Super Rugby

[canta_brian]

Brumbies points difference. Lol

[rowan]

The amazing thing is all the Australian teams are still in contention for a play-offs spot, even the Rebels who've only won once. ACT are actually in their worst slump in 6 years but remain the frontrunners!

SANZAAR is pretty much using the exact same system as the NFL, but what they obviously didn't foresee was such a vast gulf opening up between the conferences of the three founding nations.

The draft system keeps the NFL highly competitive, which is the key to its long-running success, and no team has ever made the playoffs with a worse than 7-9 record, though I believe it is mathematically possible to do so with as few as 3 wins.

[Lizard]

I was just discussing this with an Aussie colleague this morning. A few wins on the bounce could see any one of their teams get up.

[rowan]

Jags in a real slump, it seems, losing to one of the weakest teams from the country that is supposed to be in a major slump. Makes you think, though. Maybe it's not that the rest of the pack are so bad - but simply that the Kiwis have gotten so good . . .

Jags have already won more games this year than they did last. Somehow I recall them doing better than that in 2016.

[rowan]

Bookies\ odds right now:

The Crusaders can be backed at 2/1 with the Hurricanes on offer at 14/5.

The Chiefs, who have flown under the radar somewhat but have only suffered one defeat (from 10 matches) to date, as well as the Lions, are at 9/2.

The Highlanders complete the list of likely challengers at 8/1.

The Stormers (25/1), Sharks (40/1), Blues (50/1) and Brumbies (66/1) are now considered rank outsiders for glory in 2017.

http://www.sport24.co.za/Rugby/SuperRug ... s-20170515

[rowan]

Seems there's a bit of a mutiny going on Down Under at the moment with the ARU calling an urgent meeting with the Players' Association, and some, including Wallabies coach Michael Cheika, hinting that no team will be cut after all. I just wonder if, with the improved performances of the Kings and Force this season, there's a chance of reversing SANZAAR's decision to return to a 15-team format next year. I'm not sure that would be in the best interests of the championship, but I think any South African or Australian team which has to give way to the likes of the cellar-dweller Sunwolves has every right to feel aggrieved.

Australia's Rugby Union Players' Association has voted for an ARU extraordinary general meeting as the Super Rugby saga continues to haunt the game.

RUPA boss Ross Xenos said the ARU's decision to axe a team had "lacked transparency and consultation" with key stakeholders.

The Melbourne Rebels and Western Force are fighting for their respective futures as the ARU weighs up which franchise it will jettison from the competition.http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/supe ... -continues


Wallabies coach Michael Cheika suggests possibility no Australian Super Rugby team will be cut http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union ... w6iuf.html

[rowan]

I've said from the outset the Saders were favorites this year, and I also suggested their games this week and last would sort out the pecking order. Saders have come out on top, beating the Chiefs 31-24 in Suva. I'd be interested to know what the attendance was but journalists don't bother getting those kinds of details these days.

[rowan]

Looks like we got ourselves a rare win for a non-kiwi side over a Kiwi side in Cape Town. My timing was awful last time I said this, but I really don't think the Saffas have been so bad this season. Certainly they're not even close to experiencing the kind of a slump the Aussies are in right now. Stormers 30-22 Blues it finishes. A result sorely needed in this year's competition.

[Lizard]

I've said from the outset the Saders were favorites this year, and I also suggested their games this week and last would sort out the pecking order. Saders have come out on top, beating the Chiefs 31-24 in Suva. I'd be interested to know what the attendance was but journalists don't bother getting those kinds of details these days.

I reckon you're a bit optimistic if you think that attendance figures were available immediately (if at all). Have you been to the stadium in Suva?

[rowan]

No, never been to Fiji. But it wasn't just Fiji I was talking about. It seems to be a general trend - away from providing such an important detail. Anyway, attendance in Suva has since been reported at 20K - about twice the average at this year's games.

[zer0]

The Blues came up only eight points short in a South African match officiated by both Jaco van Heerden and Shaun Veldsman? Must've put in their best performance of the season.

[rowan]

You never beat the Kiwis. You just score more points than them . . .

Meanwhile, Canes flatter to deceive in the first half against the Cheetahs . . .

Ardie goes over for the Canes' 3rd try right on halftime. 21-7 at the break.

Canes explode out of the blocks as the 2nd half gets underway. 2 quick tries makes it 35-7 after 48 minutes. Seems like they're gradually recovering their confidence after last week's setback.

[Cameo]

The Blues came up only eight points short in a South African match officiated by both Jaco van Heerden and Shaun Veldsman? Must've put in their best performance of the season.

Just seen the highlights of that game. The reefing did look a joke. Red card seemEd very harsh but the last try was something else. Clearly in the ruck and off his feet

[zer0]

On the Suva venture, it's reported here that A) attendance was 17,000; B) that it cost Fiji 1.6 million NZD to host; and C) that the Chiefs indicated that they will not be returning.

[rowan]

Sour grapes from the Chiefs, perhaps? Sure, we know any venture to the islands isn't going to be a financial bonanza (which is why I've suggested Samoa & Tonga play their tests in Auckland). But what did they expect? 17K is well above average for this year's attendances, and you're not going to get a whole lot more into a stadium in Fiji. I think the biggest capacity available is 25 K. You could increase the price of tickets significantly for the All Blacks, Boks or Lions, but probably not for a Super Rugby game. Anyone, as a one-off it was a great promotion for the sport there and a real treat for the locals, so kudos to them for doing it. Incidentally, the Blues face the Reds in Samoa next month and I don't think they can get more than about 15 K into Apia Park, while the tickets will have to be even cheaper than they were in Suva.

[Eugene Wrayburn]

My assumption is that they're testing the waters for life without the saffers, aussies and pumas. Next time sanzaar negotiations happen they may decide to clear off with their Japanese and island mates.

[rowan]

Might just be the way to go . . .

[rowan]

[Eugene Wrayburn]

Might just be the way to go . . .

If they aren't going to get much in the way of competitive games, Japan is a much bigger economy more helpfully situated.

[rowan]

Actually I misread that. I think the West Pacific teams (including Australia) could break away from South Africa and Argentina, and then it would actually make sense to include Japan. Pacific Islands' only hope ever is playing out of Auckland. But I don't see the need for an islands team, really, if their players are able to play Super Rugby without any strings attached.

[rowan]

Blues & Chiefs drew

Looking very much like a 3-horse race between the Saders, Canes and Lions now, with their prospects pretty much in that order. Home advantage is going to be crucial, of course.

[zer0]

So the self-lobotomizing chimps -- otherwise known as the Blues -- squander a golden opportunity to defeat the Chiefs by thinking it was pre-2007 when drop goals were more shunned than leppers, and, instead, decide to throw the ball wide in wet weather rather than take the sensible option of the simple drop goal from out in front. The entirely predictable result is a knock-on, the opportunity gone and the match ended in a 16-all draw.

[rowan]

Wasn't it Anton Oliver who once claimed he was 'going for the win' when opting to run the ball from a last minute penalty instead of kick a simple goal? His team were actually 8 points behind at the time, which meant either result - a try (converted or otherwise) or a penalty would have secured his team a vital bonus point for losing by less than 7. In the event, they failed to get the try...

[rowan]

Force hammer the Reds. I'm really starting to think SAANZAR may be forced to revisit their decision to cull the competition the way things are going. Force and Kings are showing fighting spirit on the field and holding their own, while the Rebels are threatening legal ramifications and have state backing to boot. Let's just say I wouldn't be surprised if the decision is reversed, and we end up with three conferences of six near year - with the Jaguares added to NZ.

[morepork]

Silly Bloos.