[2018 Super Rugby] Round 15: 25-26 May 2018

[TRF_Olyy]

This game is crazy!
Half thought the reds were gonna go all the way then
Their defence has be excellent, and it's had to be. Highlanders relentless

 

[Kiwiwomble]

Real change when smith came on, hamingtion has been doing really well but the step up was noticeable

 

[smartcooky]

Jeezus, Liam "outta-my-way" Squire is a brute!!

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Was just about to say Squire really impressed me,
Remember him getting a cap or two on the end of year tour a couple of years back and he was bloody immense

 

[Kiwiwomble]

Don't know why the chiefs let him go

thoughts on the boring in SC?

Anyone see the red wing kick out while taking a high ball at about 62 mins?

 

[smartcooky]

thoughts on the boring in SC?

Looked a pretty clear case of boring in to me

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

Go stormers go!

 

[mdaclarke]

I think given the results this weekend. The top 8 are the 8 that will qualify.

 

[petite]

stormers rocking the sa conference!

 

[Big_Grumper]

Looks like my optimism for the Aussie teams was misplaced. Normal business is resumed.

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

Bah, a Stormers win would have been out too much i guess (they were v close tho).
My biggest fears i have going forward are the June internationals.
By design Jaguares is more exposed in this aspect that the rest of the teams. If it were up to me, id play the June games with a disproportionate amount of subs. It's a no brainer actually.
I mean, we have a reasonably fair shot to make it to the semis. Imagine this scenario

1. Crusaders
2. Lions
3. Tahs
4. Hurricanes
5. Highlanders
6. Chiefs
7. Jaguares
8. Rebels

So that means we'd play the Lions in Joburg in QF and Chiefs/Tahs in SH while the Crusaders/Landers/Canes all kill each other on the other side of the bracket.
We wouldn't be favourites, but i'm happy with our chances for all of those games. Final would be another matter, course.

 

[Kiwiwomble]

I take it the reds fullback will be getting a 6 week ban for this?

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Don't know why the chiefs let him go

thoughts on the boring in SC?

Anyone see the red wing kick out while taking a high ball at about 62 mins?

I don't think the Chiefs let him go, so much as he was unhappy with the amount of game time he had been receiving (all seemed a bit petulant to me, he'd been out injured for a lot of the season and other guys had been playing well in his absence) and moved to somewhere he was promised plenty when the chance came up.

 

[unrated]

As tempting as it was to remain silent and lurk in the shadows for a few days i feel the need to congratulate the Jags and their fans for the victory over the Sharks. It was a big one in terms of the log but also the Jags establishing themselves as true Super Rugby contenders. Its still going to be tight in the battle for that final few spots but Jags are looking good. A tough SA tour is coming up for them and since they did well in NZ they would be very confident. Most of the SA sides are desperate for victories so it's not going to be easy at all for either sides.

I hope the Jags can continue the strong form for the next few editions of Super rugby with a mass exodus looming, if they manage to remain competitive then those arguing for the death of Super rugby will have eggs on their faces in their attempts of discrediting the Super rugby product.

Im looking forward to the home leg in Durban where i hope to win with a bonus point to make up for this loss. We have the most Springboks by quite a large number so hopefully that galvanizes the team for a successful final stretch of Super rugby.

 

[FNS]

If we get one more win and sharks lose a match then they wont catch us(even if they win 2 with BP). Stormers need to win 3 with BP and hope we dont pass the 40 point barrier. We need to beat the bulls again and if some results help we may even afford to lose 2.

That being said, international windows is here and they probably play all the jags just to bolster Pumas image....hopefully they understand what is in stake here and rest them.

 

[TRF_heineken]

If we get one more win and sharks lose a match then they wont catch us(even if they win 2 with BP). Stormers need to win 3 with BP and hope we dont pass the 40 point barrier. We need to beat the bulls again and if some results help we may even afford to lose 2.

That being said, international windows is here and they probably play all the jags just to bolster Pumas image....hopefully they understand what is in stake here and rest them.

It's definitely going to be an interesting finish for the SA conference.

The Bulls have 3 more games to play after the international break. 2 of them are away in the Sunwolves and the Lions, and their last game is against the Jags at Loftus. So they could possibly pick up a few points against the Sunwolves but the Jags and Lions game will be the ones that determines if they could qualify.

 

[SomeOke]

What would really help the most for all of us if the Rebels started to drop games so that three teams from the SA conference can sneak through.

Unfortunately they do have one extra game on most of us as well as relatively easy fixtures.

A betting man would just say the Jaguares and the Lions will go through and be done with it. The Sharks or Bulls really needed to beat the Jaguares in Argentina to have a good chance.

It's not inconceivable, going to be an interesting finish. All of a sudden with the SA conference not playing this weekend the competition gets a lot less exciting as the other conferences are more or less decided.