Your predictions for the semis

What are your calls for the semi's and why.

I'm being bold and will call the Chiefs over the Crusties. Chiefs had a week to recuperate and Crusties have come off a hard game against the Bulls. The Crusties are not as good as they were a few years ago and are really missing Read at eight. Richie was huge last week but I doubt he will put in a back to back top-class performance. Also the Chiefs will not be giving away the posession like the Bools did. Prediction: Chiefs by 10

I'm a born and bred Durban boy and have been supporting Natal from the days when we were languishing in the second division Currie Cup in the seventies and eighties. Back then we were known as the 'Banana Boys" named after the beautiful lush banana plantations strewn along our magnificent coastline. My point being that it is very difficult to call any other team against my boys, but this is one of those that I admit that I am not so confident about. The Sharkies are playing awesome power-based and fairly expansive rugga, but the travel factor and Meyer Bushman (English version of his surname) at 12 has got me doubting. The Stormers have also had some time to recuperate and have their top class locking combination back in action. They are a settled combination of players with no real weaknesses except a baffling inability to score tries. I am not a fan of JDV and I think that is why they are unable to score as much as they should. I'm going to be brave and my prediction for this one is Sharks by 5.

Some good points there Green and yes I'm also tipping a Chiefs win but unlike you I'm tipping a Stormers win by the healthy margin of 9. Main reason is that I believe the fatigue factor is going to kick in against a rejuvenated Stormers playing on home turf. But good luck to the Sharks if they do win as I will undoubtedly support them on another road trip from Hell.

i think the sharks will come out racing and take a decent lead by half time by 10 or more i think then they will just control the game from there as the jet lag might kick in. luckly the game is not at alltitude.

sharks to win it by 8. if they can make the stormers chase the game then the stormers wont make it plain and simple

 i would love the chiefs to take this one purely because I think they deserve it. but i will go with the green boy's asessment on this as it makes sense. so Chiefs by about 10 or less.

Everybody expects the sharks to come out all guns blazing, and they will. They will run it from all over and run it hard. Attempting to lead by a considerable margin, If they get it right and they lead but that margin I expect they will win by far. However, they need to take into account that no team has run away with it against the stromers this year, it simply doesn't happen. The sharks will find that they can't built that halftime lead they need. they are fit and physical. I expect it will not be enough. As the Stormer will strangle them like any other team. And with 3 big boys in Etzebeth, Bekker and Elstadt back. It will be considerably more difficult for the sharks than in Durban. If this game is going to turn into a close encounter slugfest the stormers will win it. As they can strangle the opposition into errors. If the sharks win it it won't be close, it will be by a significant margin. This bieng a semi final and hitorically knockout rugby is a  slug fest, i will have to go with the stormers purely because they are better at it than the sharks. so Stormers by 3.

i agree...if it turns out in trench warfare then the sharks will get themselves into close ranged of the stormers. so for the sharks sake they need to up the tempo and make it quick and wide to make the stormers fattys run al over the park ala cheetah rugby to split the stormers defence in 2 sides of the pitch.

its going to be a good one cant wait

Depending on the weather i can only see a Sharks victory and most probably a crusaders victory. Its been quite surprising that both the Stormers and Chiefs have been battling to maintain their early form. Stormers being outplayed by the Sharks in Dbn and not very convincing in their last two games.The Chiefs the same. On current form its hard to see a Stormers v Chiefs final.

I have said it elsewhere and I am repeating it here again.   I think the Crusaders play a very attractive brand of rugby - but the brand is not really effective - there are far too many errors made by them.   Even in the game against the malfunctioning Bulls - they only managed to score ONE try.    Against the Hurricanes they did not impress at all - as a matter of fact the Chiefs perrormed better against both teams.   The Chiefs play a very similar game to the Crusaders - but also leave too many loose balls around the park.   However, there is a reason for the Chiefs to be second on the log - and I stay with my prediction of a Chiefs win in this case.  My prediction si a Chiefs win by 6 points.

Insofar as the Stormers-Sharks game is concerned - even though I am a Sharks fan - I predict a win by the Stormers in this game.   The Sharks backline is severly disrupted by the injury to Jordaan and they have to deal also with the effects of jet lag.    They were brilliant against the Reds in the first half - but less so in the second half  when the jet lag issue to my mind became pertinent.   They are going to struggle in the line-outs.   I do believe that the Stormers will win before their home crowd by at least 9 points - the difference would have been less if it was not for the amount of travelling over many time zones by the Sharks.    

crusaders by 8 and stormers by 10.

its true the bulls scored 2 tries to the crusaders 1, but both came in the last 20 minsand oliviers one came in the 79th minute when the game was done and dusted, neithe try ever looked like troubling the crusaders. im sure the crusaders wernt happy to leak them in, but the only fault i find in their game is getting complacment, i guess knowing that they have won the match is why they took their foot of the bulls jugular, but from the moment the ref blew that whistle, the crusaders never once looked like losing.
i think the crusaders will have too much poise and big game experience and McCaw has been on fire, both statistically and from what ive seen him do with my own eyes and so has carter for the last two months.
IMO chiefs will lose the battle upfront where the crusaders 8 All Blacks have all the big game experience to see them through and the old cliche of winning upfront will apply here. breakdowns will be ferocious as the chiefs would have watched the complete annihilation fo the bulls in this area and will not want the same thing to happen tonight.
 

i feel sorry for the sharks, cos they have been punished serverly from this retarded aussie friendly format, if merit was rewarded and not participation, the sharks would have travelled to loftus to play the bulls, making their travel isuues not a big deal.
be that as it may, sharks travelling from bloomfintein to brisbane to newlands and playing the best team in the comp, is a bit too much for the courageous durban mob.
im expecting th stormers to choke out the sharks with their ruthles defense and im picking fourie to get anotjher MOTM.

CArpet muncher you refer to the Sormers fattys. The Sortmers pack certainly will miss the huge physcality of burger and vermuelen and te consequent anihilation they would hav eexpereinced. However in Fourie and Kolis we have two extremely mobile loosies. I fact this is a very mobile pack.

I suspect the crusaders might win but hope the chiefs do as the crusties have got away with far to much over the years.

Sharks are in with a good shout but I think the Stormers will win.

Sitting Bull moonbeam hope to see non warrior chiefies next weekend at Newlands!  Newlands marks end of road for chiefies. Mighty Stormers will blow wee chiefies away. But first we need to beat the guppies.

What will folk say if the two Bok Stormers pack, not at full strength, gets the better of the sharks 7 bok pack?

Crusader/Chiefs prediction winnners are:

Green

Denny

Ek

CleverMike

Crusaders/Chiefs prediction losers are:

Mrdebbs

Sasuke

Beeno

 Green, I am also an ex- Durban (Morningside) boy. 

Supported the Natal/Sharks teams all my life but in this semi I bet against them.

I lost........ but it was worth it.

No betting on the final I'm afraid (from me).

Just hope !!!!