SupeRugby Round 9, is just one of those weeks...virtually unjudgeable. The 'dead certain' winners this weekend are not playing good rugby and on the other end of the spectrum, their opponents are. The Highlanders and Bulls need 5 points this weekend if they are going to have any hope of qualifying and the Brumbies should beat the Force along with the Crusaders beating the Chiefs.
Chiefs v Crusaders (Hamilton)
Richie McCaw is back, sitting on the bench, but back never the less. The entire rugby has waited a long time for his day of return. There is an awesome match up with the flyhalves today as Matt Berquist and Mike Delany compete for ascendancy. Mils Muliaina makes a welcome return for the chiefs today at fullback.
PreJudgement: Crusaders by 7
Rebels v Highlanders (Melbourne)
The Rebels return home and are eager to get their opening season winning streak up to 4. They are facing a team that has played extremely well as an unit and has the points to prove it. If this game goes down to the wire you would expect the Rebels to take it, so the Highlanders need to shut it down early.
PreJudgement: Rebels by 5
Blues v Waratahs (Auckland)
Tough one to call but the Waratahs have been doing the business of late. Luke Burgess had a blinder last week and will be keen to try and push his team to an away win this week. The Blues are 2 points ahead of the Waratahs and will be looking to overtake the Crusaders if the slip up against the Chiefs.
PreJudgement: Blues by 6
Reds v Bulls (Brisbane)
The Bulls have no fewer than 5 changes leading up to this vital game for both teams. If the Bulls lose, they are quite frankly in the brown stuff and if the Reds win they are sitting pretty on the log. The youthful exuberance of the Reds will feed off the fear of the Bulls. Having said that you can't expect the experience of the Bulls to falter again. I still think that when the Bulls received their fixtures before the season started they would have mentally marked a 'win' alongside this fixture....that's going to change.
PreJudgement: Reds by 9
Lions v Stormers (Johannesburg)
Peter Grant is out injured for this week and as a late replacement, Gary van Aswegen start at 10. The Lions have a few injury concerns of their own to worry about, but I think the Stormers are going to bounce back after their loss to the Reds.
PreJudgement: Stormers by 11
Cheetahs v Hurricanes (Bloemfontein)
This again is a tough one to call as the Hurricanes have battled this season along with the Cheetahs. I think that after their performances overseas, the home crowd will be well behind the Cheetahs this week and that could be the difference. The Hurricanes are due a win but Bloem is Bloem and its a tough place to go if your not totally focused.
PreJudgement: Cheetahs by 5
Brumbies v Force (Canberra)
The second Sunday game gets underway this week as the Brumbies will try and start a winning streak against the Force. The Force have not been doing well and as much as the focus has been on the Brumbies, they are still 5 points clear of their opposition on the log. As i have said in previous PreJudgements, Canberra is a tough place to go.
PreJudgement: Brumbies by 15
Tough unpredictable weekend all round, except for the Sharks as they pocket 4 points while relaxing on a KZN Game Farm. Well DONE Boys!
It will be nice to see Gary va Aswegen play a full game i think he has good skills and BMT. i am worried about Conraad Jantjies, his a little over his sell by date and needs to step up tomorrow if he wants to be back to his best. The stormers should take this one if they stay calm and play with the want to win again, last weeks performance was pooor so they need to up level to 120%. Go Stormers !!!
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