Preview: S14 - Round Seven, Part Two
Fri, 28 Mar 2008 09:19
Back in black: Ruan Pienaar
Well, the halfway stage of the Super 14 is upon us in the blink of an eye.
The Crusaders continue to dominate and are going to be extremely tough to beat this year.
The Sharks remained on 21 points last week courtesy of a bye - they kick off their second phase of the competition with a tricky encounter against their nemesis, the Reds.
It's the last game of the weekend, and the final game before the Sharks depart on their away leg of the Super 14.
Sharks fans will be holding thumbs that they get through the Reds game unscathed.
Saturday kicks off with a New Zealand derby between the Chiefs and the Highlanders.
The Highlanders are still awaiting their first win of the competition, whilst the Chiefs are starting to look good. A win for them will put them right in the semifinal mix.
The same cannot be said for the Bulls, who are stuck in reverse at the moment.
They have the
daunting prospect of facing the Blues in Auckland. It's a sorry state of affairs for the defending champions, who are looking like relinquishing their title without so much as a whimper.
It really is crunch time for the chasing pack now - the pressure is mounting with every dropped point.
Lets take a look at what Saturday has in store for us!
Saturday, March 26
Chiefs v Highlanders
Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, 17.30 (04.30 GMT)
The poor Highlanders. No matter how hard they try, they are always pipped at the post.
Yet another close loss to the Force must have been like a dagger to the heart for this young team. They are there for the taking and the Chiefs should oblige.
It's a local derby, and underdogs have been known to rise to the occasion. I'm not writing the Highlanders off, by no means!
The Chiefs have been dreadfully inconsistent all year, and if they produce another
ordinary performance, then we could well see an upset.
But they were good last week - admittedly against a below average Bulls team. But the performance itself would have given the Hamilton franchise some much needed confidence.
The Chiefs style of play is well suited to the Experimental Law Variations (ELVs), although coach Ian Foster said they have not changed the game as much as everyone thinks.
"The ELVs so far have suited the style of play for the Chiefs, but in all honesty they haven't really changed the game that much at all as far as we are concerned," he told rugby365.com.
Regular Chiefs skipper Jono Gibbes is expected to return to action in three weeks time after suffering an injury in the early part of the season.
Gibbes is a vital cog in the Chiefs wheel, and Foster concurs.
"Obviously Jono's [Gibbes] departure was a huge loss for us.
"He is likely to be another three
weeks away from recovery.
"Yes his leadership is missed, but we have a strong group of players in our leadership group.
"Mils Muliaina is now the captain and he is an experienced, well-respected member of our squad who has a great feel for our team," added Foster.
Muliaina is an experienced head, but hasn't been at his best yet this season.
He's a class campaigner and it's only a matter of time before he turns a match on its head.
His combination with fellow All Black Sitiveni Sivivatu and the extremely quick Lelia Masaga could be the difference between the two teams. These three are lethal on attack - give them an inch and they will punish you.
The Highlanders will also need to keep No.8 Sione Lauaki quiet. He is a massive unit and a powerful ball carrier, but sometimes he seems as though he has better things to do than be on a rugby field. A few solid hits on the big man early on, and he could go into his shell.
The Highlanders No.9 Jimmy Cowan has been the shining light for the winless Dunedin franchise this season. He is hugely influential and always seems to be at the right place at the right time.
A big Cowan performance is needed if the Highlanders want to be competitive.
It's going to be an intriguing battle between the two No.9's. The Chiefs Brendon Leonard is being talked about as first choice All Black after a brilliant showing against the Bulls.
Cowan's competitive nature will ensure a battle royal between the two nuggety scrumhalves.
I suspect both teams will run the ball for the full 80 minutes. Looking at the personnel of both teams, the Chiefs are better equipped to play an expansive game.
The return of Richard Kahui at outside centre will bring some stability to the backline, while the back three will be looking to counter attack at every available opportunity.
It's a derby, but you have to back the
home team!
Prediction: Both teams have been disappointing this season. The Chiefs have looked decidedly mediocre so far but will be buoyed by their hammering of the Bulls last weekend. They will be too good for a Highlanders side low on confidence and skill. Chiefs by 10 points.
Recent results:
2007: Chiefs won 38-34, Queenstown
2006: Chiefs won 16-13, Hamilton
Teams:
Chiefs: 15 Mils Muliaina (captain), 14 Lelia Masaga, 13 Richard Kahui, 12 Callum Bruce, 11 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10 Stephen Donald, 9 Brendon Leonard, 8 Sione Lauaki, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Liam Messam, 5 Kevin O'Neill, 4 Toby Lynn, 3 Ben Castle, 2 Tom Willis, 1 Simms Davison.
Replacements: 16 Aled de Malmanche, 17 Ben May, 18 Jay Williams, 19 Faifili Levave, 20 David Bason, 21 Dwayne Sweeney, 22 Viliame Waqaseduadua.
Highlanders: 15 James Wilson, 14 Paul Williams, 13 Niva
Ta'auso, 12 Johnny Leota, 11 Fetu'u Vainikolo, 10 Daniel Bowden, 9 Jimmy Cowan (vice-capatain), 8 Steven Setephano, 7 Alando Soakai, 6 Craig Newby (capatain), 5 Hayden Triggs, 4 Hoani MacDonald, 3 Clint Newland, 2 David Hall, 1 Jamie Mackintosh.
Replacements: 16 Jason Macdonald, 17 Chris King, 18 Isaac Ross, 19 Adam Thomson, 20 Toby Morland, 21 Mike Delany, 22 Brett Mather.
Referee: Stuart Dickinson (Australia)
Touch judges: Jonathon White (New Zealand), Keith Brown (New Zealand)
Television match official: Glenn Newman (New Zealand)
Assessor: Alan Riley (New Zealand)
Blues v Bulls
Auckland Park, 19.35 (06.35 GMT)
Springbok No.8 Pierre Spies is back for the Bulls after 8 months on the sidelines. It's a desperate move by coach Frans Ludeke in an attempt to get his team out of the massive hole they find themselves in.
Spies is a class act, of that there is no doubt.
But he is lacking match fitness and it's a tough ask for him to make a difference after all that time on the sidelines. He will take a while to get back to his best, he's only human!
Blues coach David Nucifora has decided to move flank Jerome Kaino to the back of the scrum.
It's a move that is designed at keeping the explosive Spies at bay.
Kaino is in a similar mould to Spies - big, powerful and agile. It's a clever move by Nucifora as regular No.8 Nick Williams is not as quick around the park as Kaino.
Nick Evans' return to flyhalf is a big boost for the home team. He will provide the spark for the Blues backs, who are far more dangerous on attack than the Bulls.
The Bulls centre pairing will need to be on top of their game to contain Toeava and Stanley.
Nel has been a liability for the Bulls this season, with his discipline costing his team
dearly.
He will be as keen as mustard to silence his critics on Saturday.
A win is all the Bulls will be after to regain some lost pride. For that to happen their big pack will need to step up to the plate.
Bakkies Botha needs to start delivering. In fact every man in a Bulls jersey needs to up their game.
There is no shame in losing, but the Bulls must at least show that they want to win, and not fold like a pack of cards.
The Bulls can't compete out wide with the Blues, that would be foolish. What they can do is bully them up front. They have picked a massive pack, and they must use it. They pride themselves on their forward play, but they have failed to deliver on all fronts this year.
The Blues pack are no pushovers, lets make that clear. They have some real bruisers themselves. Skipper Troy Flavell is no stranger to physical confrontation and he won't step back an inch.
Kurtis Haiu, the man who threw
two punches against the Stormers last week, is up against Bakkies Botha. Both players will take no nonsense from each other so look at for some fireworks in the second row!
Bulls captain Fourie du Preez told rugby365.com earlier in the week that the Bulls will need to improve in all facets of the game if they are to win.
"We're looking for a huge improvement on our previous performance," he said.
"We know they [the Blues] are one of the top teams in the tournament, we have never won here [in Auckland against the Blues]," he emphasised.
The Bulls are a structured team and are not equipped to play a loose game. Du Preez acknowledged as much, saying his team need to stick to their gameplan.
"We need to keep working on improving our attack and make sure we don't concede as many tries," he said.
"It's important that we stick more rigidly to our structures and put in a more committed performance.
"We are close to turning that corner, every player must just take a long hard look at themselves," he added.
I'm not sure how close they are to turning that corner, but hopefully for their sake it will be on Saturday.
Prediction: The defending champions have looked anything but title pretenders. The Blues will step it up this week after two average performances and inflict another painful defeat on Fourie du Preez's men. Blues by at least 15 points.
Recent results:
2007: Bulls won 40-19, Pretoria
2006: Blues won 30-17, Auckland
Teams:
Blues: 15 George Pisi, 14 Joe Rokocoko, 13 Isaia Toeava, 12 Benson Stanley, 11 Rudi Wulf, 10 Nick Evans, 9 Danny Lee, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Daniel Braid, 6 Justin Collins, 5 Troy Flavell (captain), 4 Kurtis Haiu, 3 John Afoa, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Nick White, 17 Bronson Murray,
18 Anthony Boric, 19 Nick Williams, 20 Taniela Moa, 21 Ben Atiga, 22 David Smith.
Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 JP Nel, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Derick Hougaard, 9 Fourie du Preez (captain), 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Wikus van Heerden (vice-captain), 6 Pedrie Wannenburg, 5 Danie Rossouw, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Ryno Gerber, 2 Derick Kuün, 1 Guthro Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 Bandise Maku, 17 Werner Kruger, 18 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 19 Deon Stegmann, 20 Heinie Adams, 21 Morne Steyn, 22 Dewald Potgieter.
Referee: James Leckie (Australia)
Touch judges: Brett Bowden (Australia), Josh Noonan (New Zealand)
Television match official: Ben Skeen (New Zealand)
Assessor: Stuart Beissel (New Zealand)
Sharks v Reds
Absa Stadium, Durban, 17.00 (15.00 GMT)
The Reds have been the Sharks
bogey team over the years. And it is for that reason that the boys from Durban need to tread very carefully on Saturday.
The Reds have been on the rise of late, and will believe that they can pull off a second big upset of the season.
It's perhaps a good time to face the unbeaten Sharks after they had a bye last week.
They haven't played a match for two weeks and could take a while to get their rhythm going again.
It's the home side's last game before their overseas tour - another factor worth noting. Could their minds be on the tour already, or will they be professional enough to focus on the task at hand on Saturday?
Sharks skipper has insisted that they are not thinking about the tour just yet, but we will only know for sure on Saturday.
Looking at the two teams on paper, there is only one winner - the Sharks have all the class, experience and know-how. But rugby is not won on paper, it's between the four white
lines that counts most.
The Reds will have to do without their skipper Sam Cordingley, which is a massive blow for them. They will have to rely on their talisman Chris Latham to provide the spark. And what a spark he has been, once again!
If the Sharks can keep him quiet, they will win. It's as simple as that.
Dick Muir has opted to retain Francois Steyn at No.10. Steyn will welcome the return of scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar, who will ease the pressure on the youngster with his probing kicks from the base of the ruck.
Steyn is not afraid of taking the opposition on, and will definitely have a run or two at his opposite number, Quade Cooper.
Cooper is still finding his feet in Super 14 rugby and could struggle on Saturday with the likes of Ryan Kankowski and Keegan Daniel bearing down on him.
The loose forward battle will once again be key. We have seen this season that the breakdown has been critical component of
the game.
The Sharks loose trio have been quite brilliant this year. They have pace, skill and compliment each other beautifully.
Reds flank David Croft has been recalled to slow the Sharks ball down at the breakdown. His contribution will be key to the success of the Reds.
The Sharks have one of the most powerful front rows in the competition and will look to stamp their authority on the set-piece early on.
It's hard to see where the Reds can target the Sharks.
Complacency will be the only factor that will see the Sharks lose this one.
Prediction: The Reds have a 70 percent success record against the high-flying Sharks. I suspect that percentage might drop into the sixties on Saturday. The Sharks have too much skill and quality to get caught out this time. Sharks by 15.
Recent results:
2007: Sharks won 59-16, Brisbane
2006: Sharks won 36-28, Durban
Teams:
Sharks: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Bradley Barritt, 11 JP Pietersen, 10 Francois Steyn, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Jacques Botes, 6 Keegan Daniel, 5 Johann Muller (Captain), 4 AJ Venter, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 BJ Botha, 18 Albert van den Berg, 19 Steven Sykes, 20 Epi Taione, 21 Rory Kockott, 22 Frederic Michalak.
Reds: 15 Chris Latham (captain), 14 Clinton Schifcofske, 13 Morgan Turinui, 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Peter Hynes, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Ben Lucas, 8 Leroy Houston, 7 David Croft, 6 John Roe, 5 James Horwill, 4 Van Humphries, 3 Dayna Edwards, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Greg Holmes.
Replacements: 16 Sean Hardman, 17 Rodney Blake, 18 Ed O'Donoghue, 19 Poutasi Luafutu, 20 Will Genia, 21 Charlie Fetoai, 22 Digby Ioane.
Referee: Chris Pollock
(New Zealand)
Touch judges: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand), Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)
Assessor: Dennis Immelman (South Africa)
