World Cup: Fiji v South Africa Recap

Finally the 'Boks seemed to show the class that we all know thy have. I just want to know where the hell it has been hiding or who has been suppressing it for so long! Either way, it was out for all to see on Saturday as the South Africans showed some fight and determination as they took it to the large islanders from Fiji.

Tri Nations Recap: South Africa v New Zealand

The Springboks have escaped a first ever win less Tri Nations by beating the All Blacks at a packed Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth. The match saw only one try from the visitors with Richard Kahui crossing the whitewash in the 35th minute. The rest of the game belonged to SA and more notably Morne Steyn...

Tri Nations: New Zealand v South Africa Recap

Can I open my eyes yet? Phew, last weeks game was sad and frustrating, I am however feeling a little better about the fact that its over and done with. Now, all Springbok fans can look forward to seeing what PDivvy is really planning for the World Cup with the last remaining fixtures of the Tri Nations.

Tri Nations PreJudgement: New Zealand v South Africa (Wellington)

After the Boks got there asses handed to them by the Aussies they decided to make some changes to the team. This was expected but they are more on the exciting side...for a change. Will the positional changes and new combo's stop us from getting destroyed again? I think so.

SupeRugby Round 8 Prejudgement:

This weeks games will define the season for many of the teams. A win for the Reds, Stormers or Crusaders will almost secure a play off place, wins for the Sharks and Highlanders puts them back into the knock out wild card qualification. A loss for the Brumbies or Hurricanes and their season would be pretty much over.

Highlanders v Cheetahs (Carisbrook, Dunedin)
The Cheetahs are hopefully going to be concentrating on the game and not coming home! It's the South Africans last touring game before they head home. SupeRugby Round 8 kicks off with the Highlanders as the favorites for this game, with the opportunity to move higher up the ladder into Wild Card Territory.
PreJudgement: Highlanders by 12

Crusaders v Bulls (Fraser Park, Timaru)
Game of the weekend number 1 and with Dan Carter sitting out with a hamstring injury, Matt Berquist gets a start at flyhalf for probably the most exciting backline ever fielded. The Bulls will fancy their chances against the Crusaders with Carter not available as well as coming off a win last week. Morne Steyn didn't win too many fans with his drop kicks last week but as boring as it is to watch, it wins games and adds three points.
PreJudgement: Crusaders by 9

Brumbies v Hurricanes (Canberra Stadium, Canberra)
Wow, this could go one of two ways, riddled with errors, bad kicking and poor hands or it could be the game of the season. Both teams need a win (more than oxygen right now) and with the talent they both have available to them lets hope we are in for a quality 80 minutes. I think The Hurricanes might find the trip too much to deal with as the Australian capital is a tough place to visit.
PreJudgement: Brumbies by 12

Force v Waratahs (Perth Oval, Perth)
James O'Connor has been moved to fullback for this encounter to give Willie Ripia his first start at flyhalf this season. Ex Force centre and wing Ryan Cross has hit out at his old team mates for not closing out games. I am sure this will add some extra niggle to Saturdays game.
PreJudgement: Waratahs by 7

Stormers v Reds (Newlands, Cape Town)
Game of the weekend number 2. The build up to this game has been awesome. Everyone is wondering which backline is going to come out winners come the final whistle. Quade Cooper v Peter Grant , Digby Ioane v Bryan Habana , Duane Vermeulen v Scott Higginbotham. Just looking at those match ups should excite you as a rugby supporter. Such a tough game to call.
PreJudgement: do I have to say something.... Stormers by 5

Sharks v Lions (Kings Park, Durban)
A number of changes for the Sharks this week sees John Smit and Eugene van Staden starting at prop with Gerhard Mostert replacing the injured Hargreaves. This has opened the door for Ross Skeate's return to SupeRugby after a two year stint at French side Toulon. The Lions will be looking to kick the Sharks while they are down but they have had their fair share of problems with many missed kicks. The Sharks are coming off three losses on the trot but I can assure you that they will not settle for anything less than a bonus point win.
PreJudgement: Sharks by 15 

SupeRugby Round 7 Recap:

Stormers, Reds and Crusaders are the Top three and conference qualifiers as it stands. There are another five teams that will be fighting for the last 3 spots. The reason I say this,  is I don't see the top three falling out of qualification or wild card positions by the end of the tournament. As for my PreJudgements for Round 7, I seem to be getting the hang of things. Well, I like to think so anyway.

• The Brumbies can all but resign themselves to not being in the knockout stages later this season. They slumped to yet another defeat to the Highlanders. Well done to the Otago team for yet another win. The Brumbies were let down by missed kicks and what seems like no motivation!
• The Waratahs can see a glimmer of hope in their season with a win over the Chiefs this weekend. They were in command of the game from start to finish. The Waratahs are sitting in 5th spot overall and are currently on target for a wild card entry into the play offs. Maybe they can rescue their season. I think they will.
• The Blues overcame the Cheetahs as everyone expected. The Blues are thanking the rugby Gods that there are only 80minutes in a rugby game as the cheetahs scored 19 points in 21 minutes to push the NZ side right to the end. Not quite the margin of victory I predicted but the Cheetahs surprised many people and it was fantastic to watch. Well Done.
• The Bulls got their overseas leg of the tournament off to a great start with a win over the Wellington Hurricanes. This win will largely get attributed to Morne Steyn's penalties and 2 drop goals early on in the first half. Its not the exciting rugby we all want to see but considering the lack of form the Bulls are in, it might be just what they need.
• The surprise of the weekend was delivered to us by a Richard Kingi try in the 56th minute. The Force raced to a 15-3 lead after 18 minutes but never capitalised on their lead. The Rebels showed true grit and fighting spirit and earned yet another win in their opening season of SupeRugby.
• The Reds won a close encounter in Johannesburg against the Lions. The Lions never managed to capitalise on two yellow cards issued to the Reds but were never really out of reach of the visiting team. The Lions will rue missed penalties and conversions.
• The Sharks could not keep a great home record intact as the Stormers won this South African derby by 16-6. This loss moves the Sharks way out of contention and the Stormers into a commanding position on top of the log. The Stormers backline are looking as good on the park as they have been looking on paper.

There were no real surprises in the results this week except for the Rebels win and the Cheetahs and Lions fighting spirit. The Rebels are definitely no walk over as you would expect from a new team into SupeRugby.

Player of the Week: Peter Grant
Team of the Week: Melbourne Rebels
WTF of the Week: ACT Brumbies

Springbok Selections....No 10

So, the debate/argument/discussion is happening already, whether its in the pub or on social networking sites:

Who will be the Springbok Flyhalf this year?

Yes, it is a position which is often depicted by who the scrumhalf is or vice versa and we are pretty sure to have either, Fourie du Preez or Francois Hougaard starting in the number 9 jumper. This will be discussed at a later date.

There are possibly one or two more options available to us but, honestly, we're looking at a choice between these guys:

 

Morne Steyn: Pretty much last seasons first choice flyhalf for the Boks. He is having a relatively poor season according to his standards but in fairness the entire Bulls team fits into that category. It would be tough not to start him and there is no ways on earth barring injury that he won't be in the squad.

 

 Patrick Lambie: A youngster on the international scene with a handful of caps for the Boks but currently the leading points scorer in SupeRugby for 2011. An extremely exciting player and we all love a running flyhalf but I think he might still be a bit raw. Its a tough one and I would love to see him as our first choice number 10. 

 Butch James: 2007 World Cup winning Flyhalf and apart from that, he is just damn good. One of reasons we like him so much is he busts his ASS to make sure his opponents go home feeling that he has hit them harder than a freight train. Soon to be running out for the Lions in the SupeRugby we are all keen to see what he has learned playing for Bath.

 Peter Grant: Back in Cape Town and playing for the Stormers after a stint in Japan. His plan was to become a better player and one thing is for sure, he is kicking a little bit better than before. The Stormers have however only scored one try in 3 games which isn't always his fault but you do tend to blame the pivot when the outside backs aren't doing the business. Still a great option and can't be overlooked.

Personally, I think this will be tough for everyone except Peter de Villiers, he will go for tried and tested and the most recent to fit into that category would be Morne Steyn and Pat Lambie. The latter however could fill a 'utility' position in the squad which will allow for either Butch James or Peter Grant...Who Else?