England vs Samoa Tips: Betting Preview, Predictions & Odds

Not surprisingly, England are heavily odds-on with  to beat Samoa at the weekend and coach Steve Borthwick has plenty of options for the starting line-up.

The potential to rack up a hefty score has become evident during the World Cup and after beating Argentina by 17 points and Japan by 22 points, they thrashed Chile 71-0.

Accused of boring play in some quarters, England have stood steadfastly by their individual game plans and there can be no denying they have worked perfectly up to now. 

Having conceded only 22 points, the lowest of any team in the event, the defence is performing their job perfectly. There is little reason to suppose they will not restrict Samoa to a minimum number of points in this match.

Samoa beat Chile easily enough, which is no surprise, but they looked decidedly moderate when playing higher-quality sides in Japan and Argentina so England should have little to fear on that evidence.

#ad. 18+. Gamble Responsibly. Begambleaware.org. New Customers only. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you three times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Registration Required. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply. - Full Terms Apply

The bookmakers pushed the handicap line up to 21.5 points after the teams were announced but England still look capable of covering that spread.

With starting places in the knockout stages up for grabs, the players will be out to impress the coach from the start and England should be able to get some points on the board early in the game. 

Their kicking game is solid and accurate and with Farrell and Ford starting, we expect plenty of points in that department. They also have players who are more than capable of running in a few tries.

Betting on England winning margin

Winning margins are difficult to predict but with England expected to secure a comfortable success, it could potentially pay off to take a chance on this market.

It is doubtful that England will be able to produce a total demolition job like the one against Chile but a win by more than 30 points does not look out of range and the latest  give punters multiple options in the winning margin market.

With England expected to force penalties against Samoa in the first half and penalty takers Owen Farrell and George Ford in top kicking form, the points could tally up nicely as the game progresses.

England can run in a few tries in the second half, if not before, with a winning margin of between 31-35 points seemingly achievable. 

Farrell on the hunt for points

Captain Owen Farrell requires just two more points to end the 22-year reign of Jonny Wilkinson as the all-time leading point scorer for England. 

He has yet to make a try in 11 appearances in the Rugby World Cup, but if England are cruising to victory in the second half, he may well find himself in a position to do so.

He is offered at huge prices to be the last try scorer of the match but that could be asking for too much and a better option could be a small interest on Farrell in the anytime try scorer market at a general price of 4/1.