United Rugby Championship semi-final predictions: champions Munster can grind their way to another final

Where to watch 

Bulls vs Leinster
Premier Sports 1, 3pm Saturday

Munster vs Glasgow
Premier Sports 1, 6pm Saturday

Best bet

Munster to win by one to 12 points
1pt 11-8 bet365

Predictions

Leinster start every campaign as strong favourites but they have lost the last three European Champions Cup finals and face a tough test against the Bulls in Pretoria to avoid a third successive semi-final exit in the United Rugby Championship.

It was the Bulls who inflicted the first of those with a shock 27-26 victory in Dublin in 2022. Leinster came out on top convincingly when the teams met on Irish soil this season, winning 47-14 in March, but lost heavily on their two visits to South Africa against the Stormers and Lions, albeit with a heavily depleted squad.

It's an incredibly tough match to weigh up and a trip to Loftus Versfeld is a huge challenge, even for a side as packed with internationals as Leinster.

The Bulls won eight of nine home games in the regular season but are rated six-point underdogs. Those games produced huge points tallies of 49, 54, 58, 62, 74, 80, 84, 85 and 91.

The one team who managed to win in Pretoria were Munster, who edged a 27-22 success, and they can muscle their way over the line against Glasgow in Saturday's second semi-final.

Munster have been involved in some close battles this season and with rain forecast for much of the day in Limerick scoring action may be limited but the hosts look too strong.

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