S15 Preview: Round Fifteen, Part Two
The last three Super Rugby matches on Saturday promise to be thrilling encounters as the sides attempt to strike a blow before the June Test break.
The Waratahs have had a tough season and are out of contention for the play-offs but they will be keen to keep their excellent record against the Hurricanes when they take the exciting New Zealand outfit on in Sydney.
After that the focus shifts to South Africa and the last two Super Rugby games for a month will both be intense South African derbies.
The Sharks will be out to turn up the pressure on the Bulls and the Stormers at the top of the conference by extending the Lions' losing streak before the two powerhouses square off at Loftus Versfeld.
Waratahs v Hurricanes
(Allianz Stadium, Sydney – Kick-off: 19.40; 09.40 GMT)
The Waratahs have been something of a bogey team for the Hurricanes who haven't managed to beat the physical Australian side since 2006.
However this weekend may present the ideal opportunity for Mark Hammett's team to notch up a win in Sydney. The Hurricanes coach has named an unchanged line-up from the one that put the Rebels to the sword last week and they face a Waratahs team that has just returned from a punishing and winless tour of South Africa.
The home side will look to establish dominance in the set phases and their Wallaby-laden pack will be determined on driving the free-running Hurricanes onto the back foot.
The Waratahs will look to be very direct and will play with a hard edge as their coach Michael Foley is under pressure due to their unconvincing campaign, and many of the Wallaby incumbents will want to show that they should be playing Test rugby next week.
The Hurricanes will give it a full go as tough encounters with the Crusaders and Chiefs loom after the June Test break along with their second bye, so a victory in Sydney will boost their play-off prospects significantly.
When the Hurricanes get it right they can be one of the most attractive and devastating teams around as they proved in ruthless style last week, but the Waratahs are unlikely to roll over so the visitors will have to do some hard work up front if they want to cause an upset away from home.
Recent results:
2010: Waratahs won 32-16 in Sydney
2009: Waratahs won 26-22 in Wellington
2008: Waratahs won 20-3 in Sydney
2007: Waratahs won 38-14 in Wellington
2006: Hurricanes won 16-14 in Wellington
Prediction: The Waratahs are always a tough prospect at home and they will play a hard game but the momentum at the moment is with the Hurricanes so we are backing them to take an upset victory by about three points.
Teams:
Waratahs: 15 Bernard Foley, 14 Tom Kingston, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Berrick Barnes, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Jono Jenkins, 6 Dave Dennis, 5 Kane Douglas, 4 Sitaleki Timani, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson (captain).
Replacements: 16 John Ulugia, 17 Jeremy Tilse, 18 Richard Stanford, 19 Lopeti Timani, 20 Brendan McKibbin, 21 Daniel Halangahu, 22 Tom Carter.
Hurricanes: 15 Andre Taylor, 14 Alapati Leiua, 13 Conrad Smith (captain), 12 Tim Bateman, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Victor Vito, 7 Jack Lam, 6 Faifili Levave, 5 Jason Eaton, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, 2 Dane Coles, 1 Ben May.
Replacements: 16 Motu Matu’u, 17 Reg Goodes, 18 James Broadhurst, 19 Brad Shields, 20 Chris Eaton, 21 Tusi Pisi, 22 Jayden Hayward.
Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Julian Pritchard (Australia), Ed Martin (Australia)
TMO: Matt Goddard (Australia)
Lions v Sharks
(Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 17.05; 15.05 GMT)
The Sharks have not lost since their bye a month ago and they have their next bye the weekend after the June Test break so they will be going flat out to blast a battered Lions team aside this weekend.
The Durban side have played with incredible intensity in the last few weeks and will be looking for another exhibition of physicality in order to put the Stormers and Bulls under even more pressure on the log.
They face a weary Lions side just back from their travels and although they are playing at home the bottom-placed side still have just one win to their name this season and really do look like a bonus point for the taking.
The Lions will be determined to show their home crowd that they can rise to the challenge and match the power of the Sharks, but the key will be whether they are able to maintain consistent intensity and focus for 80 minutes as lapses in concentration have dogged them all season.
Both teams have had to shuffle their midfield combinations, with the Sharks losing Paul Jordaan to the Baby Bok squad and the Lions losing Jaco Taute to injury so there could be attacking opportunities on offer for both sides in this area.
It will take an almighty effort for the Lions to match the Sharks up front and they are likely to try and take the ball wide, which could result in counter-attacking opportunities for the Sharks whose defence has looked sharp in recent weeks.
Recent results:
2012: Sharks won 32-20 in Durban
2011: Drew 30-30 in Johannesburg
2011: Sharks won 27-3 in Durban
2010: Sharks won 32-28 in Johannesburg
2009: Sharks won 25-10 in Durban
Prediction: The Lions will make them work for it but the Sharks should secure victory by about ten points, the main question is whether they will score four tries.
Teams:
Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Butch James, 11 Anthonie Volminck, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Tian Meyer, 8 Joshua Strauss (captain), 7 Grant Hattingh, 6 Derick Minnie, 5 Franco van der Merwe, 4 Hendrik Roodt, 3 Patric Cilliers, 2 Callie Visagie, 1 CJ van der Linde.
Replacements: 16 Martin Bezuidenhout, 17 JC Janse van Rensburg, 18 Etienne Oosthuizen, 19 Cobus Grobbelaar, 20 Ross Cronje, 21 Waylon Murray, 22 Ruan Combrinck.
Sharks: 15 Patrick Lambie, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Meyer Bosman, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Charl McLeod, 8 Keegan Daniel (captain), 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Anton Bresler, 4 Steven Sykes, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 Wiehahn Herbst, 18 Jandre Marais, 19 Ryan Kankowski, 20 Jacques Botes, 21 Marius Joubert, 22 Louis Ludik.
Referee: Garratt Williamson (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Jason Jaftha (South Africa), Stefan Breytenbach (South Africa)
TMO: Gerrie Coetzee (South Africa)
Bulls v Stormers
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 19.10; 17.10 GMT)
The South African North-South derby is always a brutal fixture no matter where the teams are in the standings, but with both sides vying for conference supremacy heading into the June break this one will have even more spice.
Apart from influencing the players' Springbok prospects another factor which raises the stakes is the fact that both sides are coming off losses and have the Sharks steaming up behind them on the standings.
The Bulls were unable to win on the New Zealand leg of their tour and the three-times champions will know that losing matches at Loftus Versfeld is not an option at this stage of the season.
The Stormers were outgunned by the Sharks last week, and the loss of their line-out manager Andries Bekker means that the only Springbok in their pack is veteran Deon Carstens who replaces Baby Bok Steven Kitshoff.
The Bulls' line-out has been dominant all season and they will aim to take control in the set-pieces against a vulnerable Stormers tight five.
A few teams have tried to disrupt the Stormers' defensive pattern by pinning them in their own territory by using the boot and there is no doubt that the accuracy of the Bulls' kicking game will play a big role in this match.
The collisions will immense as ever, and while many will be anxiously watching for fear of further high-profile injuries there will be no chance of the players holding anything back.
Both teams will be aiming to dominate the battle of the gainline and play as much as they can in the opposition half so in the end it will come down to which team is more accurate and able to take advantage of the opportunities when they present themselves.
Recent results:
2012: Stormers won 20-17 in Cape Town
2011: Bulls won 19-16 in Cape Town
2011: Stormers won 23-13 in Pretoria
2010: Bulls won 25-17 in Soweto
2010: Stormers won 38-10 in Cape Town
Prediction: The Stormers will aim to put the Bulls under pressure by shutting them down and driving them back but the visitors have taken too many hits and the Bulls have more quality at their disposal so we are backing them to win by about six points.
Teams:
Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 JJ Engelbrecht, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 Pierre Spies (captain), 7 CJ Stander, 6 Dewald Potgieter, 5 Juandrè Kruger, 4 Flip van der Merwe, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 1 Dean Greyling.
Replacements: 16 Willie Wepener, 17 Rayno Gerber, 18 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 19 Arno Botha, 20 Jano Vermaak, 21 Louis Fouché, 22 Francois Venter.
Stormers: 15 Gio Aplon, 14 Gerhard van den Heever, 13 Juan de Jongh, 12 Jean de Villiers (captain), 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Jebb Sinclair, 7 Rynhardt Elstadt, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Deon Carstens.
Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Quinn Roux, 19 Don Armand, 20 Nick Fenton-Wells, 21 Louis Schreuder, 22 Burton Francis.
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Mark Lawrence (South Africa), Cobus Wessels (South Africa)
TMO: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)
By Michael de Vries
