The opening few rounds of Super Rugby have produced some crazy results with the likes of the Drua and Waratahs inflicting defeats on the Crusaders.
Could there be more twists in round 4?
Super Rugby Fijian Drua perform Bole war dance (Pic – EPA/MICK TSIKAS)
The upsets keep on coming in this year’s competition with the Reds beating the Chiefs the Drua made it back-to-back victories over the Crusaders at Churchill Park.
Will Round 4 feature more upsets and low-scoring affairs or will normal Super Rugby service resume?
Crusaders v Hurricanes
Friday 15 March | Orangetheory Stadium | 08h05
Crusaders 23/20 | Draw 22/1 | Hurricanes 7/10
Handicap
Crusaders (+2.5) 9/10 | Hurricanes (-2.5) 9/10
The Crusaders’ poor start to the campaign continued last weekend as they suffered their second successive defeat going down 20-10 to the Drua at Churchill Park. In a rather low-quality fixture, both sides were guilty of numerous handling errors.
Having rushed into a 0-10 lead just prior to the 20-minute mark, it looked like the Crusaders were on to right the wrongs of last season and grab a win on Fijian soil.
That was as good as it would get for Rob Penney’s men, however, with the Drua levelling the scores before the half-time break courtesy of a converted try and a penalty before bagging a try and a penalty in the second stanza to claim at 20-10 win and ensure the Crusaders suffered their third defeat on the trot having gone down 33-29 to the Chiefs in Round 1 and 37-24 to the Waratahs in Round 2.
While the Crusaders have been struggling for form thus far, the ‘Canes are having no such problems.
Wellington’s finest made it three wins from three starts with last weekend’s 29-21 win over the Blues.
The win was all the more impressive considering it came without All Black Jordie Barrett, who served the first of his three-week suspension.
We will actually see no Barretts on the fields this weekend with Crusaders skipper Scott Barrett ruled out for six weeks with a fractured finger.
His place in the run-on side is taken by Zach Gallagher, while Riley Hohepa comes in at fly-half.
On the Hurricanes’ side of things, the visitors got a big boost this weekend with flanker Devan Flanders returning to the run-on XV after injury.
Verdict: Hurricanes 7/10
While many are expecting an improved showing from the Crusaders following the two howlers they have produced over the past fortnight, we think the ‘Canes take this one.
Rebels v Reds
Friday 15 March | Melbourne Rectangular Stadium | 10h35
Rebels 22/10 | Draw 22/1 | Reds 7/20
Handicap
Rebels (+7.5) 9/10 | Reds (-7.5) 9/10
The Reds will be full of confidence when they take on the Rebels on Friday after the Queenslanders managed to pull off the upset of the round, beating the Chiefs at Suncorp.
They are fast becoming a bogey team for the men from Waikato having beaten them in the round-robin phase last season too.
The Rebels also head into this one off the back off a solid result having registered a 23-29 away win over a vastly improved Moana Pasifika side.
This was their second win on the bounce having beaten Force 48-34 in their Round 2 fixture.
Both these sides have played some decent rugby thus far, although the Reds have faced far stiffer opposition than their opponents so it will be interesting to see if the Rebels can up their game here or capitulate like they did in their heavy Round 1 loss to the Brumbies.
In terms of team news, the Reds have made some changes with young gun Harry McLaughlin-Phillips – who impressed in the second half against the Chiefs- handed the reins at fly-half while Peni Ravai comes into the forward pack.
The Rebels have also made a few tweaks with Reds old boy Taniela Tupou getting a start while Glen Vaihu gets a start on the left wing.
Verdict: Reds (-7.5) 9/10
It’s unlikely that they would be near as good this term but there’s some serious young talent coming through the Queensland system, and some of those young guns will seal a comfortable win for them here.
Western Force v Moana Pasifika
Friday 15 March | HBF Park | 13:00
Force 9/20 | Draw 20/1 | Moana Pasifika 18/10
Handicap
Force (-5.5) 9/10 | Moana Pasifika (+5.5) 9/10
Friday’s action comes to a close with cellar-dwellers the Force taking on a Moana Pasifika side that have enjoyed a far better start to the season than previous years.
Having been tipped by a few Australian pundits to be one of the sides that punch above their weight, the Force have been largely disappointing in the opening three rounds losing 14-44 to the Hurricanes on opening weekend, 38-34 to the Rebels in Round 2 and then 19-22 to the Brumbies this past weekend.
In fairness to them, both the Hurricanes and the Brumbies have some tidy players on their books and are hard nuts to crack.
If the Force can replicate their performance against the Brumbies here then they may well be in with a shout of grabbing a win this weekend as they will face a somewhat dejected Moana Pasifika side who failed to follow up their 39-36 win over the Drua going down 23-29 to the Rebels in a game they were in with a good shout of winning.
Verdict: Force (-5.5) 9/10
Moana tends to struggle in Australia and it seems their woes will continue this Friday.
Highlanders v Brumbies
Saturday 16 March | Forsyth Barr Stadium | 05h35
Highlanders 19/20 | Draw 25/1 | Brumbies 17/20
Onto Saturday’s action now and we kick things off with a tasty-looking clash between the Brumbies and the Highlanders at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
The hosts made it two wins from three starts this past weekend as they edged the Waratahs 21-23 in a thriller in New South Wales with another stellar showing from halves pairing Folau Fakatava and Rhys Patchell with the duo controlling the tempo of the fixture.
They will be crucial to the Highlanders cause again this weekend.
Round 3 also saw the Brumbies involved in a nail biter as they beat domestic foes, the Western Force, 22-19 with a 75th-minute try from the Force making for a very nervy end to proceedings.
In terms of team one for this one, the Highlanders have had a bit of a mixed bag with Billy Harmon returning to the side while Hugh Renton is ruled out through injury. At the Brumbies, Blake Schoupp and Billy Pollard come into the front row while Jahrome Brown gets a start on the flank.
Verdict: Brumbies 17/20
This one may just go down to the wire, with the Brumbies tipped to edge their Kiwi counterparts.
Chiefs v Fijian Drua
Saturday 16 March | FMG Waikato | 08h30
Chiefs 1/20 | Draw 40/1 | Drua 15/2
Handicap
Chiefs (-21.5) 9/10 | Drua (+21.5) 9/10
The Chiefs will be looking to bounce back from their defeat at the hands of the Reds when they take on the Drua, who head into this one having arrested their poor start to the campaign in the most perfect way by making it back-to-back win over the Crusaders in Fiji.
Having cantered to a victory over the Brumbies a week prior, it was expected that the in-form Chiefs would make short work of the Reds.
That was not to be the case, however, as a Reds team, who suffered a load of injuries in the opening salvos of the game, managed to hang on for a famous 25-19 win.
The Drua were just as gutsy as the Reds were on defence last week and full of endeavour on attack as they overcame a slow start to beat the Crusaders 20-10 in Suva.
And while there were still a couple of simple handling errors by the Fijians, it looks like the pieces are starting to fall into place. They pose a real threat with ball-in-hand for all-in-sundry.
Verdict: Drua (+21.5) 9/10
This could be a high scorer so the in-play points markets are probably the best option here. We do fancy the Drua to keep within a rather large ‘cap as well.
Waratahs v Blues
Saturday 16 March | Allianz Stadium | 10h35
Waratahs 5/2 | Draw 25/1 | Blues 3/10
Handicap
Waratahs (+8.5) 9/10 | Blues (-8.5) 9/10
The Round 4 action comes to a close at the Allianz Stadium where the Waratahs will go in search of their second win of the campaign when they take on a Blues outfit that suffered their first defeat of the season in a Kiwi derby.
The ‘Tahs were desperately unlucky not to make it back-to-back wins over New Zealand opposition as they put in another almighty shift against the Highlanders last week but ultimately went down 21-23.
The Blues also suffered a Round 3 loss, going down 29-21 to the ‘Canes. Trailing 24-7 just after half-time, the Blues couldn’to bridge the gap despite an improved showing in the second stanza.
Verdict: Waratahs (+8.5) 9/10
They’ve looked good in recent weeks and I’m backing the ‘Tahs to keep things tight here.
