What a final weekend! Every single game counts and 8 teams still have a chance to make the top 6!
As it stands, the Bulls and Sharks have their destiny in their own hands, needing a bonus point win to guarantee themselves a place in the final six, but if results go their way before hand, it’s a free ride to the top six!
If the Canes manage to beat the Chiefs, then the Stormers will just need a losing bonus point against the Rebels to top the log! A bonus point win against the Canes, though and they are guaranteed top spot on the log. Miss out on a bonus point against the Canes, and the Stormers could usurp them up top with a bonus point win against the Rebels … Bring that on I say …
The Super Rugby Log going into the weekend:
Chiefs Pld:15 W:12 Pts:63
Stormers Pld:15 W:13 Pts:62
Brumbies Pld:15 W:10 Pts:58
Crusaders Pld:15 W:10 Pts:56
Bulls Pld:15 W:9 Pts:54 (PD 86)
Sharks Pld:15 W:9 Pts:54 (PD 69)
Reds Pld:15 W:10 Pts:53 (PD -4)
Hurricanes Pld:15 W:9 Pts:53 (PD 57)
Highlanders Pld:16 W:9 Pts:46
Cheetahs Pld:15 W:5 Pts:38
Waratahs Pld:15 W:4 Pts:35
Rebels Pld:15 W:4 Pts:31
Blues Pld:15 W:3 Pts:28
Force Pld:15 W:3 Pts:27
Lions Pld:15 W:3 Pts:25
FRIDAY, JULY 13
Hurricanes v Chiefs, Wellington – 09:35
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (RSA)
Assistants: Garratt Williamson (NZL), Keith Brown (NZL)
T.M.O: Mike Fraser (NZL)
What an absolute beaut to start the weekend! Sportingbet will give you 8/5 on the Canes and 4/7 on the Chiefs, which is probably about right. I just can’t see the more consistent Chiefs stumbling at the final hurdle. That said, if Taylor, Jane and Smith can’t upset the log leaders, then not many people will, and I would not need smelling salts to recover if the Wellington boys were to pull this off. Smith vs SBW is like manna from heaven. My only wish out of this game is that the Chiefs do not get a bonus point, so we get to see the Stormers having to play for one … Salivating at the thought …
My prediction: Chiefs by 7
Hurricanes: 15 Andre Taylor, 15 Cory Jane/Alapati Leiua, 13 Conrad Smith (captain), 12 Tim Bateman, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Chris Eaton/Frae Wilson, 8 Victor Vito, 7 Jack Lam, 6 Faifili Levave, 5 Jason Eaton, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Ben May, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Reggie Goodes
Bench: 16 Motu Matu’u, 17 Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, 18 James Broadhurst, 19 Brad Shields, 20 FraeWilson/Jamie Nutbrown, 21 Tusi Pisi, 22 Jayden Hayward
Chiefs: Andrew Horrel, Lelia Masaga, Jackson Willison, Sonny Bill Williams, Robbie Robinson, Aaron Cruden, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Kane Thompson, Tanerau Latimer, Liam Messam, Brodie Retallick, Craig Clarke (c), Ben Tameifuna, Hika Elliot, Toby Smith.
Bench: Mahonri Schwalger, Sona Taumalolo, Michael Fitzgerald, Sam Cane, Brendon Leonard, Asaeli Tikoirotuma, Tim Nanai-Williams.
SATURDAY, JULY 14
Brumbies v Blues, Canberra – 07:30
Referee: Jonathon White (NZL)
Assistants: Ian Smith (AUS), Julian Pritchard (AUS)
T.M.O: Matt Goddard (AUS)
Definitely a potential banana peel for Jake’s boys, but I have bet against them – and got burnt – too many time this season. Sportingbet will give you 4/11 on the Brumbies and 11/4 on the Blues, and it might just be worth having a flutter on those Blues …
My prediction: Brumbies by 7
Brumbies: 15 Jesse Mogg, 14 Henry Speight, 13 Andrew Smith, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Joe Tomane, 10 Zack Holmes, 9 Nic White, 8 Ben Mowen (captain), 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Peter Kimlin, 5 Sam Carter, 4 Scott Fardy, 3 Dan Palmer, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Ben Alexander
Bench: 16 Anthony Hegarty, 17 Ruaidhri Murphy, 18 Leon Power, 19 Fotu Auelua, 20 Ian Prior, 21 Tevita Kuridrani, 22 Robbie Coleman
Blues: 15 Charles Piutau, 14 Lachie Munro, 13 Francis Saili, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Hadleigh Parkes, 10 Michael Hobbs, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Luke Braid, 7 Daniel Braid, 6 Chris Lowrey, 5 Steven Luatua, 4 Liaki Moli, 3 Charlie Faumuina, 2 Keven Mealamu (c), 1 Tony Woodcock.
Bench: 16 Tom McCartney, 17 Tevita Mailau, 18 Andrew Van der Heijden, 19 Peter Saili, 20 Alby Mathewson, 21 Orene Ai’i, 22 Sherwin Stowers.
—–
Crusaders v Force, Christchurch – 09:35
Referee: Glen Jackson (NZL)
Assistants: Keith Brown (NZL), Kane McBride (NZL)
T.M.O: Vinny Munro (NZL)
Nathan Sharpe’s last game, and they have made him skipper, so that will probably have the Perth boys fired up for a bit … But these Crusaders know how to handle the business end of a tournament.
My prediction: Crusaders by 18
Crusaders: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Adam Whitelock, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Richie McCaw (captain), 7 Matt Todd, 6 George Whitelock, 5 Tom Donnelly, 4 Luke Romano, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Ben Franks
Bench: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Samuel Whitelock, 19 Luke Whitelock, 20 Willi Heinz, 21 Tom Taylor, 22 Robbie Fruean
Force: 15 Alfie Mafi, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Patrick Dellit, 12 Rory Sidey, 11 Napolioni Nalaga, 10 Ben Seymour, 9 Brett Sheehan, 8 Lachlan McCaffrey, 7 Angus Cottrell, 6 Richard Brown, 5 Nathan Sharpe (captain), 4 Toby Lynn, 3 Salesi Manu, 2 Nathan Charles, 1 Tetera Faulkner
Bench: 16 Ben Whittaker, 17 Ruan Smith, 18 Pek Cowan, 19 Ollie Atkins, 20 Josh Holmes, 21 Kyle Godwin, 22 Will Tupou
—–
Reds v Waratahs, Brisbane – 11:40
Referee: Steve Walsh (AUS)
Assistants: Andrew Lees (AUS), Angus Gardner (AUS)
T.M.O: Steve Lesczcynski (AUS)
Snoreathon alert! Sportingbet will give you 1/3 on the Reds and 3/1 on the Tahs, which is about right. Tahs might bore the Reds to sleep, but you would think that the defending champs would be up for this, especially with a potential playoff match in the offing …
My prediction: Reds by 7
Reds: 15 Luke Morahan, 14 Dom Shipperley, 13 Anthony Faingaa, 12 Mike Harris, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Will Genia (captain), 8 Scott Higginbotham, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Jake Schatz, 5 Adam Wallace-Harrison, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 James Slipper, 2 Saia Faingaa, 1 Greg Holmes
Bench: 16 James Hanson, 17 Ben Daley, 18 Radike Samo, 19 Beau Robinson, 20 Jarrad Butler, 21 Ben Lucas, 22 Ben Tapuai
Waratahs: 15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Lachie Turner, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Grayson Hart, 8 Dave Dennis, 7 Chris Alcock, 6 Dean Mumm, 5 Kane Douglas, 4 Sitaleki Timani, 3 Paddy Ryan, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson (captain)
Bench: 16 John Ulugia, 17 Jeremy Tilse, 18 Lopeti Timani, 19 Jono Jenkins, 20 Brendan McKibbin, 21 Tom Carter, 22 Tom Kingston
—–
Stormers v Rebels, Cape Town – 15:00
Referee: Lourens vd Merwe (RSA)
Assistants: Mark Lawrence (RSA), Christie Du Preez (RSA)
T.M.O: Shaun Veldsman (RSA)
Messy with Deon Fourie at 8, and smacks of last year’s calling up of Schalk Brits to play 8th man in the last few games. But these are desperate times for the Cape side, and given that Jebb Sinclair cannot play in the playoff games, it makes sense to go for plan B … Which might include Duane Vermeulen. But I would have been inclined to start with one of Don Armand or Tyrone Holmes at 8. But here’s hoping they have to play for a 4 try bonus point to take top spot, and here’s hoping they play some rugby! They certainly have the arsenal to do so …
My prediction: Stormers by 14
Stormers: 15 Joe Pietersen, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Juan de Jongh, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Deon Fourie, 7 Rynhardt Elstadt, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Andries Bekker, 4 De Kock Steenkamp, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Steven Kitshoff
Bench: 16 Brok Harris, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Quinn Roux, 19 Jebb Sinclair, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Gerhard van den Heever
Rebels: 15. Julian Huxley, 14. Mark Gerrard, 13. Mitch Inman, 12. Stirling Mortlock (Captain), 11. Cooper Vuna, 10. James Hilgendorf, 9. Nick Phipps, 8. Gareth Delve, 7. Hugh Perrett, 6. Tim Davidson, 5. Hugh Pyle, 4. Cadeyrn Neville, 3. Jono Owen, 2. Ged Robinson, 1. Rodney Blake
Bench: 16. Luke Holmes, 17. Paul Alo-Emile, 18. Alister Campbell, 19. Ryan Hodson, 20. Nick Stirzaker, 21. Lachlan Mitchell, 22. Richard Kingi
—–
Sharks v Cheetahs, Durban – 17:05
Referee: Jaco Peyper (RSA)
Assistants: Marius Jonker (RSA), Reuben Rossouw (RSA)
T.M.O: Gerrie Coetzee (RSA)
Sportingbet will give you 1/7 on the Sharks and 6/1 on the Cheetahs, which is definitely worth putting a penny or two on … The Sharks were extraordinary last weekend against the Bulls, with Frans Steyn bringing an edge they have seemingly been missing all season. But Bismarck is out this weekend, and even though they welcome back Alberts, Sykes and Lambie, you have to think that the sneaky Cheetahs have a little chane of upsetting the applecart …
My prediction: Sharks by 12
Sharks: 15 Pat Lambie, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Tim Whitehead, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Charl McLeod, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Keegan Daniel (captain), 5 Anton Bresler, 4 Jandre Marais, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Craig Burden, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Bench: 16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Wiehahn Herbst, 18 Pieter-Steph du Toit/Jean Deysel, 19 Willem Alberts, 20 Jacques Botes, 21 Meyer Bosman/Paul Jordaan, 22 Louis Ludik
Cheetahs: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Nico Scheepers, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Barry Geel, 11 Philip Snyman, 10 Riaan Smit, 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Boom Prinsloo, 7 Pieter Labuschagne, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Izak van der Westhuizen, 4 Andries Ferreira, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (captain), 1 Trevor Nyakane.
Bench: 16 Hercu Liebenberg, 17 Marcel van der Merwe, 18 Waltie Vermeulen, 19 Ashley Johnson, 20 Jacques Coetzee, 21 Sias Ebersohn, 22 Andries Strauss.
—–
Bulls v Lions, Pretoria – 19:10
Referee: Craig Joubert (RSA)
Assistants: Lesego Legoete (RSA), Stefan Breytenbach (RSA)
T.M.O: JC Fortuin
The Bulls were woeful against the Sharks last week. Woeful! Spies went MIA again and Olivier was given a lesson by Frans Steyn. But this weekend it’s against the lowly Lions, and while on the up, I just cannot see a Currie Cup side taking out a Super Rugby contender at this stage of the tournament …
My prediction: Bulls by 9
Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 JJ Engelbrecht, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Mornè Steyn, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 Pierre Spies (captain), 7 Dewald Potgieter, 6 Jacques Potgieter, 5 Juandrè Kruger, 4 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1 Dean Greyling
Bench: 16 Willie Wepener, 17 Frik Kirsten, 18 Deon Stegmann, 19 CJ Stander, 20 Jano Vermaak, 21 Louis Fouchè, 22 Francois Venter
Lions: 15 James Kamana, 14 Lionel Mapoe, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Butch James, 11 Anthonie Volminck, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Michael Bondesio, 8 Joshua Strauss (captain), 7 Grant Hattingh, 6 Derick Minnie, 5 Ruan Botha, 4 Hendrik Roodt, 3 Jacobie Adriaanse, 2 Callie Visagie, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg
Bench: 16 Martin Bezuidenhout, 17 Ruan Dreyer, 18 Etienne Oosthuizen, 19 Jaco Kriel, 20 Ross Cronje, 21 JR Esterhuizen, 22 Ruan Combrinck
So come Saturday evening, both the Bulls and Sharks will know what they need to do to make the final six. Question is, will they be playing for a position on the log that gets them a trip to Canberra rather than Christchurch? Could be some sneaky stuff going on in the final ten minutes of each game!
Stock up those coolerboxes and biltong pots my friends … Saturday from 15h00 is going to be epic!!
