The Chiefs decided to host the Crusaders in Tauranga this week. The question was not if the Crusaders could win but if they could manage to score 4 tries. With lightning fast wingers Zac Guildford and Sean Maitland tere is always the threat. This match however was more about the return of King Richie. The All Blacks captain started in his first match this year coming on as a sub. After Fruean, Maitland and Ellis scored tries, it was McCaw who, despite knocking the ball on in the process, gave Romano the chance to get the bonus point. Craig Joubert didn't see it and it meant the Saders got the full 5 points in round 9. The Chiefs only managed to score 1 try by Lelia Masaga. While the Crusaders stay second on the log, the Chiefs drop to 12th place.
In Melbourne the Rebels were looking for a 3rd win in a row after their bye last week. They beat the Hurricanes and Force in their last 2 matches and managed to sign Kurtley Beale for next year. This week they came onto the field wearing special training T-shirts which were auctioned afterwards for the people of Canterbury. This was initiated by Greg Somerville and followed by the whole franchise. The Highlanders were also looking for a 3rd win in a row. The team from Otago is the biggest surprise so far this season and biggest asset so far is flanker Adam Thomson. After 2 tries against the Cheetahs last week, he did it again this week! Scoring 2 of the total of 6 tries to crush the poor Rebels who had to do it without the injured captain Stirling Mortlock. Alando Soakai and Kade Poki also crossed the try-line, while Siale Piutau did it twice. For the Rebels there were tries by Hugh Pyle and Greg Somerville.
How many minutes does it take to score 4 tries? According to Auckland logic it's 17 minutes. That is the time between the first try by John Afoa and the 4th by Rene Ranger, who I didn't recognize after his haircut. Jared Payne and Tevita Mailau scored the other 2 that gave them the bonuspoint. The Waratahs finally woke up after the 4th try and Daniel Halangahu brought the deficit back to 19 points by crossing the try line. For a minute there was hope but soon aferwards Alby Mathewson got a 5th try for the Auckland side. When the Blues led 31-7 at the break, everybody expected another bunch of tries but unfortunately the only tries seen int he second half were by the Waratahs. Drew Mitchell and Ryan Cross scored tries which were not converted, bringing the score to 31-17. This brings the Blues in 4th place on the log despite having 1 point more than the Stormers. The Waratahs are in 7th with 27 points and are 2 behind the Sharks who had the bye and who they are visiting still this season.
Brisbane was the setting for a record-win. The Reds won their 6th consecutive match for the first time since the inaugural season in 1996. Quade Cooper was without a doubt man of the match. Not only was he important with his passes, quick steps and kicking, he also showed things you never see in a professional match. A pass behind his back, dodging players in fashionable way... He is a true diamond to modern rugby. A try, a dropgoal and 3 conversions gave him 14 points. The Bulls are not the team they used to be. However they did manage to score tries this time, it was simply not enough defensively conceding 6. With Bjorn Basson scoring 2 tries including a chased kick off they have a brilliant winger but besides him and scrum half Fourie du Preez it all seems so average this season. Danie Rossouw scored the 3rd try for the Bulls but by then the Reds were flying all over the place. Luke Morahan (2), James Horwill and Radike Samo scored tries but the moment of the night was when Digby Ioane chased a kick. Not the chase and try, but the celebration was amazing, doing a caterpillar-move to rub it in. The Bulls failed to put pressure on the Sharks in the South African Conference and the Reds stay top of the log with a 5-pointer.
Ellis Park, Johannesburg. The place where the Springboks won their first World Cup has a lot of history but when it comes to provincial rugby it's not very pleasant. While the Springboks scored 8 tries against Australia in Ellis Park in 2008, the Lions have been unlucky. This whole season is marked by only getting applause but no points. When scoring more tries than your opponent doesn't give you a win, something is wrong. They did that to the Stormers and Bulls in the first 2 matches and against others they got bonuspoints for staying within 7, but lately the Lions have not lived up to expectations losing 27-3 in Durban to a rejuvinated Sharks team and this weekend losing at home against the Stormers. Neither Elton Jantjes nor Andre Pretorius was allowed to start as fly half. In stead, Burton Francis got a chance. What a big difference was it! Scoring 3 penalties, succesfully converting the only try scored by Warren Whiteley and scoring a drop-goal. With his kicking the Lions might have even won a couple of matches in the last couple of weeks. The Stormers have been suffering from injuries with Habana, Grant and de Villiers joining the list. This meant Juan de Jongh was allowed to start and he was a real threat, despite not scoring a try. Jaque Fourie scored against his former team-mates after a brilliant setup by Juan de Jongh. The other 2 tries were scored by Danie Poolman and Johann Sadie. With Peter Grant absent, the kicking duties for the Cape Town side were divided over a couple of players. Scrum-half Dewald Duvenhage converted the first try, Gary van Aswegen scored a penalty before being replaced by Lionel Cronje who converted the other 2 tries and 3 penalties. The Stormers stay top of the Conference and the Lions bottom of both the Conference and the overall log.
If 11 tries are scored in 1 match, does that mean poor defending or brilliant attacking? I think the latter. When the Hurricanes started off in Bloemfontein and I sat down to watch it, I was sure the Cheetahs, back at home, could snatch a win. They showed what they are worth getting bonuspoints against the Blues and Highlanders and beating the Waratahs. Hosea Gear scored the first try already after 4 minutes! Immediately after that, Sarel Pretorius saw a try not allowed because it was held up but 2 minutes later he got his 10th Super Rugby try in his career by grounding it under the posts. The 3rd try of the match, scored by Jack Lam, was at the 11 minute mark. Taking a breath was really not possible because a couple of minutes later Riaan Smit already made it 15-12 with 2 tries each. With tries for Andre Taylor (Hurricanes) and again Sarel Pretorius (Cheetahs) it was 30-27 with just a minute to go in the first half before Sias Ebersohn scored a 30 metre dropgoal to get the Cheetahs in the lead at half-time before Daniel Kirkpatrick scored a penalty, 33-30. the second half started as thrilling as the first one ended. High pace, hardly a chance to catch a breath for the players. Riaan Smit scored his second try and Alipati Leiua gave the Hurricanes something to cheer about before Sarel Pretorius (who else?) got the ball from Adriaan Strauss and scored his 3rd try, a Hat-trick! If there are at any time questions who should be Fourie du Preez' successor in the Bok squad, I have the answer, it's this guy. With 47-43 after 66 minutes I was asking myself how many teams the lead would switch hands again. The Cheetahs held on to the lead until the last minute of the match when they lost the ball in attack and a counter-attack by the Hurricanes. They scored a converted try to make it 47-50, not the highest score in a Super Rugby match but by far the most thrilling one. The Cheetahs scored 47 points but lost anyway. For those who want to know: The record score in Super Rugby is from last season when in round 2, the Lions hosted the Chiefs to lose 65-72 with a record 137 points and a record 18 tries in 1 match! The Cheetahs get 2 points which gets them away from the bottom position on the log, the Hurricanes finally win and move to 10th place passing the Brumbies and Chiefs.
Our final match this weekend was a Sunday match, only the second time this year. The Brumbies had to win to stay close to the Waratahs and close to the play off spots. All they had to do is beat the Western Force. The Perth side, led by Nathan Sharpe and relying on James O'Connor however, managed to win for the first time this season on Australian soil. David Smith scored 2 for the Boys in Blue but big man was of course James O'Connor. After a kick by Rory Sidey, the Justin Bieber of Rugby used all his energy to chase and eventually get there in time to score a try which was remarkable. This was after Matt Giteau in the first half already put the Brumbies ahead by a try he converted himself. James O'Connor converted 2 tries and kicked over 2 penalties to leave the Brumbies empty-handed without even a bonuspoint. The Western Force now have 16 points after 2 wins and are tied with the Chiefs. The Brumbies drop to 11th and are 4th in the Australian Conference where they can count themselves out of the battle for the top position with 18 points behind the Reds.
The Sharks had the bye this week.
Well, I know you all want to know what this means for the Prediction League. With the 11 points scored by both Gavin and Bogdam, we have a new record. This is the highest low-score we've had so far this season after having 8 in rounds 6 and 7. TNT88 is the lucky one to grab the ***le winner-predictor of the week with all 7 winners predicted correctly, congratulations TNT88! On top of the log it was a fierce battle. Ezequiel scored 15 points but more remarkable is that he almost had a perfect score for the Chiefs-Crusaders game where he only needed a correct score-prediction for the Crusaders to snatch 17 points just for 1 match. Now he ended up with 15 in total, which is only 2 points less than his fierce rival Olyy, who scored 17 and is 2 points closer to regaining the top spot. Highest score this week was for BadGena! He got a total of 21 points which makes him jump from 8th to 4th spot in only 1 week and ties him with Draggs, our Welsh participant. Stormer2010 seems to suffer from some April virus because since this month started, he has been off his game, only scoring 14 points this time after scoring 8 twice in a row. He is now in 8th place, 2 points behind TNT88.
Green = Log Leader Red = Wooden Spoon Blue = Best achievement this round Orange = perfect winners prediction
