The 2026 Guinness Six Nations is approaching its climax and this year’s stunning tournament is gearing up for the most fitting of finales on Saturday 14th March, with three teams still in the running to claim the championship.
Ahead of Super Saturday, ‘permutations’ has been the watchword after Scotland’s incredible 50-40 triumph over France in Round 4 created a three-pronged fork in the road.
There are three gargantuan fixtures on Saturday afternoon and evening. First, Ireland will host Scotland at the Aviva Stadium at 2:10pm, before Wales take on Italy in Cardiff at 4:40pm, with France’s skirmish with England following at 8:10pm under the lights at the Stade de France in Paris.
This triple-header will deliver high drama, with every point, try and penalty potentially crucial. The destinations of the Six Nations title, Triple Crown, Centenary Quaich and Wooden Spoon all must be decided by Saturday night, so rugby fans everywhere will need to buckle up.
Ahead of the action, we’ve previewed each of Saturday’s three Six Nations fixtures, with the latest injury news, forecasted line-ups, and free predictions with odds provided by Tonybet’s rugby union markets.
Ireland vs Scotland team news
There was always likely to be a comedown of sorts for Ireland after their historic 42-21 victory over England at Twickenham in Round 3, and their showing against Wales on 6th March lacked fluency.
Tries from Jacob Stockdale, Jack Crowley, Jack Conan and Jamie Osborne helped to secure a 27-17 bonus-point win over the Welsh at the Aviva Stadium, preserving Ireland’s chance of title and Triple Crown glory.
Ireland’s performance in Dublin was clunky at best, however. Captain Caelen Doris said in the aftermath that it was “properly scrappy and lacked a little bit of the clinical edge that we showed a couple of weeks ago.” That was an apt description.
Andy Farrell’s side will have to improve to topple a buoyant Scotland on Saturday, though a reshuffled XV should help in that regard. Farrell made five changes to the team that beat England when picking his team for Wales, so expect him to reverse some of those selection choices against Scotland.
Possible Ireland XV: Loughman, Sheehan, Furlong, McCarthy, Ryan, Beirne, Van der Flier, Doris (c), Gibson-Park, Crowley, O’Brien, McCloskey, Ringrose, Baloucoune, Osborne
Scotland, meanwhile, produced a show-stopping performance to stop the French juggernaut last weekend, toppling the favourites 50-40 in an all-timer of a Six Nations contest at Murrayfield.
In a match that will be remembered for generations to come, wings Darcy Graham and Kyle Steyn both scored doubles, while Pierre Schoeman, Ben White and substitute Tom Jordan also crossed for tries.
The only blot on the Scots’ copybook was the fact that they were 47-14 ahead at one point, before allowing the French to register four tries inside the game’s final quarter.
Scotland’s heroic efforts also came at a cost in terms of injuries. Head coach Gregor Townsend could be without both starting locks Gregor Brown and Scott Cummings in Dublin, while Huw Jones and Kyle Steyn, who both came off in the second half against France, are also doubtful.
Possible Scotland XV: Schoeman, Turner, Rae, Gilchrist, Bayliss, Fagerson, Darge, Dempsey, White, Russell, Steyn, Tuipulotu (c), Jordan, Graham, Kinghorn
Ireland vs Scotland predictions
Tonybet Ireland vs Scotland odds
- Ireland: 1.49
- Draw: 21.00
- Scotland: 2.75
This tussle in Dublin provides the centrepiece of Super Saturday and the implications for the winner and loser on the day are enormous. If England do both Ireland and Scotland a favour against France, this will essentially have been a head-to-head for the Six Nations title.
With home advantage to harness, Ireland have been installed as favourites to win in the match result stakes, while the hosts can also look at a run of 11 successive victories over Scotland for added inspiration.
Farrell’s side have developed a habit of pulling away in the second half against the Scots in recent years – however, Saturday’s game has the potential to be tighter.
Scotland will be supremely confident following their generational performance against France, though their knack for leaving the door open does tend to offset their own potent scoring ability.
Six Nations games involving the Scots this year have been averaging 55.75 points, and the totals markets offer the best value again here in a contest that’s hard to call. Look to the over 48.5 points line at 1.80 with Tonybet here.
Wales vs Italy team news
Wales are bottom of the table with a haul of just one point from four matches, and their losing streak in the Six Nations was extended to 15 fixtures with their loss to Ireland in Dublin last time out. However, there were positives to cling to at the Aviva Stadium.
A 27-17 loss is on the narrow side in terms of margins, while an aggressive Welsh defence made a bone-crunching 240 tackles and suffocated the Irish attack for lengthy periods with their big hits.
That display followed a narrow 26-23 home reverse to Scotland a fortnight ago, in another showing that suggested that this Wales outfit was on the cusp of delivering something positive.
Against Italy on Saturday, Wales are bidding to avoid finishing with the wooden spoon for the third Six Nations tournament in a row, while also trying to land a first win in the competition in almost 1,100 days.
After the team’s flashes of promise in Dublin, captain Dewi Lake said that “the win is coming, I can feel it, it is just around the corner”. Wales must go in search of that victory without the services of injured pair Taine Plumtree and Sam Costelow.
Possible Wales XV: Carré, Lake (c), Francis, Jenkins, Carter, Mann, Botham, Wainwright, Williams, Edwards, Adams, Hawkins, James, Mee, Rees-Zammit
In contrast with Wales, Italy have been exceeding expectations during the 2026 Guinness Six Nations, and their campaign peaked last weekend when they earned a landmark 23-18 win over England in Rome.
Just under 70,000 fans were in attendance for a historic first-ever win for the Italians over the Red Roses. This was their second win of the tournament, adding to their gritty 18-15 triumph over Scotland on 7th February.
Gonzalo Quesada’s side has improved by major strides, with stronger defensive organisation and dangerous counter-attacking making for a potent blend.
Paolo Garbisi, who lodged 13 points against England, has been excellent with the boot and in-game management, while Tommaso Menoncello and Ange Capuozzo provide a genuine X-factor in attack.
Quesada won’t want to unsettle a winning team too much in Cardiff, so expect to see a very familiar-looking Italian side in Wales.
Possible Italy XV: Fischetti, Nicotera, Ferrari, N. Cannone, Zambonin, Lamaro (c), Zuliani, L. Cannone, A. Garbisi, P. Garbisi, Ioane, Menoncello, Brex, Lynagh, Pani
Wales vs Italy predictions
- Wales: 2.75
- Draw: 21.00
- Italy: 1.50
Italy, who have won each of their last two encounters with Wales, are clear favourites ahead of this collision in Cardiff, which is difficult to argue against following their epic triumph over England.
Despite captain Dewi Lake’s assertions that Wales are on the verge of winning a game, their record of four defeats in four games speaks volumes, and this improving Italian team should have weaknesses to target in the Dragons’ ranks.
Still, this Italy team are far from prolific and only Wales (59) have scored fewer points than the Azzurri (62) since the start of the Six Nations.
Another low-scoring affair, similar to Italy’s 22-15 over Wales in February last year, could be in the works as a result, and backing under 45.5 total points at 1.90 with Tonybet looks like a good fit in the circumstances.
France vs England team news
Fabien Galthié’s France had been gliding their way to a successful Six Nations title defence before they hit a major, unexpected roadblock at Murrayfield last weekend, and now Les Bleus need to beat old enemies England to reclaim their crown.
That 50-40 loss to Scotland was an eye-opener for a French side that had looked so unbeatable until that point, and had they not run over a late flurry of consolation tries, their defeat in Edinburgh would have been all the more galling.
France’s display last week arrived out of nowhere after they had dismantled Ireland (36-14), Wales (54-12) and Italy (33-8) with relative comfort in earlier rounds.
Now, Galthié has some planning to do and questions to answer in terms of team selection. Thibaud Flament and Emmanuel Meafou, who played against Italy, were replaced by the Ollivon-Guillard axis in the second row against Scotland, so it will be interesting to see who gets the nod against England.
As always, the kicking of Thomas Ramos will be key. He has accumulated a tournament-high 58 points so far, while the explosive Louis Bielle-Biarrey leads the try-scoring charts with five.
Possible France XV: Gros, Marchand, Aldegheri, Ollivon, Guillard, Cros, Jégou, Jelonch, Dupont (c), Jalibert, Bielle-Biarrey, Moefana, Depoortère, Attissogbe, Ramos
England’s woes at the 2026 Six Nations deepened with their loss to Italy in Rome, and while pre-tournament expectations were modest at best, the Red Roses have still fallen short of them.
Head coach Steve Borthwick is believed to be fighting for his job and a heavy loss in France could seal the deal. That loss to the Italians was the ultimate embarrassment for the England boss, who oversaw the nation’s first-ever loss to the Azzurri.
England lost flanker Tom Curry in the warm-up in Rome, adding to the injury issues in the camp. First-choice scrum-half Alex Mitchell hasn’t played a minute at this year’s Six Nations, while Ollie Lawrence, who missed out against Italy, could be absent again.
Possible England XV: Genge, George, Heyes, Itoje (c), Coles, Pepper, Underhill, Earl, Spencer, Smith, Murley, Atkinson, Freeman, Roebuck, Daly
France vs England predictions
Tonybet France vs England odds:
- France: 1.13
- Draw: 35.00
- England: 6.00
The odds for this one are telling and France seem to hold all of the aces ahead of their clash with England in Paris. The last two meetings between these heavyweights were decided by one point last year (ENG 26-25 FRA) and just three in 2024 (FRA 33-ENG 31), though Saturday’s renewal promises to be more one-sided.
With Steve Borthwick facing the axe, an evening in Paris could provide the final nadir for the 46-year-old. England are short on quality and confidence, and it’s difficult to see how they can live with their classy hosts in any phase.
Even in defeat, France put 40 points on the board against Scotland and they should have too much firepower for England in Paris. Les Bleus can seal the Six Nations title in style at the Stade de France, so back them to cover a -17.5 point handicap at 2.05.
Keep up to date with Tonybet
Super Saturday is guaranteed to be full of twists and the odds will move quickly as the action unfolds. Whether you fancy Ireland to lift the Triple Crown, Italy to cause another upset, or France to seal the championship, Tonybet offers a full range of Six Nations markets, including match winners, handicaps, total points and player try-scorer bets.
