Well, round 13 didn’t deliver that much-needed win. Will this week be any different?
Waratahs v Sharks (Saturday 11h40)
The Tahs haven’t quite lived up to their billing so far this season; one could argue that with head coach Michael Cheika now also in charge of the national side, they’ve sort of become victims of their success last year. Two very strange losses to the Force, the second coming just last week, have taken a bit of a gloss off the reigning champions; that said, they remain a potent side in Sydney and will be smarting from the up-front drubbing received from the Perth lads.
The Sharks seem to be on a bit of an upward trajectory, despite still not winning in Wellington. The anticipated 50-point drubbing didn’t materialise and while their defence fell far short of the expected standard again, there were some rather encouraging signs in terms of attacking play. Those defensive errors, mind you, are the sort of thing that do not bode well coming up against a side boasting the backline strike runners available to the Waratahs. The problem here is that the Waratahs, unusually for an Australian side, boast a large and formidable pack to go along with their dangerous runners and having been schooled the week before, those lads will be keen to atone for their poor performance.
Not too much evidence, I’m afraid, to suggest a Sharks win this weekend, much though we’d love to believe otherwise. For the boys to prevail, they’ll need a drastic turnaround on defence and to put in the performance of their lives upfront – perhaps tricky giving how many players in the squad must surely be carrying injuries into the game. Let’s also not underestimate the effect of the dreaded “week three on tour” syndrome.
We’ll look for a good performance from the Sharks, but I expect the Waratahs to win by about 8 points.
Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Rob Horne, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Stephen Hoiles, 5 David Dennis (captain), 4 Will Skelton, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements – from: Hugh Roach, Jeremy Tilse, Paddy Ryan, Mitchell Chapman, Jed Holloway, Jack Dempsey, Tala Gray, Pat McCutcheon, Brendan McKibbin, Matt Carraro, Peter Betham.
Sharks: 15 Lwazi Mvovo, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Sibusiso Sithole, 10 Lionel Cronje, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Renaldo Bothma, 7 Etienne Oosthuizen, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Marco Wentzel (captain), 4 Stephan Lewies, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Dale Chadwick, 18 Lourens Adriaanse, 19 Mouritz Botha, 20 Kyle Cooper, 21 Conrad Hoffmann, 22 Andre Esterhuizen, 23 Waylon Murray.
In other games, I expect the following winners:
Bulls by 4.
Reds by 3.
Hurricanes by 6.
Lions by 2.
Highlanders by 10.

mmmm . Lions by 2 . Worked for you last weekend .
Centers are going run through JP expect Steyn is going have to double his workload.
Like my picks in all but the Reds game…
So…after weeks of craziness, travel and Little sleep things slow down for me a bit and I get to watch a bit of Rugby. In the interests of those who cannot watch, here come some updates…
Oh my word…in the second Minute the Bulls kick a very kickable Penalty to the Corner, rumble up dominantly, but are somehow kept out by the Blues. They looked for all Money like scoring…
TMO to check for Bulls try…check for obstruction…
No try…Flip van der Merwe took a Player out in front of the ball…Penalty Blues…
That was pretty clear…
Bulls all over the Blues…advance 30 metres…and then earn a penalty…
Bulls go for the 3 points…and Pollard nails it…3-0 after 8 minutes…
Now the Blues hard on the attack…and the Blues win a penalty…
Sharks by 4 reads my Superbru prediction. I felt like being loyal to the boys.
I am just hoping for some fire again. And very excited about the 9 10 axis. Felt Cronje got us going nicely he did make mistakes , I just feel with game time he will gain much experience.
@YamYam (Comment 12) : I feel it was Ungerer that got us going.
Blues 3 – 3 Bulls
16 minutes.
Blues 10 – 6 Bulls
19 minutes.
Go Blues!
@Ben (Comment 13) : You could be right. I really liked his crisp service. But it was not just crisp it was accurate.
@YamYam (Comment 17) : I feel Fred would do well too with Ungerer at 9.
Sorry about the break…phone call…I’m back and the Blues lead 10-6 after 24 minutes…
@Ben (Comment 18) : Fred sits too deep in the pocket. And that is a confidence issue so perhaps in time but now I would play Cronje
Blues with a defensive scrum 5m from their line and their clear their line well…
Blues prop intercepts the ball…but it all ends up pretty messy…
The Bulls win a scrum penalty and Pollard kicks it out deep in the Blues 22…
Bulls setup a lineout drive but get nowhere. Good defence Blues…
The Bulls still have it and are picking and going with the forwards…
Finally it goes the backs, but they make a mistake – poor pass and a knock on…
Half an hour gone…still 10-6 Blues…
Bulls have spent 10 minutes (ONE THIRD of the game) in the Blues 22, but can’tseem to score…
Oh great try Bulls. Wonderful half break by Pollard and he offloads it to Serfontein who scores next to the posts…
Momentum gets him over. Good work by Pollard!
Pollard converts and it is 13-10 after 33 minutes…
Bulls have 83% Territory!!
Now the Blues drive powerfully…they are on the Bulls 22…
The Blues get a penalty right out in front after some nice play by the halfbacks…
The Blues will take the shot at goal…
He nails it – the ball flying into an empty stand! – and it is 13-13 after 36 minutes…
The Blues have another penalty on the 22 right in front…
Spies has given away some pretty daft penalties…
The Blues lead 16-13 just short of halftime…
The Blues have defended very well against the Bulls maul…
Bulls kick it out on the full!
The half ends with a missed drop goal attempt by West and the Blues lead at the half 16-13…
The Blues lead with hardly any possession or territory!!
The Bulls were very good in the first 30 minutes…not so much in the last 10…should be an interesting second half…
The Blues try came from a poor kick by Pollard – his left foot didn’t look to great there…and the Blues fullback ran straight through!
Other than that Pollard has played very well…
Aside: Jeepers some of these ads are swak!
John Kirwan looks a bit stressed…but his men have done well in this game so far…
Victor Matfield has neer experienced victory at Eden Park. Will that change in the next 40?
Victor Matfield has never experienced victory at Eden Park. Will that change in the next 40?
@pastorshark (Comment 49) : Hope not! 😈
The Blues have a lineout on the Bulls’ 40…
Huge drive by the Blues off George Moala in the centre…
But the ball doesn’t come out and the Bulls win the turnover scrum…
Bulls win a scrum penalty…
Good scrumming by van der Merwe against Woodcock…
Good play by the Bulls…they carry it through several phases…
The Blues counterruck so well and win the penalty. Great breakdown defence…
The Bulls win the lineout against the throw…good work Flip!
Good work by the Bulls backs, but at the breakdown Luatua gets in there…and knocks it on…
Bulls have a scrum on Blue 22…
Good defence by the Blues and they clear it from a metre from their line…
The Bulls need to use some of these opportunities…
Bulls lienout on the 22…and a good maul…
As it goes out to the backs, the Bulls are held up and the Blues get a turnover scrum from that maul…
Great defensive work by George Moala!
Holdup for injury…it is still 16-13 after 49 minutes…
The Blues clear again from a defensive scrum…
Jesse Kriel is isolated, the Blues drive over the ruck and win the penalty…
The Blues don’t kick the penalty out…that was poor!
Haha Ben! Ja would be good to have these bulls supporters shut up for a change. They seem to be the most verbal about the sharks and the struggles quickly forgetting their own lackluster the past 2 years.
The Bulls in turn don’t find touch and the Blues look dangerous as their backs run it. Finally a little knock off a poor pass spoil that…
Two flankers for the Bulls are replaced…du Plessis and Stegmann on…
Great, great try by the Bulls!
A huuuuge scrum by the Bulls and then great work by the Bulls backs…and Serfontein scores his second…
Might have been a forward pass in there somewhere, but the try is awarded…
Pollard misses the conversion but the Bulls lead 16-18…
Luatua looks like he has broken something…the Blues are going to lose their captain. Luatua hurt in a tackle on Spies…
That was really a top try…
Play held up as the cart comes on for Luatua…
18-16 after 54 minutes…
The Bulls take the ball into contact, set up the maul and g a penalty when the Blues collapse it…
Luatua’s shoulder was the issue…looks like a long time on the sidelines…
The Blues are still playing though…a kick on Page…and when he took it, he hurt his knee and got caught in possession…
Page looks like he’s gone…Blues have a lineout on attack…
Well, Paige stays on…
The Bulls turn it over…and Serfontein looks good again! A fair bit f kicking now…
A bit pointless by West and Pollard…until Kriel regathers a Pollard kick and the Bulls are on the attack…
The Bulls stuff it up with a knock and the Blues had a chance to counter…but the Bulls defence shut that down.
Blues scrum…
Paige off now…
Hougaard goes to scrumhalf…
Jeepers Moala is a beast…so tough to bring down!
Kriel gets caught in possession twice and the Bulls under huge pressure.
The Bulls run it from their ingoal area…and knock it!!
Someone on here once scolded me for suggesting that JJ Engelbrecht has poor hands…but Jeepers he has poor hands!!
Blues with an attacking scrum…and they get a free kick for early shove by the Bulls…
The Blues are right on the line…Moala was a beast again!
Good defence by the Bulls forces the Blues into touch just short of the line!
The Bulls win a very scrappy lineout, but they clear well…
Bulls sub their props…
The Blues win a good lineout and now attack on the Bulls 22…
The Blues look soooo dangerous when they run it. Kriel defended well in the corner and takes it out.
The Bulls get the lineout when Kriel clearly took it out…that was a bit lucky. The Bulls clear…
The Blues have a lineout in the 22…
The Blues forwards drive to within 10 of the line…
The Blues are on the line now…good play by them! Great tackle by du Plessis…but Moala scores!!!
Moala has been an absolute Beast! He picked that up from the breakdown and wasn’t going to be stopped that close to the line. Just a brilliant try. Patient…
West nails the conversion and that makes it 23-18 after 69 minutes…
Beckhuis was elbowed by his own man!! 😯
Bulls win the ball off the kickoff, but then end the move poorly and get pushed into touch…
Blues win a penalty and can relieve the pressure…
9 minutes left…Bulls down by 5…
The Blues have been good in the second half…
Oh dear…Sailii knocks the ball on with an open try line!!
Oh dear…will that cost them the game!!
The Bulls have certainly lost some dominance with the front row substitutions…Greyling is pretty useless…
Better scrum by the Bulls, but the ref orders a reset…
Come on Blues! Hold on!
Another reset…
Time ticking away…4 minutes to go…
Finally the Bulls win the penalty and Pollard puts it out short of halfway…
The Bulls set up the driving maul…and milk another penalty advantage…
A shocking pass results in the penalty and Pollard puts it into touch just outside the 22…
Two average kicks by Pollard there…
The Blues defend the maul well, if not entirely legally…but the Bulls still have the ball…
The Blues win the turnover penalty…and that could be it…
They win the lineout and will now play for the hooter…
Very, very poor decision by the ref there! Should have been a Bulls scrum for the Blues taking it into the maul. He gives the Blues the put in…jeepers!
The Blues clear the ball off the scrum and Cowan punts it into touch for the win!!
FULL TIME
BLUES 23 – 18 BULLS
Final score: 23-18…
Well done Blues!
The Bulls will be kicking themselves!
@pastorshark (Comment 129) : It wasn’t a maul.
The Bulls showed some great touches…but there was just too much inaccurate passing that stopped the momentum again and again. Well done Blues…
The South African Conference just got more interesting. A win for the Lions against the Brumbies will put them top of the pile!
The Bulls had plenty of opportunity, but didn’t make use of them…
In the second half the kicking game of the Bulls was poor, particularly Pollard’s…
John Mitchell: “The Bulls were too arrogant about a forward dominated game…” Fair enough comment…
remind me never to pick a win for these guys on the road.
@robdylan (Comment 141) : Yeah…same here! That doesn’t help my Superbru!! Oh well…
@robdylan (Comment 141) :
@pastorshark (Comment 142) :
Had blues by 9!
Win and margin for me!
The Reds-Rebels game should be interesting. Potential for me to go 0 from 2 for Superbru…
@Greg (Comment 143) : Well played!!
Ai…more swak ads!
Here we go with game 2…
The Rebels kick off and the Reds tidy up the receive and clear…
The kick is not out and the Rebels go through the phases…
How did Breyton ever get a career in broadcasting,the guy is a gibbering idiot.
A Reds player is taken out without the ball and they get a penalty…
Nice open game so far…and the Reds win a penalty on halfway…
Great lineout win by the Reds and they attack in the 22…
Oh my wooooooord!! The Rebels score a 95m try!! Naivalu just brilliant…pace, huge swerve and burns the defence!!!
0-7 after 6 minutes!
The Rebels play it up through the phases off the kickoff and eventually win a penalty. Harris will take a shot from out wide…
He just missed it to the left and it stays 0-7…
More great play by the Rebels, but just can’t get the final pass out. Great break by Higginbotham…
The Rebels win the scrum penalty. Out wide again…this time they kick for the corner…
The Rebels attack 5 out…
The Reds steal it after defending for plenty of phases…but the ball is not cleared far…
The Rebels get to within 5m again and there is another turnover!! This time the clearance kick is huge…
Now the Reds almost score…but Genia just can’t gather the pass…
Entertaining stuff…still 0-7 after 17 minutes…
The Reds get some reward for good play and O’ Connor kicks a penalty to make it 3-7 after 20 minutes…
More good play by the Reds…they almost get through again, but again the final pass juuust doesn’t go to hand…
Now a penalty for the Rebels makes it 103 after 26 minutes…
Great continuous play by the Reds sees them win another penalty! If they play like this we will have a tough time of it next week!
The Reds kick the penalty and make it 6-10 on the half hour mark…
Naivalu scores again…ohhh and I wanted to include him in my fantasy league team…but didn’t! Dou!!!
Jeepers…more controversy in the whole using the big screen debate. the penalty was awarded, the conversion about to be taken…the producer shows the knock on the big screen…and then they check!
But what the hell?! They check…a clear knock by the blue player is obvious on the close in shot…but they award the try because there is no clear evidence! Oh my word!!!
The conversion is good and it is 6-17 after 34 minutes…
Great play by the Reds and a brilliant try by Rob Simmons. What a game this is turning out to be!
The missed conversion means its 11-17 after 37 minutes…
It is halftime> 11-17…
The Reds have been really good in the second half…18-17 after 50 minutes…
And they score again…three tries…23-17, conversion to come…
The conversion is a good and the Reds are full value for a 25-17 lead…
Reds 46 – 29 Rebels
78 minutes.
wouldn’t it be just so typical if the Reds decide to hit form now
FULL TIME
REDS 46 – 29 REBELS
Is this the weekend for the bottom dwellers to upset? I hope so, since we are also now of their cadre.
The Reds played very well today!!
Go the Sharks,dig deep and shut the negative moaners on this site up.
Big game today from FRANS and J.PP.
Sharks by 15.
Hurricanes 7 – 3 Chiefs
16 minutes.
Hurricanes 7 – 6 Chiefs
25 minutes.
Tight game between Chiefs and Canes…even contest…7-6 after 25 minutes…
Hurricanes 10 – 6 Chiefs
38 minutes.
Half Time
Hurricanes 10 – 13 Chiefs
Hurricanes 15 – 13 Chiefs
48 minutes.
Still a tight game…Chiefs lost both locks and have 5 loosies on the field…and are doing very well to hold the Canes in the tight exchanges…
Still 15-13 after 63 minutes…
Nonu with the intercept…all over red rover!
A very sharp intercept there…
Hurricanes 22 – 13 Chiefs
69 minutes.
In the game in which Nonu and Smith Play together for the 50th time Nonu scores his 50th try…
That makes it 22-13 after 70 minutes now…
The Chiefs just aren’t giving up! Try to Cane…
The conversion is pulled to the left and that leaves it at 22-18 with 5 minutes to go…
Hurricanes 22 – 18 Chiefs
76 minutes.
The Chiefs score to take the lead!!
TMO to check…
He’s knocked it…but did the Canes player play the ball on the ground to make the Chief knock it?! Anyway, the try has been disallowed…
What a huge decision that was in the context of the game and the New Zealand context…
The outmanned Chiefs scrum crunches the Canes and gets a turnover…5m scrum to the Chiefs as the hooter goes…
second week in a row that the Hurricanes saved by a dodgy call from Vinny Monro
Wow!
FULL TIME
HURRICANES 22 – 18 CHIEFS
The Canes scrum gets its revenge and puts in a huge one, crunching the Chiefs and getting the penalty! That is it…
What a game…the Canes win it 22-18. So close and maybe a little lucky. You have to take your hats off to the Chiefs!
Oh dear…the Tahs score in the first minute!!!
Right…I am over this morning…ref was crap, Sharks were frustrating…but once more the “Stockdale Paradox” (go ahead: Google it)
has helped make it through
I’m looking forward to the two games tonight!
I hope the Lions beat the Brumbies…should be a good game!
Go Lions!
The Lions really are playing lovely rugby!
Lions with a lovely phase of play – they earn penalty and will take a shot at goal…
Jantjies nails it and it is 3-0 after 7 mins…
White has already received a warning from the ref for throwing the ball away and will get a yellow if it happens again…
Huge scrum from the Lions and they win the penalty…
Jantjies puts it out just outside the 22…
This time the Brumbies win a penalty at the breakdown…
Mogg is taking a shot from the other side of his 10m line…but it is away to the left…it just about had the legs…
The Brumbies are penalised at the breakdown again and the ref has a word with the captain…he has penalised Pocock twice now and warned them that a card may come…
Now Combrink is taking a long-range shot…60m…
And he nails it…comfortably had the distance!! 6-0 after 13 mins…
Jeepers but officials are missing a lot this year. Nic White was allowed to take the quick throw into the lineout IN FRONT of where the touch judge had his flag up…
Now the Brumbies get a penalty and Lealiifano kicks it over…6-3 after 15 mins…
A couple of turnovers lead to pressure on the Lions. Mapoe falling back clears it under pressure…
Very good play by the Brumbies through several phases! Kuridrani scores…very good!!
The conversion is wide and it is 6-8 to the Brumbies after 19 minutes…
More VERY good play by the Brumbies and they score again…
The Lions did brilliantly at the kick off to win the ball back, but a knock on led to a counter attack and a brilliant try.
The conversion is good this time and the Brumbies lead 6-15 after 22 mins…
Jantjies runs himself into all sorts of trouble! Now the Brumbies have a scrum deep in the Lions 22…
Toomua is off…that doesn’t look too good for him…
The Lions win a scrum penalty again and they can relieve the pressure…
Oh no…a poor pass by Robbie Coetzee leads to an intercept and a try under the posts for the Brumbies…
That makes it 6-22…but more poor officiating by Jaco Peyper. He says it was over the 15m line and therefore no off sides line from the lineout…oh my word, it was nowhere near over the 15m line. Poor officiating again…
Great maul by the Lions earns them an advantage…and the penalty…
The Lions kick it for the corner and will go for the maul here…
A wonderful move by the Lions, but Coetzee knocks it on and it comes to nothing! Robbie has had a nightmare last 5 minutes…
Surely the Lions should have mauled that up there…that was a bit of a panicky moment…just keeping it tight surely must have led to a try!
6-22 after 32 minutes…
Sjoe…interesting stat there: 25% of all penalties in this Super Season have been scrum penalties…hmm…
The Brumbies get a kickable penalty…and Lealiifano misses a sitter!
Lovely run by Vorster, but he just loses it as a Brumbies player rips it from his grasp…
Another scrum reset…
And another reset…
And…not a penalty…wow…that was unexpected…
Nice turnover by the Lions…but kicked away by Combrink…hmmm…
The Lions get a penalty and will take a shot after the hooter for halftime…
It is a long range shot again…this time Jantjies just pulls it to the right…
6-22 at halftime…it is a deserved lead for the Brumbies…they displayed very good hands and running lines and their continuity and quick recycling is something we can just dream about!
In other news: after leading 1-0 at halftime, my team Newcastle had another poor half and a 2-1 loss leaves them staring relegation in the face!
Newcastle have to beat West Ham next week or hope that Hull fail to win against Manchester United to stay up! That will be the first time as in almost ever that I support Manchester United!! 🙂
Oh dear…
This is going to be one of those sporting weekends isn’t it?!
The Lions have trailed in 8 of their last 9 matches at haltime…
…and have won 7 of those 9 games…
Jantjies steps on the line for his clearance kick…he’s not having a great game!
Whitely does really well to keep the maul up and the Lions get the put in at the scrum…
The Lions win another scrum penalty…good kick by Jantjies…
More unforced errors by the Lions…penalty Brumbies…
Mogg will take another long-range shot…
He misses it again and it remains 6-22…
The Lions are very messy at the breakdown and the Brumbies turn it over and attack! The Lions are very lucky that they do not concede a try there…the last pass goes astray…
The Lions get ANOTHER scrum penalty…
The Brumbies win another turnover…oh my word…
That was a very good clearance kick by Jantjies…
6-22 after 50 minutes…
The Lions really need to score soon…but they are not showing much patience. Again they put pressure on the Brumbies but then spoil it with a silly error…
The Brumbies look dangerous every time they swing the ball…this time it ends in a knock though…
The Lions counterattack also ends in a knock and now the Brumbies attack again…
Now the Lions win a defensive breakdown penalty..
Peyper is missing a fair bit…the Brumbies chaser was well in front of the kicker…and Peyper was in position to see it…not great…
The Brumbies have another attacking scrum…
…and the Lions win another scrum penalty! …which is not kicked out…
The Lions have made a lot of mistakes…just not enough composure…
Great kick by Combrink…lineout 5m out…now maul it!!
Well, win the lineout first!! Poor lineout and the Brumbies can clear…
Now the do set up the maul, but the Brumbies hold it up and win the turnover…
Frustrating stuff for Lions supporters…still 6-22…
The Lions need to score in the next 5 minutes…or this game is over…
The Lions take it through numerous phases and still keep going…
Kriel scores!! They need that…excellent try!
Jantjies converts and that makes it 13-22…
Now the Lions are playing…where was this in the first 60 minutes!
They take it through multiple phases, but finally lose it forward at the breakdown!
Now the Brumbies win a scrum penalty! The last two scrums have been all Brumbies…hmm…
The Brumbies kick it into the corner to go for the bonus point…
The Lions hold up the maul well…
The Lions got the turnover but then knocked it…
An attacking scrum…10m out and in the middle of the field…
Another huuuuge scrum by the Brumbies…what has happened there?! And the Brumbies score in the corner…
Try Tomane…
Lealiifano hits the upright with the conversion and it is 13-27…
Lions getting schooled
Ag man…another unforced silly error by the Lions! And Mogg will take another long range shot!
Third time lucky…13-30!
The Lions score a try…good work there…but too little of that…
That makes it 20-30…but with only a minute to go…
The hooter has gone…
Final score: 20-30…
The Lions almost scored at the end, but Vorster just didn’t have enough support…
The Brumbies did deserve that win…
The Lions just didn’t quite have the composure tonight…
@The hound (Comment 299) : Almost as bad as the Sharks in their last six games.
@The hound (Comment 299) : The Brumbies were much the better side…
My Superbru has been a shocker this weekend!
I think the Cheetahs are getting a hiding tonight.
Right…next game…will it be a big duck for the South African sides this weekend…
@Ben (Comment 312) : In that case I would at least get something out of my Superbru weekend!
Brummer gets us going…
And that’s why props don’t play in the backline…shocking pass by Minnie…
Highlanders start at a high tempo, but it ends with a 5m lineout for the Cheetahs as the wing is bundled into touch…
@pastorshark (Comment 314) : What’s your margin for this one?
@Ben (Comment 318) : If I remember correctly, I took a pot at 18!
@pastorshark (Comment 319) : Sounds good.
The Highlanders steal the lineout ball…
Good defence Cheetahs, but the Highlanders have a 5m scrum…
Wonderful try for the Highlanders. Great cross kick by Sopoaga and the debutant winger scores in the corner…
Tongia scores…here we go!
Sopoaga nails the conversion and it is 0-7 after 5 minutes…
Wow…great run out of their 22 from the kickoff but an unfortunate knock on ends the move for the Highlanders…
The Highlanders get a tighthead but it is a really poor kick from Sopoaga…he should have swung that…
The Cheetahs defended very well there and cleared it beautifully…
More good variation by the Landers, but Buckman knocks the attempted regather…
Now the Cheetahs lose it forward…apparently the field is wet…
Stu Berry is our ref for this one…let’s see some better officiating please…
Good scrum by the Cheetahs…Smith under a bit of pressure sends a grubber downfield and into touch…
The Highlanders steal another lineout, but Aaron Smith is in front of the kicker and is penalised…
The Highlanders are penalised again and the Cheetahs will have a shot…
Brummer nails it and makes it 3-7 after 14 minutes…
The Highlanders can’t take the high ball and the Cheetahs attack…
The Highlanders win the penalty at the breakdown…
The Highlanders have a lineout deep in Cheetahs territory…
A second try for Tongia…
TMO checks the grounding and it is awarded!
Sopoaga nails another touchline conversion…3-14 after 18 minutes…
Another great kick by Sopoaga…the Cheetahs have to take it out and the Highlanders have an attacking lineout…
The Highlanders hard on attack, but a daft breakdown entry gifts the Cheetahs a penalty…
The Highlanders are pretty dominant…
What a try by Smith!!
Great build up, great inside flick, great take, great try!
Sopoaga misses this touchline conversion but it is 3-19 after 26 minutes…all Highlanders…
The Cheetahs get their hands on the ball, but knock it…
Looks like a bonus point should be done and dusted by halftime…
And there it is…
Every conversion has been from the touchline for Sopoaga…he makes it 3 from 4 and it is 3-26…
Poor kick by Blommetjies gives the Highlanders another lineout in the Cheetahs half…
The try was scored by Osborne who snuck in in front of Fekitoa…
Now the Highlanders have a free kick…
Still the Highlanders make all the running…
Perhaps I was a bit conservative with my Superbru margin…
Now the Cheetahs have a chance to attack…but concede a breakdown penalty!
Sopoaga will take a shot!!
He has pulled this one and it remains 3-26 just about on halftime…
And that is halftime…
The Landers have been all over the Cheetahs…
Nick Mallet: Cheetahs out thought, outclassed, outplayed!
Watching the Highlanders play like this makes you kind of sad about what our sides are dishing up…
Naka Drotske is not chuffed…
Stu Berry has sorted out his audio and the second half gets underway…
The Cheetahs start the half with a good maul, but the Highlanders field the resulting kick well…
Rhule is on the field…
And his very first contribution is to take out Osborne in the air!
Once Stu has sorted out his audio for real he could get yellow for that…
…and he does…
Aaron Smith scores!! Just all Highlanders…
So he should have been my fantasy league captain…at least he is in my side…
The conversion is good and it is 3-33…
Ouch!
Wow…the Cheetahs get it from the kick off…look like scoring…stuff it up and the Landers take it 90 metres to score…just great stuff!
@Ben (Comment 374) : Yup…
Another touchline conversion…missed…3-38…
This could get ugly!!!
The Cheetahs have a penalty and try to kick it to the corner…and kick it touch in goal…wow!
Now they get a freekick from the scrum…
Now a penalty…and this time Blommetjies does kick it out in the corner…
Cheetahs attack hard…but spill it 5m out and the Landers clear…
A counterattack would have been trouble there…instead the flanker kicked it… 😯
The Cheetahs have a scrum in the Highlanders 22…
Hard to believe there are still 25 mins left…
Reset…reset…reset…
And a penalty…
(Where have I seen that before!?)
Highlanders can clear…
A comedy of errors sees the Highlanders almost score and then the Cheetahs counterattack!
And it all ends in another error as the Cheetahs knock it…
It is getting very scrappy now!
Cheetahs score!!! Blommetjies scores a beauty…
Ag shame…forward pass in there…so no try!
😯
Ja no…all stop start scrappy now!
Cheetahs hard on attack…
Finally! Benjamin in the corner…lovely offload by Brits…
The Cheetahs score another beauty!!
Respectability…17-38…
More great play Cheetahs and they are on the attack again…
5m lineout Cheetahs…
Hi Cheetahs. Where have you been? Welcome back!
The Cheetahs score again! TMO to check…
Sooo…try awarded…24-38…
2 tries in 8 minutes required to tie it up!!
The Cheetahs attack again but pass it out…
@pastorshark (Comment 405) : Make that 3 tries in 5 minutes. 🙂
Great try by Ben Smith!
From the lineout the Highlanders attacked…Ben Smith put a beautiful little grubber through and gathered it himself to score…
@pastorshark (Comment 409) : Beautiful to the naked eye, but should have been a knock on.
The Cheetahs attack again…it’s been all action in the last 15 minutes…
The Cheetahs lost 6 lineouts tonight!
@Ben (Comment 410) : This is true…
Time’s up…the Cheetahs still attacking…final lineout…
Game over…24-45…
So I got my win point and my margin point for Superbru there…
Entertaining stuff…except for a patch in the middle there…
@pastorshark (Comment 416) : Nice!
@Ben (Comment 418) :
Good night all…it was nice to have a rugby weekend again…first one in a loooong time!