Sharks vs Toulouse Prediction: Toulouse can dominate in Durban

European Champions Cup holders Toulouse will look to continue their perfect start to this year’s competition when they travel to Durban to face the Sharks on Saturday (15:15, Premier Sports 1).

Alex Jack provides his best bets for the match at Kings Park as well as all the essential team news and match odds.

European Championship Cup Odds

Team News

The Sharks have been plagued by injuries this season but there does appear to be some light at the end of the tunnel for the South African side.

South Africa internationals Lukhanyo Am and Eben Etzebeth will be missed by the hosts, but the Sharks are set to welcome back Springboks prop Bongi Mbonambi in the front row.

Despite the long journey to South Africa and taking maximum points from their first two pool outings, Champions Cup holders Toulouse have named a strong starting XV.

France scrum-half Antoine Dupont is set to start in a backline that also includes Romain Ntamack, Blair Kinghorn and Thomas Ramos

Match Odds

The Sharks are 100/30 underdogs to come away from Saturday’s game with victory, while Toulouse are 1/4 to make it three wins from three in this season's Champions Cup. The draw is available at 22/1.

Toulouse -12 handicap @ 4/7

Altitude can play a role at other venues in South Africa, such as Loftus Versfeld, but that won’t be an issue for Toulouse when they head to the Durban coast to take on the Sharks at King's Park.

Luckily the forecast for Saturday afternoon is dry and sunny before 24mm of rain hits the Durban area on Sunday.

With temperatures set to reach highs of 29C, Toulouse can look forward to a dry paddock, allowing their star-studded backline to move a big Sharks pack around the field.

And with Dupont and fellow France star Ntamack pulling the strings in the halves, the French visitors will pose a significant threat from all over the field. Don’t be surprised if the reigning champions put on a show and look to break the Sharks line at every possible opportunity.

Toulouse will be eager to wrap up their place in the knockout stages as quickly as possible, so they can switch their attention to keeping pace with Bordeaux at the top of the Top 14 standings, and they should have too much quality for a Sharks side who have struggled with injuries all season.

With that in mind, backing the visitors to successfully give up a 12-point start to their hosts on the handicap looks the way to go.

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