Let’s get straight into these and see how they’re likely to pan out.
Hurricanes v Stormers (Friday 09h35)
Look, I don’t think the Stormers are going to manage to ship fifty points for a third successive week – I mean, surely at some point some level of pride has to kick in and allow them to at least keep the score down, right? That said, there’s basically zero chance of them winning, especially given their injury toll, so let’s call a Hurricanes win by 15 points.
Cheetahs v Highlanders (Friday 19h00)
This one could actually go either way and I have a funny feeling the Cheetahs could cause a surprise here. The Highlanders, despite their big win over the Stormers, really aren’t among the top Kiwi outfits this season and we’ve yet to see how they’ll travel. Closing my eyes, holding my nose and picking the Cheetahs to win this by 5 points.
Rebels v Lions (Saturday 07h00)
Hard to see this one going the home team’s way – they have just taken a hammering from the Kings and will have to combat travel fatigue, whereas the Lions have enjoyed a much shorter journey from Perth. Nope, this is Lions by 20 points, easily.
Chiefs v Reds (Saturday 09h35)
Let’s see, a top Kiwi team against a rubbish Aussie one, in New Zealand? Not hard. Chiefs by 15.
Waratahs v Blues (Saturday 11h45)
Same as before – even the poorer Kiwi teams aren’t going to struggle against the awful Tahs in 2017. Blues to win by 8.
Sharks v Force (Saturday 15h05)
Please, God, please. Let this one just go according to the script? The Sharks could hardly have picked a better team… Sharks by 20?
Bulls v Crusaders (Saturday 17h15)
Have the Bulls turned the corner? Well enough to beat the Crusaders? Umm, no. They haven’t. Crusaders by 10.
Jaguares v Sunwolves (Saturday 23h40)
The competition newcomers square up in this clash, but you’d be mad to bet on the Wolves winning here. Jaguares by 12 points.
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I don’t know about that Cheetahs pick…
@vanmartin (Comment 1) : I kinda like that Cheetah pick,
but disagree totally with Stormers one,Ethbeth and du Toit have scuttled back home to lick their wounds.New Zealanders have always found the Stormers to be arrogant and the Hurricanes have been scoring at least 7 tries a game,huuuuge hiding on the way.
Blues are on an upward curve going to be big score here as well.
Reckon Stormers are going to cop an almighty hiding. Canes to average a point a minute. Stormers sound like they have2 feet on the plane already.
Bulls to cause an upset.
@McLovin (Comment 4) : Hope you are not a betting man, you will probably loose a few rands with that prediction 😉
@The hound (Comment 2) : I thought everyone found them arrogant. 😈
@HeinF (Comment 5) : You never know. Stranger things have happened. 😀
I’ll still get my picks done, but basically only disagree with the Cheetahs pick. It’ll be closer than one might think, but I still reckon the Landers will be too strong…
@McLovin (Comment 7) : like Sharks drawing against Rebels 😥 😥 😕
@McLovin (Comment 7) : true…springboks and Italy jump to mind…
Most of this week’s picks are no brainers. But Cheetahs for a win? Seriously? Don’t think so. Cheetahs to miss by 7.
@coolfusion (Comment 11) : Cheetahs to win the first half, then lose it when it matters most – kinda like Hillary 🙂
So I went:
Canes by more than Rob
Highlanders by two tries or so
Lion by aa bit less than Rob
Chiefs by quite a bit
Blues by a touch
Sharks comfortably
Crusaders by enough
Jaguars by a dozen or so
@pastorshark (Comment 13) : agreed with the choices
Wat n freakish try by Jordi Barret, Carr should let his team mates kick his ass
Beaudon Barrett isa very special rugby player could go onto be best no10 ever.
@HB (Comment 15) : Behind the line. How much trouble would it be for Carr to hang on until he secured it? I hope his mates really do kick his ass for that one.
@The hound (Comment 16) : He ok, but he’s no Naas. 😉
Savea just ran over kolbe like he didn’t even exist
@RuckingFun (Comment 19) : midget wingers not cutting the grade anymore.
Kobus has been superb and hoping for Nkosi to play his part
poor kicking at goal is going to cost the canes at some point. This game should not have been close at all
Nice quick clean service from the scrumhalf every pass is strong and accurate wasting no time from the base to reciever.
@Kabouter (Comment 20) : @RuckingFun (Comment 19) : Agreed, very excited to have Kobus back. Like I said on the other thread, he was the competitions leading line and tackle breaker before he was injured. That’s some feat if you take into consideration who he’s competing with in those stats, Savea being a case in point.
@Quintin (Comment 23) : Hope he hits the ground running…players normally take a game or two to hit their straps after an injury.
I like that the Sharks are one of the few SA sides to employ bigger wings….no place for small rugby players, ‘cept maybe for scrumhalf and fullback.
Big skilled players will always beat small skilled players….only in SA that big means dumb, and small means skilled – NZ picks big skilled players over small skilled players every day of the week.
Stormers are developing a Dr Jekyll / Mr Hyde type quality to rival the Sharks it seems.
Also, has the obligatory “this Super Rugby format sucks” comment been made in this thread yet? To not play regular games against NZ teams for an entire SR season without a doubt puts SA teams on the back foot.
@vanmartin (Comment 25) : Score line flattered the Stormers,Barrett jnr missed 5 kick, add in just 3 of those and they would have leaked 50 points 3 weeks in a row.
Bloody piss poor if you ask me.
@The hound (Comment 26) : are you mad!!! The Stormers is the best SA side just ask any of the sports writers!!!!!
Cheetahs about to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. 😯
Cannot believe it. Even for the Cheetahs, this was a spectacular implosion. 😯
8min left and you are 17 points ahead. And then you lose. 😯
Exactly how the f£%&# did theCheetahs managed to lose this game?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
@McLovin (Comment 30) : quick rectification the Cheetahs was 17 points ahead with 4min to go and lost the game even before the hooter sounded!!!! On average (for the last 4 min) the Cheetahs conceded a point every 11.4 seconds!!!!!! 21 points in 4 min!!!!!!!!
@JD (Comment 32) : Even worse then. Still not sure I can quite believe what I just witnessed.
Must be some sort of record.
@McLovin (Comment 33) : I’m still in shock!!!! Cheetahs just went to sleep in the last 5 min and after the second of the last 3 tries I just knew it’s over they’re going to lose the game!!!
I actually thought i shoukd have taken Robs upset pick for the Cheethas, with 5 min left surely it should have been a given, althought the margin was bit off, but what the hell happened, aint never seen shit happen so fast
At least one can count on the Lions to brighten one’s day. 😎
Any one know whois handling our game today, please not Pyper,Starving Marvin or those two Bulls palooka the ref and the T.M.O.
March 25 2015,Sharks against Force 2015
15 SP Marais, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Frans Steyn, 9 Conrad Hoffman, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Jean Deysel (captain), 6 Renaldo Bothma, 5 Marco Wentzel, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Kyle Cooper, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Substitutes: 16 Monde Hadebe, 17 Thomas du Toit, 18 Lourens Adriaanse, 19 Lubabalo Mtyanda, 20 Daniel du Preez, 21 Stefan Ungerer, 22 Fred Zeilinga, 23 Waylon Murray
Two years later not one player in the starting 15 retained and only Beast on bench today,Lourens,Thomas and Dan retained.
@McLovin (Comment 37) : Not if you’re in the same conference as them….
@The hound (Comment 39) : Conrad Hoffman’s says all we need to know about that team….Decidedly individual, with an average forward pack.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 41) : Agree,just amazed at the high entire turn around of players in 24 months, bet if you look at New Zealand sides they are far more stable.
@The hound (Comment 2) : the two most overrated players in SR, against proper opposition they just get hammered and soft blondie as I said does the best Casper trick in rugby
@McLovin (Comment 28) : Classic, Tjietas taken this to a whole new level
@The hound (Comment 42) : SA sides are way to hung-up on their superstar players, when those superstars move on, our teams immediately start looking for the next superstar.
Kiwi teams have no-name players able to step into position at any time.
You can pick 3 or 4 AB teams from their franchises, and they’ll all brigade around the top in world rankings.
One of a few countries where pro rugby players place skill above anything else…..In SA, we’re still looking to hand contracts to the next 2.10m tall 16year old, instead of plowing time into developing the skills of these monster sized kids.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 40) : Suppose not, but they are really the only Saffa side with a realistic chance of actually getting their name on the trophy. But only if they can somehow manage to get a home final.
@HB (Comment 36) : After seeing the cheetahs squander a proper lead to ending with a large losing deficit it does not amaze me. Looks like these boys are their own worst enemy. Which us nit something I’m smiling about I wish they could make it happen but…sad really.
@McLovin (Comment 46) : Which is funny cause if any super series was ever ripe for the picking this would be the one.
@McLovin (Comment 46) : Still won’t translate into Springbok success, seems that unless the bulls and streamers are doing it, Bok rugby won’t follow.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 49) : I don’t think success in Super Rugby by any side has any real bearing on Bok rugby. Plus as long as SA Rugby is run by amateurs and politicians, nothing will translate into Springbok success. 😐
@McLovin (Comment 50) : Damnit….It’s hopeless…Shows how well Jake did to make the Boks competitive (not the most entertaining, but he implemented a sustainable structure…Took all of pdv and HM to decimate it), was up against a tsunami of opposition, from every side possible.