The teams have not yet been announced - but what is evident is that the following playing style will apply to the Hurricanes:-
The Hurricanes do not have the tight 5 forwards to make any impact on the game. They would use their top loosie - Ardi Savea - and the backline to try amd make in impact and move the ball wide as much and quickly as possible. Aside from Savea - there key players would be Barrett, Julien Savea and Cory Jane. Grandpa Conrad Smith is a clever player - but "Ye Olde Bones" will minimise his impact in the game.
So - how does the Sharks team counter that strategy? They have to have as mobile as possible a forward team - without sacrificing strength. My forward pack would look like the following:-
1 Tendai Mtawarire
2 Bismarck du Plessis
3 Jannie du Plessis
4 Ettiene Oosthuizen
5 Pieter-Steph du Toit
6 Marcel Coetzee
7 Keegan Daniel
8 Ryan Kankowsk
I would steer away from Alberts - the Sharks do not need a virtually immobile extra lock at 7 and would put Deysel on the bench
This game is tailor-made for Du Toit - we can expect another CC final performance or even better - from this guy.
I would make sure that the ball as frequently as possible goes out to the outside center and wings as often as possible - Francois Steyn should not hog the ball. Reason : Julian Ardea is a strong runner with ball in hand - but his speed is not much to speak about - neither is that of Grandpa Smith. And Corey Jane is not the player he was two years ago either.
Kankowski and Daniel will neutralize any threat from Barrett - he will not be up against useless defenders like Morne and hopefully Alberts this time around.
My own assessment is that the Sharks with the above forwards and their standard backline selections will beat the hapless Hurricanes by at least 24 points and that a 5 pointer is there for the taking.
Problem is that White will be the scourge of fantasy team selections and he will delay the team announcement to the last possible moment
