Super 15 Play Off QF: Crusaders - Sharks @ Trafalgar Park, Nelson (25-06-2011)

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Trafalgar Park, Nelson (25-06-2011, 08:35 GMT)

Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder says that he wants his team to "unleash" in the Super Rugby finals which start for them on Saturday against the Sharks in Nelson. It's remarkable that the Crusaders are even in the Super Rugby play offs given what they have been through this season.

All of their home matches have been played away after they lost their home ground in the Christchurch earthquake and then in the middle of the season they were hit with extensive injuries. Despite all of their obstacles the Crusaders won the New Zealand conference and won 11 of their 16 matches with a draw and four defeats in the extended season.

Sharks coach John Plumtree believes the trip to New Zealand for Saturday's Super Rugby play-off match against the Crusaders in Nelson will be their greatest obstacle. The Durban outfit sealed their place in the top six of the competition with a 26-23 victory over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld last Saturday. The coastal team must now embark on an 11,000km journey to face the seven-time champions. The Sharks have been boosted by the news that Odwa Ndungane and Eugene van Staden have been added to the 22-man squad that did duty in Pretoria over the weekend.

Steven Sykes stayed behind with a knee injury, as did Riaan Swanepoel, who is not eligible for the play offs, failing to play enough regular season matches. Frederic Michalak can make the trip to Nelson though. Despite only playing 2 matches, he is allowed to play due to the fact he was only signed recently and his match percentage is 100% since his arrival.

In recent years, the Crusaders have shown to be true All Blacks, choking on their way to the silverware. In 2007, 2009 and 2010 the Christchurch boys were eliminated by later winners the Bulls. The Crusaders are big favourites to win their knock out clash as no South African team has won a finals game in New Zealand and the Crusaders have never lost a home playoff match but they won't be taking the Sharks lightly.

When the teams met earlier this season, the venue was Twickenham, England. This due to the earthquake in Christchurch. The match was scheduled at the "Temple of Rugby" to show Europe what Super Rugby can offer and the benefits would be donated to the earthquake victims. In London, the Crusaders won 44-28, scoring 5 tries to the Sharks' 4. Daniel Carter, Robbie Fruean and Sonny-Bill Williams were the big guns who won the game that day, while the Sharks were impotent in the first 30 minutes with Lambie missing due to injury. If things will go the Crusaders' way again this weekend, they will stay undefeated against South African opposition tat home, They will be undefeated in the play offs against the Sharks. When the 2 met in 1998, it was the first play off clash between the 2, which the Crusaders won 36-32, thanks to tries by Norm Berryman (2), Darul Lilley and Darul Gibson. Andrew Mehrtens, born in Durban, slotted 2 conversions and 4 penalties. For the Sharks, Ollie Le Roux (2), Shaun Payne, Stefan Terblanche and Kevin Putt crossed the line for a 5-pointer and Andre Joubert added the extra's for 2, plus a penalty. This will be their second 'do or die'-encounter.

The best result by the Sharks when they played the Crusaders in New Zealand, was in 1997, when a 26-26 draw was the result. The Sharks did however manage to score 4 tries on the day. Henry Honiball, Mark Andrews, Pieter Muller and Wickus van Heerden scored them, with Honiball converting 3. The biggest performance by the Crusaders against the Sharks came in 2005, beating them 77-34 in a try-fest. Caleb Ralph, Casey Laulala, Chris Jack, Dan Carter, Greg Sommerville, Justin Marshall, Leon McDonald, Rico Gear (2), Ross Filipo and Scott Hamilton scored the tries for the Christchurch franchise while Carter (7) and Mehrtens (4) converted all of them together. The Sharks however, did manage to score 5 tries themselves. Albert van den Berg, Brent Russell, Cedric Mkhize, Rudi Keil and Warren Britz did it for the Banana Boys with Conrad Barnard converting 3 and Ruan Pienaar adding 3 points from the kicking tee.

The teams:

Crusaders: 15. Tom Marshall, 14. Sean Maitland, 13. Robbie Fruean, 12. Sonny-Bill Williams, 11. Zac Guildford, 10. Daniel Carter, 9. Andy Ellis, 8. Kieran Read (c), 7. Matt Todd, 6. George Whitelock, 5. Sam Whitelock, 4. Brad Thorn, 3. Owen Franks, 2. Corey Flynn, 1. Wyatt Crockett

16. Quentin MacDonald 17. Ben Franks 18. Luke Romano 19. Jonathan Poff 20. Kahn Fotuali'i 21. Matt Berquist 22. Ryan Crotty/Brent Ward

Sharks: 15. Patrick Lambie, 14. JP Pietersen, 13. Stefan Terblanche (c), 12. Meyer Bosman, 11. Lwazi Mvovo, 10. Frederic Michalak, 9. Charl McLeod, 8. Willem Alberts, 7. Jean Deysel, 6. Keegan Daniel, 5. Alistar Hargreaves, 4. Gerhard Mostert, 3. Jannie du Plessis, 2. Bismarck du Plessis, 1. Tendai Mtawarira

16. John Smit , 17. Eugene van Staden , 18. Ross Skeate , 19. Ryan Kankowski , 20. Jacques Botes , 21. Adrian Jacobs , 22. Louis Ludik

The match will be officiated by an all-NZ quartet.

Referee: Bryce Lawrence
AR 1: Keith Brown
AR 2: Vinny Munro
TMO: Garratt Williamson


History in the regular season:

1996 Sharks 58-26 Crusaders
1997 Crusaders 26-26 Sharks
1998 Sharks 20-32 Crusaders
1999 Crusaders 34-29 Sharks
2000 Sharks 24-32 Crusaders
2001 Crusaders 34-24 Sharks
2002 Sharks 34-37 Crusaders
2003 Crusaders 23-18 Sharks
2004 Sharks 29-25 Crusaders
2005 Crusaders 77-34 Sharks
2006 Crusaders 22-20 Sharks
2007 Sharks 27-26 Crusaders
2008 Crusaders 18-10 Sharks
2009 Sharks 10-13 Crusaders
2010 Crusaders 35-6 Sharks
2011 Crusaders 44-28 Sharks * played at Twickenham, London

History in the play offs:

1998 Crusaders 36-32 Sharks

Play off results for both teams:

Crusaders
12 play offs
9 finals
7 championship

Sharks
6 play offs
3 finals
0 championships


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*Vbookie odds supplied by BWIN*

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Hopefully this game'll be badass, certainly has the potential after the game at Twickers - hopefully both teams go out to win, rather than go out to not lose

 

[LPsoldier ZA]

I'm sure this is gonna be the better of the two qualifier games this comming weekend...the Sharks stand a very good chance of upsetting the Crusaders. It all depends on the start, they can't let the Crusaders get of to a blinder like they did at Twickenham.

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Knowing the Crusaders (46-27) and the Sharks (41-28) have had some huge amount of tries in their matches, things are looking bright from a neutral point of view. Neither of these 2 have a topscorer in their team, but with Dagg (7), Pietersen (6) and Mvovo (6) there are 3 players who were almost there and will add some danger to the match. Sean Maitland scored 8 this season but won't be playing.

 

[JJR]

Sharks only within the last hour have arrived in Sydney and now they need to fly to Wellington and then need to go to their Base for this trip, Auckland. Gonna need a lot of Gym/Pool/Field and Massuer sessions to get physically prepared/ready for Saturday. C'mon The Sharks!!! Make it happen!!!

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

I'll off course be rooting for the Sharks as a home semi at Newlands against the Crusaders is a neutral venue LOL. Much rather see the Blues or Waratahs here.

I'll reserve my prediction until the line-ups are announced. Certainly both teams can win it though I'd have to put the Crusaders up as favourites especially with the Sharks having to travel.

 

[Amobokoboko]

I think the Crusaders will win this one.

 

[Nielsch]

This match can be epic! Really looking forward to watching this!

 

[Amobokoboko]

As mentioned on multiple site. The Crusaders deserves to win the ***le as they didn't had a home stadium this year, we're travelling constantly and did encounter many injuries.

 

[Darwin]

The Crusaders should start this game as firm favourites, particularly due to the travel factor the Sharks have to overcome. In addition the Crusaders have had some good news on the injury front, with Sonny Bill Williams, Sean Maitland, and Khan Fotuali'i expected to be available for selection this week. I'd imagine SBW and Maitland will go straight back into the starting lineup.

The weather forecast for Nelson isn't looking great, so it may end up being a tight forward oriented battle.

EDIT:
Crusaders team named:
1. Wyatt Crockett 2. Corey Flynn 3. Owen Franks 4. Brad Thorn 5. Sam Whitelock 6. George Whitelock 7. Matt Todd 8. Kieran Read (c) 9. Andy Ellis 10. Dan Carter 11. Zac Guildford 12. Sonny Bill Williams 13. Robbie Fruean 14. Sean Maitland 15. Tom Marshall
Replacements : 16. Quentin MacDonald 17. Ben Franks 18. Luke Romano 19. Jonathan Poff 20. Kahn Fotuali'i 21. Matt Berquist 22. Ryan Crotty/Brent Ward

SBW, Maitland, and Fotuali'i are back as predicted, with Wyatt Crockett returning to the starting XV in place of Ben Franks. Having both SBW and Maitland back will be huge for the Crusaders, as it adds two more attacking weapons to the already dangerous Crusaders backline. The Crusaders will be happy to have close to a full strength squad to pick from again, with only three players Richie McCaw (foot), Israel Dagg (thigh) and Adam Whitelock (chest muscle) not considered due to injury.

 

[Shaggy]

@ Ezequiel ... :lol: ... um ... *cough* ... because the Crusaders lost on the high veld in recent years, their chokers? ... I wouldn't have put them in as favourites playing away from home, so I wouldn't have thought they were chokers

@ Darwin ... come on mate! ... the weather is always great in Nelson ... when i'm there, it's so bright and sunny, that I have to where a patch over one eye and alternate it from eye to eye to reduce the glare!

... should be a great game, but Crusaders to take it, due to travel considerations for the Sharks

Anyone got the Sharks side? ... I need to know as I've got a sudden death match against Darwin in the Fantasy league

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

I put 200 euro's on the Sharks for Saturday. Not because I think they will win, but because I like to take a risk! If they win, it will earn me 1125 euro's and I will buy a new laptop haha

 

[Amobokoboko]

You should post this on their FB fan page: Boys, if you lose, you owe me a new laptop or a free business abonnement for 2012

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

I should tell them if they lose, they owe me a match worn jersey of Ryan Kankowski

 

[Darwin]

No surprise to see Michalek at 10 and Lambie at 15 again, as it seemed to be quite effective last week against the Bulls. Interesting to see both Deysel and Alberts in the Sharks starting lineup (with Kankowski and Botes on the bench). This probably in response to the wet conditions forecast, with Kankowski always much more effective on a hard ground. It is also interesting to see the Sharks have gone for a 5/2 split on the bench, which again points to a forward orientated game.

The tight-five battle is going to be key again. I see the Crusaders having an edge in this department, as they had when they played in Twickenham. The Sharks have an all Springbok front row, but the Crusaders front row of Flynn + 2 of Franks, Franks, and Crockett has dominated all season at scrum time, and have been huge around the field. A key to the Crusaders scrum dominance is Brad Thorn, who many regard as the best scrummaging lock in the world. Mtawarira and Bismark du Plessis are both key ball runners for the Sharks; I'd imagine we are going to have some big collisions between them the Crusaders tight forwards (the Franks brothers and Crockett in particular). The loose-forward battle will an interesting battle of contrasting styles. Deysel and Alberts are probably two of the most powerful ball runners in the world, while Read and George Whitelock offer a bit more at ruck time. I rate Keegan Daniel, but I feel Matt Todd has a slight edge over him on the openside flank, though this is perhaps more due to the fact that the Crusaders loose-trio hunts as a pack, which means it is far easier for them force turnovers. Overall I think the Sharks pack contains a lot more powerful ball-runners, but I feel the Crusaders should dominate at the breakdown, and have an edge at scrum time.

I feel the Crusaders have an edge in the halves, though I've always thought on his day Michalek can be as good as anyone in the world. Andy Ellis has been outstanding at halfback this season, and the Sharks will have to keep a close eye on him. The Crusaders should have an edge in the midfield, though nowhere near as much as they had when the teams first met. SBW has struggled with injury for the last 5-6 weeks and has not been overly effective when he has been on the field, while Robbie Fruean has faded badly as the season has progressed. I'd imagine Fruean will have a quite a few runs at Terblanche though, as I don't think Terblanche is overly strong on defence. The battle between the back threes could also be a highlight of the match, with both teams having plenty of pace and skill out wide. Guildford and Pietersen are probably the form two wings in the competition and face each other on one wing, while Mvovo (also in great form) faces Maitland (who is just returning from injury, but was in great form before injury) on the other wing. Lambie v Marshall is another good matchup at fullback. Though Lambie probably has an edge in this matchup, Marshall has played well for the Crusaders at fullback; he's certainly dangerous with the ball in hand, but he has made a few errors.

Overall I see the Crusaders have an edge in most departments, so I expect them to win the match. I'm picking the Crusaders to take it by 10-15 points.

 

[antipodean]

Hopefully this game'll be badass, certainly has the potential after the game at Twickers - hopefully both teams go out to win, rather than go out to not lose

It's being played at night, in Nelson, in winter. The game will be one of set piece, defence and tactical kicking to win territory.

 

[Larksea]

Crusaders should win but those odds are hardly worth putting vcash down

 

[Seaton]

I was sure I posted here...

Oh well, just to let the Crusaders fans worry, I have put my 10 vBookie units (?) On the Crusaders to win.
In the entire time that vBookie has been on, I have never won anything, nadda, niks. I truely am appaling at calling results

Yaaaaaaassssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mon the Sharkies,you can do eeett!!!

 

[Amobokoboko]

I also put all my v money on the Sharks ( the full 12) and I do reckon the Crusaders will win.
The world is not ready for a decade of sharks fans mentioning their ***le non-stop

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Nice, thanks. I think we deserve a ***le for a change, after losing finals in 1996, 2001 and 2007.