The Crusaders demolish the Reds, and the Brumbies scrape home.

The Super Rugby semis got underway with the Crusaders stomping all over the Reds. They lifted them up, shook them in their teeth and threw them aside. It was about as emphatic a win as you can get, and they have ‘form team’ written all over them. Next up they are going to take on the Chiefs, who they demolished the last time they played. If they win that, they’ll still be on the road to the Bulls or the Brumbies, and it’s only travel that’s probably going to beat them now.

The other Semi was way more entertaining. It was an open match, end to end stuff, with great tries and a kick to draw the game in the final minute. With better kicking either team could have won it easily. I don’t think that the Brumbies were lucky to win the match, they have structure and discipline, but I do feel that the Cheetahs were unlucky to lose. The Brumbies, while streets ahead of where they were, are nowhere near the heights of the Gregan/Larkham flowing rugby era. The Cheetahs meanwhile, have it all really, they just need more experience, a better kicker and a bit of luck and they’ll be right up there. The Brumbies now travel to Pretoria to take on the Bulls – hard to see them winning that, but if they do, boy are they going to battered and bruised by the time they get home!

Super Rugby
Sunday , July 21
Brumbies 15 - 13 Cheetahs 
Saturday , July 20
Crusaders 38 - 9 Reds
Super Rugby
Saturday , July 27
Chiefs vs Crusaders 19:35
Bulls vs Brumbies 17:05

I'm going Crusaders and Cheetahs!

'mon the Cheetahs!

First up in the play-offs is the Crusaders entertaining the Reds at home. These are two seasoned campaigners – the Crusaders have won the thing umpteen times – not recently though – while the Reds won it two years ago.  The Crusaders have put together a good run of results to get into the final, including thumping the Chiefs and they  have a big advantage being at home, but the win is by no means a foregone conclusion. This is like New Zealand taking on France – half of the Crusaders are All Blacks anyway, and the Reds take on Frances role – they are going to have to bring something completely leftfield to win this. Messer’s Cooper and Genia and are going to decide this match I think, if the Crusaders shut them down, the Crusaders will win easily, but if  the Red’s playmakers get a free hand, the Reds will win. On balance, I think the Crusaders aren’t going to let this one slip. Great to see McCaw on the bench too.

The other match is lot more up in the air. The Brumbies haven’t been contenders for ages, and the Cheetahs never have! Jake White has drilled discipline in the Brumbies, so that all their set pieces are excellent, their defense is sound, and they have a great kicker.  They have some good attacking backs too, Lealiifano, Speight and Mogg, their game plan doesn’t generally give them much scope but they are potent on the counter attack. The Free State is frankly the last place you’d expect innovation and flair from, but they are delivering that in spades this season, and they have confidence too. Their pack is massive and will test out all the Brumbies weaknesses, and their flair is going to cause problems for the Brumbies defense. It’s a hell of a long way to travel for a match though, and I don’t know if they have the self belief to win this one, but I’m going with a Cheetahs victory against the odds.

Super Rugby
Saturday , July 20
Crusaders vs Reds 
Sunday , July 21
Brumbies vs Cheetahs 

Crusaders slay the Bulls, while the Sharks terrorise Queensland

(picture http://bit.ly/QoJV3L)

The semi deciders got going in Christchurch, with the Bulls taking on the Crusaders. If ever a team looked like they’d got off a 24 hour flight, this was the Bulls. In fact they looked like they’d got off a 24 hour flight, gone straight to a 24 hour party, and then come to the match. All in all, they put in a decent  spell for about 10 minutes in the second half.  Their A plan didn’t fire, and let’s face it, this is the Bulls, let’s not confuse things by having two plans. The Crusaders played well, but weren’t really tested. McCaw is pure class, and could easily be starting for the All Blacks at no 8 (depending on how Read recovers) , while Carter is back to his best. The Bulls weren’t help by a succession of injuries, and a bad day at the office from Morne Steyn.

The second match was much better – OK, I’m a little biased because I’m a Sharks fan, but there was a lot more running rugby, and the teams were a lot closer. I don’t know where the Sharks have been hiding this form, but for the last three weeks they’ve been on fire. Their loose trio is immense, ( and with Alberts at lock and Bismarck they have 5 loose forwards!)and the running from the backs, in particular JP Pietersen, is savage as my son would say. Paul Jordaan impressed as well. It all went wrong for the Reds when Cooper tip tackled last week. Then Lucas went off, they lost their shape, and found it nigh impossible to break down a determined Sharks defense. With a bit more luck with injuries, they could have done a lot more this season.

This is how they line up next week. Why host the NZ side on a Friday though?

Chiefs v Crusaders:
Date: Friday, 27 July
Venue: Waikato Stadium, Hamilton
Kick-off: (19.35 local, 17.35 AUS, 09.35 SA)
Stormers v Sharks:
Date: Saturday, 28 July
Venue: Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
Kick-off: (17.05 local, Sun 29 Jul 03.05 NZT, Sun 29 Jul 01.05 AUS)

Super Rugby
Saturday , July 21
Crusaders 28 - 13 Bulls 
Reds 17 - 30 Sharks

Super rugby - time for the semi semi finals

(picure http://bit.ly/MKJzhm)

After 18 rounds of slugging it out, we’re down to the knockout stage of Super Rugby. This week I guess is the semi semi final, and the intricacies of the system mean that if the Sharks beat the Reds, the Stormers play the Sharks at Newlands in the semis. Should the Reds win however, the Stormers will play the winners of the Crusaders/ Bulls match.

So, there’ll be two things on the Crusaders minds this weekend – beating the Bulls and hoping like hell that the Reds win, otherwise they’ll be on the plane to SA for the next round. The Crusaders (or team Whitelock as they are now known), have only one key player missing , Kieran Read. McCaw has stepped into the breach and is covering the number 8 position and lying all over the ball.  I can see a yellow card in this match – for standing on McCaw at a ruck. The Bulls have namedan impressively large team, and I’m sure the strategy will be to pulverize the Crusaders pack, score on the breakaway, and kick the penalties. The critical question is will they be able to contain the flair of the Crusaders backs? I’m saying, no, they won’t so a home win for the Crusaders.

The Reds have sneaked into this final, with some very up and down form, mainly as a result of a long string of injuries. They will be missing Quade Cooper, not renowned for any type of tackling, and then last week he goes and does a tip tackle. How Will Genia plays is absolutely crucial for them, he could take them through on his own.  The Sharks have picked Alberts at lock, and are planning to pulverize the Reds pack – where have I heard that before? Without Lambie in the backs they are little short on flair, so again I’m going with the home team to get the win.

Super Rugby
Saturday , July 21
Crusaders vs Bulls 08:35
Reds vs Sharks 10:40

Block rocking Boks grab three, New Zealand two and the Aussies one

One to watch ( picture http://bit.ly/MrSA4Y)

It’s a good thing I don’t put money on my predictions. The Chiefs will be kicking themselves after handing the top of the league to the Stormers, in the last minute of their last round robin match. Composure! That’s what champions have, and I kind of doubt that the Chiefs are going to be champions this time around. Next up in the kicking themselves stakes are the Brumbies, who after hanging on to lead of the Aussie division forever it seems, managed to lose to whipping boys the Blues in their last match, and bow out of the competition.  It’s tough, but Jake White has done a great job with a team nobody expected anything of.

After that, it went to form, with the Crusaders easily beating the Force,  and the Reds trouncing the ‘Tahs to grab a spot. With only 58 points, in a real competition, they would have got sixth spot, but Sanzar gave the Reds 3rd.

The Stormers didn’t look to flash putting away the Rebels, but they already had their eye on potentially a final. If you top the log, you normally win the whole thing, is this going to be the Stormers year? The Sharks played their normal half of rugby, but lucky for them chose the second half this time, and put down a spirited Cheetahs side. JP Pietersen and Willem Alberts had big games, but it’s a pity to see Lambie out now.

Finally, the Bulls ran over the Lions, it was contest for some of the match, but in the second half the Bulls opened up and put the game to bed. Impressive for me was JJ Engelbrecht, who looks like he could add some much needed flair to the Bok backline.
So that’s the final standing, 3 from the Republic, two from New Zealand, and an Aussie side scraping in. Good news for the Boks.

1. Stormers 66
2. Chiefs 64
3. Reds 58
4. Crusaders 61
5. Bulls 59
6. Sharks 59

Then these are the next matches, while the Stormers and Chiefs take a break.

Saturday , July 21
Crusaders vs Bulls 08:35
Reds vs Sharks 10:40

Super Rugby
Saturday , July 14
Brumbies 16 - 30 Blues 
Crusaders 38 - 24 Western Force 
Stormers 26 - 21 Melbourne Rebels 
Sharks 34 - 15 Cheetahs 
Reds 32 - 16 Waratahs 
Bulls 37 - 20 Lions 
Friday , July 13
Hurricanes 28 - 25 Chiefs

Reds are the Super Rugby Champs

Radike Samo (picture from http://bit.ly/ny2rKZ )

One thing that really stood out for me in this Reds/Crusaders final, and that was Radike Samo’s hair. What a magnificent afro, even if he’s doubled the size of the hole in the ozone layer all on his own with hairspray. This was a worthy final after21 weeks of competition, as easily the best two sides in the competition slugged it out for the cup. Taking a step back, the ‘Saders with a home venue could easily have had a top two finish, got a weeks rest, and missed out on a 22000 km round trip. They looked tired by the end of the match, and just slightly off the pace.

But the Reds could only play what was in front of them, and did well to beat this excellent Crusader side. The Crusaders played a fairly conservative game plan, with intense pressure on the breakdown, the scrums, and were up quickly and in the face of Genia and Cooper. Cooper didn’t really have his best match, he had to resort to a lot of kicking to cope with the lack of space, and he didn’t kick very well, either to close or too far, and his far kicks weren’t well followed up. Carter was pretty quiet too, and has been for the last number of weeks, missing a few kicks that he should really have put away. He put one sublime grubber through that led to his try, but there was little of the flair he has on show, and the whole backline was pretty quiet, a bit in their shells.

It took ages for the Reds to find their rhythm, they were over eager, kicking and running at the wrong time, but when Digby Ioane finally found a bit of space, he made the most of it, running through half the Crusaders team. I blame Peter Crouch for the start of the dance celebration, but I guess Digby’s try was worthy of making a fuss over. Then it was Genia’s chance to shine, he found a little space, pinned his ears back and went for it, scoring the match winning try.

That’s the first time the Reds have won the competition, they were the form team, and played arguably the most attractive rugby. When you think great players like John Eales never got to lift the trophy, it shows you special the team of 2011 is. The Crusaders will be back, but time for the Reds to bask in some well deserved limelight.

Super Rugby


Saturday , July 9

Reds 18 - 13 Crusaders

Super Rugby Final - BRING IT ON!

Quade Cooper (picture from http://bit.ly/mXEBfz )

Super Rugby


Saturday , July 9

Reds vs Crusaders 10:40

Super Rugby reaches it’s climax in Brisbane on Saturday after what seems like about 30 rounds of matches. OK maybe not thirty, but about 4 or 5 too many anyway. But it’s a fitting end to what has been grueling season as the two top teams by some distance fight it out for the title. 48 000 fans turned up the last time they played, to see the Reds shade the Crusaders with a 17-16 victory.

The stand out player for the Reds this season has been Quade Cooper, who seems to be able to dip into his bag of tricks and come up with a winning play on cue. His defense is not fantastic, and his kicking could do with some work, but his attack is sublime. All around him are eager runners, cutting lines of attack that have defenders grasping at thin air. And underpinning this attacking play for the Reds is stout defense, a more than able scrum, and intense competition at the breakdown.

For the crusaders, the stand out player for me is Sonny Bill Williams, who attracts 2 or 3 defenders every time he has the ball, but still seems to evade defenders and offload at will. Fruean alongside him is one mean customer. Then there’s the rest of an oustanding backline, and a truly world class scrum that are going to look to dominate the Reds, and make the breakdown an absolute warzone. Dan Carter has looked pretty quiet recently with all the fireworks going on around you, but if you were going to put your house on someone to kick points for you then this would be your man.

This really is shaping up to be the best final ever as neither teams knows when it’s beaten and can turn defense into attack in the blink of an eye. On paper the Crusaders are stronger, and we all know what they’ve been through this season, there’s more to this than just rugby for them. But the Reds are just brimming with confidence, and at home in front of what will be surely be another record crowd, I’m going with Quade and the boys. BRING IT ON!

Imperious Leicester - Guiness Premiership, Super 14, Magners League

That was a clean sweep of predictions this weekend, OK you didn’t have to be Sherlock to spot half of them but pretty good anyway.


Super 14

The Hurricanes look disorganized and nervy, more like a summer breeze as the ‘Tahs (narrowly defeating the Cheetahs in the competition for the ugliest jersey) rolled up their sleeves and ground out the victory. Their prize is a trip back to the Republic to take on the Stormers who had few problems getting 5 points against an understrength Bulls team – all very cosy to keep it in the family. The final semi position went to the Crusaders as they overcame the Brumbies to book their date with the Bulls to be played in Sowetu stadium because of the upcoming World Cup. The Reds capped an excellent season by beating the Highlanders to come in a very creditable 5th. Things are looking up for the SA and Aussie teams, but not so good for the Kiwis.

Magners League

Glasgow would have to feel aggrieved by the shambolic manner by which they were denied a home semi, with the Ospreys being deducted 4 points next season for failing to fulfill an earlier fixture. But the smart money would have been on the Ospreys wherever they played. They made short work of the Warriors anyway. Munster’s woeful season continued as Leinster overpowered them to book their date in the final in Dublin. The old man of Europe is showing his age – time for a firesale of all the wrinklies and a big infusion of new blood.

Guinness Premiership

The first encounter on Sunday was fast paced and exciting, the lead swinging backwards and forwards several times. Brendan Venter may be famous for his SA style diplomacy i.e. none but he has got Saracens in to the final where anything could happen. Northampton just lost it at the end, where was the drop goal attempt? Leicester swept in to their umpteenth final in fine form. Not the most interesting match mind you, but they have a kind of ruthless efficiency that is admirable if not exciting. Watching Butch James temper fray as Bath were pinned back repeatedly in their 22 was the highlight of the match.

France 3 Ireland 0 Heineken Cup Amlin Challenge Cup Super 14 Sunday 2nd of May

Heineken Cup


France 2 Ireland 0

Home advantage and superior scrum power told this weekend as both Leinster and Munster fell by the wayside. A lot of the fizz went out of the competition compared to the barnstorming quarter finals as the teams played edgy percentage rugby. Leinster looked competitive for a long time against but the French had another gear to slip into and a far superior bench to fall back on. Leinster would have looked a lot better with Sexton playing as well. And how brave was that camera man? Munster meanwhile seemed to be struggling to get a team on the pitch, and you still felt like they could have snuck home but at the end of the day both French sides were the better team and deserved to win.

Amlin Cup

And yes it’s those bloody French again, beating the Irish as Toulon’s glittering league of nations downed Connacht. The rugby gods don’t do fairy tale endings do they? A couple of Connacht players stood, Gavin Duffy, Sean Cronin and Frank Murphy, for Toulon Juan Martine Fernandez Lobbe was in a class of his own. See what Philippe Saint Andre has done with Toulon, a decent coach should be the first signing for any team. Wasps came a cropper against Cardiff Blues, nothing is going right for them at the moment. I’m not surprised the Cardiff Blues won though, they looked a lot more dynamic and looked like they wanted it so much more.

Super 14

The top of the league is starting to take shape now. The Bulls turned over a spirited Sharks outfit while the Stormers put one foot in the semis as they hammered the Crusaders. The Tahs slipped up badly by going down to the Highlanders, while the big result of the weekend was the Reds being comprehensively outplayed by the Brumbies. The Chiefs put their poor fans through the wringer again, looking good against the Canes before slipping up again. The Reds and Crusaders are clinging on to 3rd and 4th by their finger nails with really tough matches to come.

Streetwise Munster - Heineken Cup, Amlin Challenge Cup, Super 14 29th April 2010

Heineken Cup

Saturday , May 1

Toulouse vs Leinster

Sunday , May 2

Biarritz vs Munster

So France take on Ireland once again, this time in the Heineken Cup, and France are favourites again. Toulouse look like the far stronger side so Leinster will really have their work cut out. The one thing you have to admire about Leinster and coach Michael Cheika is their ability to play smart, to come up with a good game plan and execute it well. It’s going to be really difficult against this team of superstars, especially away from home and I think this is one adventure too far for Leinster.

Munster meanwhile have to go San Sebastian to play Biarritz. The Ospreys showed that you can hurt Biarritz with exciting backline play, but that is not really Munster’s forte. But having said that, while they may lack the tactical nous of Leinster, there’s not a more streetwise team in Europe, and I can’t tell you how they’ll do it even without Paul O’Connell but I’m going for a Toulouse/Munster final.

Super 14

Team Points 30th 7th 14th
Bulls 39 Sharks Crusaders Stormers
Stormers 34 Crusaders Sharks Bulls
Crusaders 34 Stormers Bulls Brumbies
Reds 34 Brumbies Canes Highlanders
Waratahs 33 Highlanders Chiefs Canes

That’s how they line up for the next three weeks. Bulls vs the Sharks is going to be an old fashioned SA derby, no quarter taken or given, expect the stretcher bearers to be busy, and the Bulls pulling through. Stormers and Crusaders pits two sides that both lost last weekend – Stormers to come good at home. Reds and the Brumbies could be the match of the weekend – and having been wrong two weeks in a row, I still think the Reds will lose this time. And the Waratahs will thump the Highlanders.

Amlin Challenge Cup

Much as I’d like Connacht to win, Toulon have such a wealth of talent I just can’t see them losing, even away from home. Wasps, meanwhile, look to have aged greatly recently, and the Cardiff Blues are one mean side when they get going, to Wasps to lose out.

18th April 2010

News


I see Deon Carstens is moving over to Saracens next year – he’s still a reasonable player, but there must several empty old age homes in the Republic with all the SA pensioners playing their trade in the Premiership. Is that Faan Rautenbach and Danie Coetzee playing for Irish - surely they must qualify for a bus pass by now?

Super 14

The Reds kept it interesting at the top with a win over the Bulls, who, with having lost to the Blues and the Reds might get back to some consistency now they have no more colours to play. I caught the ‘Saders looking efficient if not particularly inspiring as they outran the Cheetahs. The poor Chiefs, run over by the Bulls last week, came staggering back into the road to be run over by another 18 wheeler in the form of the Stormers, and look to be roadkill at this stage. Things are looking up for the Sharks and the Canes but too little too late.

Magners League

Leinster scraped past the Ospreys at the RDS, thanks to a second half try by Shaun Berne who looked pretty handy coming in for Sexton. Leinster had another gear to fall back on whereas the Ospreys’ gear box was smoking and bits were falling out all over the place by the end. Ulsters’ appalling recent form continued as they went down to Glasgow. Munster beat Connacht, ending their 8 match home winning streak, but it didn’t sound like vintage stuff.

Guinness Premiership

The Saints looked really good, going top and deserving to be there. I watched the Saracens clinically dismembering the headless looking ‘Quins. Sarries look really confident, and seem to be peaking at exactly the right time. Leicester went top again on Sunday with an easy victory over Newcastle, while London Irish stepped on a giant banana skin in the shape of Leeds – nothing like a bit of desperation to give you inspiration is there?

16th April 2010

Super 14


The Chiefs and the Stormers should be a good match, can the Stormers keep their standard up from last week? The Chiefs will be expecting them to be good, but the Chiefs have been too inconsistent this year, and the Stormers should pull through. The Brumbies and the Hurricanes is last chance saloon for both clubs – probably an illusion as neither is like to get into the top four this year. The Canes should steal this though, good to see Aaron Crudden getting another chance to start at fly half. The Bulls against the Reds is the match of the weekend. On paper, the Reds are going to struggle, after a long trip back from SA, being a young team and playing the champs. Their one hope will be that the Bulls try to throw the ball around a bit to match the Reds. When they do that, they look like a bear trying to breakdance. For Bulls fans, let’s hope they leave their dancing shoes at home and stick to their normal brutal formula.

Magners League

Leinster and the Ospreys will be the match of the weekend on Friday as first and second meet. This will be the Ospreys third match in 7 days and they are going to be absolutely cream crackered after this game. Looks like Leinster have gone for a full squad, and with home advantage and a week’s rest they should take this. Munster and Connacht could be good too, with Munster coming out on top.

Guinness Premiership

Northampton vs Gloucester looks good on Saturday, Northampton will want to bounce back after last weekend and Gloucester are going to feel the pain of their wrath. Saracens and Harlequins also looks pretty interesting, with Sarries likely to take the spoils.

Enjoy the rugby.