The Blues - Reds Game
Th Blues has had an up and down Super 15 thus far - while the Reds was anything, but consistent. A surprise outcome is possible - but I think after the poor performance of the Reds last week and a noticeable improvement of the Blues in home matches, I think the Blues should take this game by a relatively small margin.
The Rebels - Sharks game
The Sharks have had a poor series from a try-scoring perspective. From the start the problem was the disruption of their backlines by the clueless play of their number 12. Due to injuries and selection factors, the player who thus far buggered up their backline performances has now been moved to 10. So for all intends and purposes their backline will be totally disfunctional. The worst performance by any SA side this year in Super 15 was the loss of the Sharks last week against the Highlanders.
The Rebels on the other hand had also had an up and down series - but they have been very competitive in some games and beat some very strong opponents and came close against others. They have a props problem and their scrum is not strong enough - but they have excellent locks and loosies.
Now how is that going to balance out in this case. My heart says the Sharks should narrowly beat them my around 6 points, but logic indicates otherwise. With a disfunctional backline against a well-performing one and the Rebels having good players at lock and loosie - I think chances are 60-40 the Rebels will win.
The Crusaders - Brumbies Game
A close call - the Brumbies is the form side of the Tournament and wiped the floor with the Chiefs only a week ago. The Crusaders have shown signs of improvement in recent matches against weaker sides - but will that improvement continue?
I think not - I think that the Brumbies will win convincingly against a team with some serious deficiencies shown this season.
The Chiefs - Lions Game
This should be a walk in the park for the Chiefs and I predict a win by them by in excess of 20 points.
The Waratahs - Hurricanes Game
The Waratahs most recent game was disgracefully poor - while the Hurricanes are on the crest of a wave. However, I am vary of the outcome of this game since the Hurricanes was poor in away games - losing even against the Stormers, Despite the Waratahs performance of last week - I have a feeling that they are going to win this time around and I predict a Waratahs win by a small margin.
The Stormers - Highlanders Game
One of the biggest surprises of the series thus far was the ease with which the Highlanders beat the clueless Sharks last week, The gross under-performance by some senior players and the all round lack of ball skills and putrid defense added to the problems of the Sharks.
The Stormers on the other hand was poor against the Cheetahs - due mainly to putrid play by two of their players - Grant and De Jongh, the latter being a serious liability in defense and clueless in attack. Grant is gone - but clueless remained. The problem is that the Highlanders have strong centers - who will just run over clueless.
However, despite that I have a feeling that the Stormers are going to win this one by a small margin. provided they cut De Jongh out of attacking moves - he will just bugger it up like he did last week.
The Bulls - Cheetahs Game
The Cheetahs played a top game last week and they have the ammunition to beat the Bulls wider out. They will also be competitive up front. The Bulls had a miserable tour marked by very poor performances. Matfield added to their woes in the latter regard.
The Bulls is trying to improve their stuttering backline performances by bringing in Pollard and Small-Smith - which may indeed be an improvement, but if the Cheetahs without their key players De Jager and Labuscagne can repeat their performance of last week - they should win this game with relative ease.
