Fact is there has always been two; with the two New Zealand teams having earned the right last weekend to join the Stormers and the Reds there. Both teams having a weekend off to prepare does give them a distinct advantage besides them being at home but as this competition has shown this year it could be a disadvantage too.
Interesting things to happen this week the Stormers signed Schalk Brits as loose forward cover even though he is a renowned hooker, not saying his not good enough to play there its just as a capetonian I find it hard to fathom that there isn't a good enough understudy in this rugby rich region and lets be honest it might only be for one game. Its not to say he will even get on the field but what message are the Stormers sending out to all the loose forwards down in the south. The same Franchise that has a history of showing away talented players the likes of Derick Hougaard and more recently Francois Hougaard which I'm told they'll be spending an arm and a leg to ''return home''.
But I digress, inspirational captain Richie McCaw returns to the starting line up for the Crusaders and the Blues sign the considerable talents of Ma'a Nonu for the next two seasons and the Reds sign a elite sponsorship deal with current sponsors Kooga until 2016, now back to the two matches this weekend.
Reds vs Blues Suncorp Stadium Brisbane
Having played the Force and the Rebels twice this season is not a luxury every franchise was afforded and does mean I don't see the Reds as the dominamt force as the Superugby log would suggest but they do have a good team and with Australian Rugby player of the year 2011, Will Ginea and Quade Cooper in their ranks I do see them exploiting the faults in the Blues team that makes them such a inconsistent team. The joys of knock out rugby does give the Blues a good chance though cos unlike the Crusaders they do not have to concern themselves with travelling to far & with Rene Ranger set to start, if the Blues can contain that pair, make sure of their set pieces and as I keeps saying if they can take advantage of Cooper switching to full back on defense which for me is a disadvantage the Reds have been getting away with thus far, we might see the Blues side reaching the final but though I would love to see the Blues win in Australia I do feel the form side is the Reds and they will win by less than 7, you can quote me on that.
Stormers vs Crusaders Newlands Cape Town
History is with the Stormers in the sense that well the last team to win a Superugby semi final on foreign soil was in 1999 not to mention the last three times the Crusaders have played semi finals in South Africa they have lost (bad news for the Stormers is the Crusaders are the last team to win on foreign soil though that time it was in Australia, if memory serves the last team to fly out of New Zealand to Cape Town in a semi and win was the Highlanders also in 1999). The Stormers have Grant back and his kicking will be pivotal as back in May when the Crusaders beat the Stormers at Newlands he was sorely missed. I do feel that loss was good for the over confident Stormers as you learn more from losing than winning. I leave you with this thought all previous winners of Superugby Touranments had great wings & thats were I think the Stormers do fall short, for me Aplon is a much better full back than he is a wing and Habana is far from the Blue Bull try machine he was for the Loftus faithful.
Though the Crusaders had to travel for this fixture its said jetlag is a lot less taxing as they flying into time as opposed to the Sharks last week who flew away from time. The earth quakes in Christ Church has made the Crusaders travel about 100 000 kilometres this season alone so if any team can this one should be well capable. They boast a near full strength team barring Isreal Dagg and without many of their stars they won at Newlands in May and even had to place a loose forward on the wing. So the Crusaders are not overwhelming favourites but favourites none the less especially if it's wet (forecasts say 30%). Where the game will be won or lost is the two flyhalves and up front, the New Zealand forward outfit consists of a whole host of All Blacks and lets be honest the loss of Duane Vermeulen does weaken the Stormers if not just on defence.
So upfront and the Grant-Carter factor may well decide this semi final because the midfield will cancel each other out, they that good. Thats why I'd go for a conservative Crusaders win by less than 10.
Comments
Post a Comment