Go the Mighty Highlanders!
Overall I'm pretty happy with the side we have selected. I'm not quite sure how Mitchell has leap-frogged both Coltman and Robinson into the starting hooker spot. He is a very mobile player (and excellent at the breakdown), but I would have preferred Coltman's physicality against the Tahs pack, and the lineouts were a bit of a mess last weekend too. Great to see Franklin starting at lock again - it's a pity it took so long for him to get his chance! I would normally prefer Evans over Dixon (due to his breakdown prowess), but I'm happy to see Dixon starting against the Tahs because of his extra size/physicality (and Mitchell makes up for missing Evans at the breakdown). The backline more or less picks itself, though I still can't understand why Burleigh continues to be included on the bench (luckily he will be gone next season!).
I don't have a lot of hope we will win this match, but I have written off our chances in a few matches this season and been proven completely wrong. Horne and AAC form a forimidable combination in the midfield on defense, so I feel our best chance will be to attack out wider. Alofa looks a solid enough defender, but Osbourne is not easy to stop, while Buckman's style (run straight at the defender) could cause Beale some issues on the other side. If we kick we need to make sure our kick-chase is very good, as Folau is not going to drop the ball and can be punishing on the counter-attack....
As much as I want the Highlanders to win I think the Tahs will prove to be too good. I'm picking them by 10, but would probably be happy is we managed to pick up a losing bonus point...
