches between Gloucester and Biarritz, Stade Francais and Bath, Leinster v Brive, all of which are on Saturday, as well as Toulouse v Harlequins and Northampton and Perpignan, which are both on Sunday.

All of the English sides deserve respect on paper, with particular attention directed towards Northampton, who look to have a splendid chance of smashing the French champions off the park at Franklin’s Gardens. Northampton are all but insurmountable on their own piece of turf, and they have an excellent habit of getting off to a flyer so you money should be safe from the off.
Perpignan on the other hand have little to play for, having lost their last three matches in this tournament and are therefore out of the running. A trip to the Midlands on a cold and wet weekend offers no upside for the Catalans, and they could be on the back of a real hiding. Although there are no handicaps out at the time of writing, I believe Northampton backers should have to pay a double-figure handicap, which the bookmakers are likely to offer a better price on. If you can back Northampton with a deficit of less than ten points, you should really consider having a large wager.

Although Gloucester have had a decent rest to get over their travails of almost losing to Worcester at home two weeks ago, it probably isn’t enough. Dean Ryan’s side need an age to come to terms with the fact that they are still a disparate excuse of a squad. Some of the squad are really busting a gut, and some are just putting one on.
Biarritz may not have had the rub of the green in the last few road matches, but they need just one more win to secure home advantage in the knockout stages, and they really should be favourites for this contest, which, once again, is an unlikely scenario for the bookmakers. Get on at odds-against about the Basques if you gan find it.

Leinster may well have had a nice long rest, but having not played since their 15-3 derby victory over Ulster on Boxing Day, they could easily be ring-rusty. It has been proven over time by sports scientists that if you have longer than a fortnight off, your fitness is affected dramatically, and punters should consider giving the Irish hosts the swerve in what looks a decidedly dodgy encounter.

Lastly, on paper, Bath and Harlequins look to have massive jobs to keep tabs on their illustrious opponents, Stade Francais and Toulouse respectively. Both sides are over-priced at the moment, however, due to their massive problems earlier on in the season. Harlequins seem to be comoing out of the malaise that ‘Bloodgate’ put over them, and Bath also seem to be getting their act together after their summer drugs scandal. Although neither are likely to win their encounters, both teams can give it a really good go on the handicap, particularly after such a good rest.

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