Sports After Dark

The 2008 Super 14 is only two weeks old and already some teams have a mountain to climb if they are to make the semi finals, while the Crusaders, Blues and Sharks have already opened daylight between themselves and the chasing pack. Several derby matches this week add spice to an already mouth watering draw for round three.

Hurricanes vs Chiefs
The round opens with two teams looking jump start their season. Both were disappointing in their first games, but managed to grind out wins in their second, making victory here another step towards a good season. The Chiefs dominated the first half last week against the Waratahs before once again having their brittle defense exposed in the second half, relying on a last minute penalty goal to Stephen Donald to secure the win. Contrasting the Chiefs good early display was the Hurricanes’ helter skelter performance against the Reds which lacked continuity and structure. If the Chiefs can sort out their defense, and not get sucked into playing the Hurricanes’ game, they should win this game.

Lions vs Force
Both of these team have one win, over the Cheetahs and by a single point. The difference between them is in the manner of their losses; the Force pushed 2007 finalist the Sharks, while the Bulls where whipped by the Blues. The Force have also been in South Africa for three weeks now so travel is not going to be an issue for them. This game should go to the Force and cap off a good tour of the republic for them.

Stormers vs Crusaders
The Stormers were hoping that star flanker Schalk Berger would be able to neutralise the effect of Crusaders’ captain Ritchie McCaw in this match, but a two week suspension to Berger for unsportsman-like conduct put a stop to that. Without him, the Stormers seem all but doomed to their third loss of the season as the Crusaders will look to repeat their performance last week, perhaps without the bumbling first 30 minutes. All is not lost for the Stormers, their first three games are against semi finalists from last year, but it does leave them with a big hole to climb out of.

Highlanders vs Waratahs
The Waratahs sit a surprising fourth on the points table, at the head of the log jam of teams on four or five points, while their opponents are second from bottom. Both suffered narrow losses last week, and will be looking to change their fortunes in this outing. Of the two teams, the Highlanders will be the hungrier of the two, having just two bonus points to show for two pretty good outings considering the youth of their squad. The Highlanders should be able to open their 2008 account in this one, but only if they can keep the Waratahs back three contained.

Brumbies vs Reds
The round’s all Aussie clash comes from Canberra and holds a lot of promise. Neither side is likely to be contending for a semi final spot this season, but these derby matches make teams lift their game to the next level. Brumbies’ replacement Josh Holmes was a Red last season and no doubt there will be some feeling between him and his former team mates. On paper the Reds have the better team, however they will need to improve their ability to close out a game if they are to claim an away win here.

Cheetahs vs Blues
This is probably the easiest match of the round to pick because the Cheetahs are a young team in a rebuilding phase, while the Blues are serious contenders for this year’s title. Nick Evans ran riot last week against the Lions, picking up 25 points and directing the flow of the game well, there is no reason he cannot repeat that kind of performance here. The Blues will win this game, the only question is by how much.

Bulls vs Sharks
When the 2008 Super 14 draw was announced, fans pin pointed this game as being a contender for the best match of the regular season because it is a rematch of last year’s exciting final. The Sharks are one of just three unbeaten teams after two rounds, and have shown a great deal of character so far, especially in their come from behind win over the Stormers. The Bulls, meanwhile, do not look like defending champions so far this year, struggling to adapt to the new laws and trying to play last year’s style without a good forward platform. The return of Springbok hard man Bakkies Botha will boost the pack’s fortunes, and coach Frans Ludeke will be hoping Morne Steyn performs better at fly half than Derek Hougaard has. All signs point to a Sharks’ victory in this derby game.

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The Super 14 about to kick into high gear as round three looms by Hamish McBrearty, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.