Six Nations 2025 Round Three predictions: Wales v Ireland, England v Scotland and Italy v France rugby tips

The third round of the 2025 Six Nations Championship gets underway this weekend with three more mouth watering ties for rugby fans to enjoy.

It all kicks off in Cardiff where Wales begin a new era after the departure of head coach Warren Gatland. They will have the biggest test possible in the tournament though as they host reigning champions Ireland who are coming off the back of their 32-18 win at Murrayfield in round two.

The second match of the round will see the Calcutta Cup on the line at Twickenham where Scotland are looking for a historic fifth consecutive victory in the fixture. England need to prevent that happening but recent history favours Gregor Townsend’s side.

Finally, the third round concludes on Sunday in Rome where Italy host France. Edinburgh Evening News Sports Editor Martyn Simpson makes his predictions:

Wales vs Ireland

Warren Gatland has fallen on his sword and now Matt Sherratt is the man charged with leading the team in the interim. His first task shouldn’t be focusing on winning this test with Ireland but rather trying to avoid being on the wrong end of a potentially humiliating scoreline.

Wales have to be competitive and keep the Irish out for as long as possible, if the visitors start racking up the scores then this one looks like it could go even higher than their opening round loss to France. If that were to happen in Cardiff then it would be a real low point for this group of players so pride really is on the line for them here.

Our prediction: Ireland to win by 25 points or more. Anything other than an Irish win would be an incredible upset but this is about Welsh pride. They need to get points on the board when the chances are presented to them (easier said than done as Scotland found out in round two) and having 40 or even 50 points put past them in Cardiff is unthinkable so when (rather than if) the visitors start putting points up they need to answer in kind. If they can keep the game competitive they can leave with their heads held high but this one feels like a routine win for the reigning champions.

England vs Scotland

Recent history in this fixture certainly favours Scotland and, let’s have it right, at this moment in time Scotland are the better team. However, Twickenham will be the great equaliser for England and their win over France in round two probably makes them the slight favourites to win this one and bring their run of four consecutive Calcutta Cup losses to an end.

Scotland need a statement victory on the back of the defeat to Ireland otherwise they are quite simply going backwards after all the incredible progress Gregor Townsend has made in his time in charge. It remains to be seen if Finn Russell will be available to play but there is actually decent strength in depth for the Scots now and Tom Jordan’s introduction to test level rugby could hit new heights with a stage like this to shine on.

Our prediction: Scotland to win by 5 to 10 points. Look, we’re going with out heart over our head here. The sensible bet would be on England to win by a one or two score margin but where’s the fun in being sensible? If Ireland have a mental advantage over the Scots that they simply can’t get over then why can’t Scotland have one over England? History beckons as they look for a fifth consecutive Calcutta Cup win for the first time ever.

Italy vs France

In the past this, like most Italy matches, was an easy one to call but less so now. The hosts are such an improved side from as recently as 2-3 years ago and with home advantage you can safely back them to be competitive against most nations in world rugby.

However, France’s defeat to England in round two was possibly the worst thing that could have happened to the Azzurri. The French should have won that but for handling error after handling error which left them red faced and with a huge point to prove as they travel to Rome. Had they won that you could suggest a degree of complacency might just play a part but not now as they aim to answer their critics.

Our prediction: France to win by 15 to 20 points. We expect Italy will be competitive here and give their visitors a real test but France’s scoring power and individual ability should be more than enough to see them through by a comfortable margin. We can certainly see Italy still being in this one at half time but you get the feeling that as the game goes on and the replacements are introduced that it will just be a bridge too far for the hosts.