Preview: Super Rugby, Round Seven - Part One
STAR ATTRACTION: The return to action of All Blacks Kieran Read is the headliner, with good reason.
His delayed return – he was given a couple of extra weeks of rest and recuperation – had some pundits worried that his back problems had flared up again.
However, Crusaders coach Scott Robertson made it clear Read is in good enough shape to make a big impact against the Hurricanes in Wellington on Saturday.
It means a lot to the side to have Read back and his return was quite timely, Robertson said.
“Obviously his experience, his ability to play well in big games, his calm head, and ability to help out as a captain and leadership,” were all factors he brought to the side,” he said.
In the other Friday match the Waratahs host the Sunwolves in a game that will be a good indication if the players in the Japanese franchise are mentally up for the remaining time in Super Rugby – following last week’s announcement of their axing from Super Rugby.
There were clear signs in their loss to the Lions in Singapore that not all the players were switched on and that mental frailty could come more to the fore in the coming weeks.
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We look at Friday’s matches!
Friday, March 27:
Hurricanes v Crusaders
(Westpac Stadium, Wellington – Kick-off: 19.35; 06.35 GMT)
The Crusaders will be eager to get their campaign back on track – following a cancelled match and last week’s loss to the Waratahs.
They still top the standings – ahead of the Hurricanes on points difference only – but realise they were well below their usual standards last week.
For the Hurricanes the incentive is they can end the week on top of the table.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson said they will make ‘tweaks’, but won’t throw the baby out with the bathwater – despite last week’s shocker against the Waratahs.
“You don’t go unbeaten for nearly a year and change everything,” Robertson said.
“You’ve just got to nail a couple of key things and make sure you keep the confidence and look forward to a big game,” he added.
Also, the Hurricanes will have ‘revenge’ on their mind, after their 22-38 loss to the Crusaders in Christchurch in Round Two back in February.
“Beauden [Barrett] coming back for them was huge, we understand that.
“His relationship with Thomas [Perenara] and Ngani [Laumape], those three can run any team in the world and they do a pretty good job with the Hurricanes,” he said.
The Hurricanes had shown over the last few weeks they had started to click in their attack and it would be a dangerous game for the Crusaders.
‘We’ve got to turn up and show our heart and character,” Kieran Read said.
The Hurricanes are on a record run of 13 consecutive home victories, while they could make it six in a row at Westpac Stadium against the Crusaders.
That record stretches back to 2013, when the Hurricanes prevailed 29-28 in what was a titanic struggle.
Recent results:
2019: Crusaders won 38-22, Christchurch
2018: Crusaders won 30-12, Christchurch (semifinal)
2018: Crusaders won 24-13, Christchurch
2018: Hurricanes won 29-19, Wellington
2017: Hurricanes won 31-22, Wellington
2017: Crusaders won 20-12, Christchurch
Prediction: The Crusaders have won their last three Super Rugby games against the Hurricanes; the last time either side won more successive iterations of this fixture was a seven-game stretch for the Crusaders from 2005 to 2008. The Hurricanes have won their last five Super Rugby games on the bounce at home against the Crusaders, despite leading at half-time only three times in that period. The Crusaders are undefeated in their last 10 New Zealand derbies in Super Rugby, their last defeat in such a fixture coming in Round Five, 2018 against the Highlanders. The Hurricanes have beaten 30 defenders per game in Super Rugby 2019, more than any other club in the competition whilst the Crusaders have made 14 clean breaks per game this Super Rugby season, the most of any team. Ben Lam (Hurricanes) has scored five tries in five Super Rugby games against the Crusaders, including three in his last two and one when he was playing for the Blues.
Prediction: Crusaders
Margin: Five
Teams:
Hurricanes: 15 Chase Tiatia, 14 Jordie Barrett, 13 Matt Proctor, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Ben Lam, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Thomas Perenara (captain), 8 Reed Prinsep, 7 Ardie Savea, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Liam Mitchell, 4 James Blackwell, 3 Ben May, 2 Ricky Riccitelli, 1 Fraser Armstrong.
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Chris Eves, 18 Jeff To’omaga-Allen, 19 Isaia Walker-Leawere, 20 Du’Plessis Kirifi, 21 Richard Judd, 22 Jackson Garden-Bachop, 23 Wes Goosen.
Crusaders: 15 David Havili, 14 Braydon Ennor, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 George Bridge, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Matt Todd, 6 Whetukamokamo Douglas, 5 Samuel Whitelock (captain), 4 Scott Barrett, 3 Michael Alaalatoa, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Harry Allan.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Makalio, 17 George Bower, 18 Oli Jager, 19 Quinten Strange, 20 Jordan Taufua, 21 Mitchell Drummond, 22 Brett Cameron, 23 Will Jordan.
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Damon Murphy, Nick Hogan (New Zealand)
TMO: Aaron Paterson (New Zealand)
Waratahs v Sunwolves
(McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle – Kick-off: 19.45; 17.45 Japan time; 08.45 GMT)
For the first time in Super Rugby history, the Waratahs are heading to Newcastle’s McDonald Jones Stadium.
Tahs coach Daryl Gibson said the team is excited about the opportunity.
“We really have seen this season as an opportunity to take our game to our fans right across New South Wales and we are looking forward to playing in Newcastle on Friday,” said Gibson.
“The Newcastle region has a great rugby community and our whole squad, coaches included, will be spending time over the coming days within the Newcastle and Central Coast region working with coaches, clubs, schools and the broader community.
“This round for us will be celebrating country rugby and with close to 30 percent of the squad hailing from the regional NSW, we recognise just how important country rugby is to our player pathways,” he added.
The Sunwolves gave the Waratahs a real scare in Tokyo in Round Two and wing Cam Clark says they are wary of falling into the Japanese side’s trap again.
The Tahs edged the Japanese outfit 31-30 in that Tokyo match-up, with a Karmichael Hunt charge down on a Hayden Parker drop-goal attempt saving them from a potential upset.
“I don’t think we were too disciplined in the way we attacked in Tokyo, a lot of 50-50 passes, a lot of errors that give them a lot of opportunities,” Clark said.
“You can see the strike power they’ve got from unstructured attack, especially, they can really do some damage,” he added.
The Waratahs were forced into making a late change to their starting line up – with wing Curtis Rona ruled out due to injury.
Rona has suffered a low-grade groin injury and will be forced to miss the Sunwolves game.
Alex Newsome will now start on the wing, with John Folau to come on to the bench – with the potential to make his Super Rugby debut.
Recent results:
2019: Waratahs won 31-30, Tokyo
2018: Waratahs won 77-25, Sydney
2018: Waratahs won 50-29, Tokyo
2016: Waratahs won 57-12, Tokyo
Prediction: The NSW Waratahs have won each of their previous four Super Rugby games against the Sunwolves by an average margin of 30 points per game; however, their most recent encounter saw the NSW squad win by a margin of just one point. The NSW Waratahs have won five of their last seven Super Rugby games at home, including their last two on the bounce. The Sunwolves have led at half-time in each of their last two Super Rugby games against Australian opposition, however, they have lost their last six games against Australian squads. The Sunwolves have gained an average of 493 metres per game this season, more than any other team in the competition. Jed Holloway (NSW Waratahs) has stolen five line-outs this Super Rugby season, two more than any other player.
Prediction: Waratahs
Margin: 20
Teams:
Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Cam Clark, 13 Karmichael Hunt, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Alex Newsome, 10 Mack Mason, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Michael Wells, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Lachlan Swinton, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Ned Hanigan, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Damien Fitzpatrick, 1 Harry Johnson-Holmes.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Tuala, 17 Rory O’Connor, 18 Chris Talakai, 19 Ryan McCauley, 20 Tom Staniforth, 21 Jake Gordon, 22 Lalakai Foketi, 23 John Folau.
Sunwolves: 15 Ryohei Yamanaka, 14 Gerhard van den Heever, 13 Jason Emery, 12 Harumichi Tatekawa, 11 Semisi Masirewa, 10 Hayden Parker, 9 Kaito Shigeno, 8 Rahboni Warren Vosayaco, 7 Dan Pryor, 6 Hendrik Tui, 5 Uwe Helu, 4 Grant Hattingh, 3 Jiwon Koo, 2 Jaba Bregvadze, 1 Pauliasi Manu.
Replacements: 16 Nathan Vella, 17 Masataka Mikami, 18 Takuma Asahara, 19 Mark Abbott, 20 Kara Pryor, 21 Fumiaki Tanaka, 22 Takuya Yamasawa, 23 Josh Timu.
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Egon Seconds (South Africa)
TMO: George Ayoub (Australia)
Compiled by Jan de Koning
@king365ed
@rugby365com
* Stats courtesy of Opta Sports
