The Crusaders have once again been incredibly well backed early in the lead up to the Super Rugby final, although their short price for the decider has seen less of an avalanche of money coming in on them than the last couple of weeks.
As of Friday morning 88 percent of the money in the Head to Head market is backing the defending champs with bets of $5,000 and $4,980 the biggest wagers on the home side so far.
Despite the strong support for the Crusaders in this market, their Head to Head price has drifted slightly from $1.06 to $1.08, while the Lions are now $1 shorter than when the odds opened.
The Crusaders at 13 and over has also been a very popular option with the punters, attracting 67 per cent of the money in the winning team & margin market. However, one punter is expecting a tight encounter, placing a $1,800 bet on a draw at full time which could return them nearly $56,000.
There are also several long-term bets that could finally come to fruition on Saturday night. Three punters have bets of $29,000 or more on the Crusaders to lift the trophy, the biggest of which is a $40,000 wager placed on 28 June when the Crusaders were paying $2.00 to win the competition.
A $1,000 two leg Multi will also pay out $22,500 if the Crusaders win. The first leg of the Multi, placed on March 1, was France to win the World Cup at $6.
Another punter could be in for a big payday if George Bridge finds his way over the tryline again on Saturday, they placed a $250 bet on him to be Super Rugby's top try scorer in February at $41.
Big Bets riding on the Super Rugby Final.
Super Rugby Outright Winner: $40,000 on Crusaders at $2.00 $30,000 on Crusaders at $1.50 $29,465 on Crusaders at $1.12
Top Try Scorer: $250 on George Bridge at $41 to return $10,250
Multis: France to win the World Cup at $6.00 Crusaders to win Super Rugby at $3.75 $1,000 could return $22,500
Real Madrid to win the Champions League at $1.70 Washington Capitals to win the Stanley Cup at $2.50 Golden State to win the NBA at $1.55 France to win the World Cup at $6.00 Crusaders to win Super Rugby at $3.25 $32 could return $3,936.30
