Super Rugby Round 10 Preview Part 2

The struggling Force continue to battle the sadly underperforming Reds and under-siege Blues for the wooden spoon, and on Saturday face the rejuvenated Stormers. The Bulls, up and down, occasionally impressive but mostly average to poor, play the Sharks, who have been the great disappointment, both for their indiscipline and for what has been, to put it euphemistically, under-achieving non-performance. The Cheetahs, who have been all over the place on attack and defence, and for the most part poor, host the abysmal Reds. If the Reds don’t win – and they certainly do have the talent to win games – their coach Richard Graham may not have a job when the team gets back to Brisbane on Monday.

Force v Stormers

The Force do try hard but eight log points from eight games tells the story of their lack of success. They will try to disrupt the Stormers and if referee Mike Fraser lets them slow down the visitors’ ball illegally and defend from in front of the hindmost feet at rucks/mauls and collapse the Stormers driving mauls, a surprise win is not to be ruled out.

However, the Stormers forwards should be dominant and if the Force concede turnovers and give the visitors counter-attacking opportunities, the home team could lose by a big margin. 

Key players: Sias Ebersohn, still struggling to get his performance to match his intuitive talents, has another opportunity to shown he can direct a game from 10. Kyle Godwin is adjusting to the change from 12 to 13 and making a skilful contribution despite the team woes. For the Stormers: Damian de Allende, a constant threat at12, Schalk Burger for leadership and attitude, and Steven Kitshoff, playing himself into a Springbok number one jersey.

The big match-ups: In the scrums: Kitshoff vs Tetera Faulkner; Frans Malherbe vs Pekahou Cowan. At inside centre, Luke Burton vs De Allende. At lock, Sam Wykes vs Eben Etzebeth.

Sharks v Bulls

The Sharks are warding off a barrage of criticism from all and sundry, perhaps most vehemently from their own fans. Everyone from CEO John Smit to interim Director of Rugby Brendan Venter to new Director of Rugby Gary Gold to assistant coaches Brad Macleod-Henderson, Sean Everett, Paul Anthony, and Michael Horak are in the firing line. Gold came back late from Japan to take up his new role and appears to have walked into an undisciplined shambles. The Sharks have been awful and the shaken up Sharks set-up will have to be shaken up anew if performances do not improve hugely.

The Bulls have looked potential champions at times and possible non-qualifiers for the play-offs at others. They rely too heavily on one player, Handré Pollard, and too often look haphazard without him. They would benefit by playing Springbok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard at scrumhalf instead of banishing him to the wing.

Key players: Sharks props Jannie du Plessis and Beast Mtawarira return from Springbok mandatory rest. The six backs outside Cobus Reinach, especially Fred Zeilinga, André Esterhuizen, and Waylon Murray, need to show they’re good enough to play at this level. Handré Pollard is back, which means the Bulls will play with greater direction and accuracy and kick their goals. And Jacques du Plessis, who moves from lock to blindside flank, his best position.

The big match-ups: The masterful Pollard vs mediocre Zeilinga. At 12, Burger Odendaal, who promised modestly and has delivered generously vs Esterhuizen, highly regarded but yet to deliver. At 9, Reinach, always a threat, up against Rudy Paige, who provides little or no threat.

Cheetahs v Reds

There is such a discrepancy between what was expected of the Reds at the start of the competition – not least of all by the players themselves – and what they’ve produced, that it is no small wonder that the Queensland hierarchy have failed to take major decisions on rectifying the dire situation.

James O’Connor is back, Karmichael Hunt is finding his feet in Super Rugby, and Liam Gill has been excellent in adversity. The Cheetahs are always vulnerable because they so seldom manage to get both attack and defence operating efficiently on any given day. All this means that Bloemfontein on Saturday is where the Reds can actually win a game and regain some pride and confidence. Or they can delve deeper into misery.

Key players: Keep an eye on three underrated players in the Cheetahs team – outside centre Johann Sadie, blindside flank Boom Prinsloo, and unheralded fullback Coenie van Wyk, who gets a chance to play only because Willie le Roux is on Springbok rest. For the Reds, the marvellously skilful O’Connor, the potential star Hunt, and the ever-effective Gill. The leadership of James Slipper.

The big match-ups: At openside, Gill vs Heinrich Brussow. At fullback, Hunt vs Van Wyk, both of whom have a point to prove. The scrumhalves Will Genia and Sarel Pretorius.