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The Chiefs and Brumbies stand out as Super Rugby contenders

28th February, 2015
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The Brumbies host the Chiefs, with the openside battle set to be a corker. (AP Photo/SNPA, Ross Setford)
Expert
28th February, 2015
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With the start of the Super Rugby competition for 2015, most rugby eyes are understandably focused on which team looks to have the goods to take out the championship.

From what I have seen so far, my money is on the Chiefs and Brumbies to battle it out at season’s end.

Both teams have some great weapons at their disposal and this week sees All Blacks Sonny Bill Williams and Sam Cane return to the Chiefs, who face Canterbury on Sunday night at Waikato Stadium.

The aspect that I like about the Chiefs is the level of intensity they have brought to both matches. I fully expect to see the Chiefs go three from three when they play the Crusaders, particularly given the fact that the latter will be missing Dan Carter and Israel Dagg.

There is little doubt that the Brumbies have been the most impressive of the Australian teams to date with wins over the Reds and a last gasp defeat at the hands of the Chiefs in Round 2. They are by far the most creative of the Australian sides and are extremely well organised both in the forwards and the backs.

Australian rugby will benefit from the welcome return of Brumbies hooker and captain Stephen Moore when he takes the field against the Rebels in Melbourne.

While each of the Australian teams are currently level, with one win and one loss a piece, I cannot see the Rebels winning this match. That is not to say that the Rebels can’t match it with the Brumbies up front, because they can, and the tussles from front row, lock, and backrow should be great viewing.

It is in the backs where I see the Brumbies having the edge, and as long as they maintain at least parity in the forwards, their backs should see them home.

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The inside three of Matt Toomua, Christian Lealiifano and the blockbusting Tevita Kuridrani, are particularly impressive, with individual skillsets that complement each other very well.

For the Rebels, their strength is in their forward pack, ably led from the front by their No 8 Scott Higginbotham. Halfback Nic Stirzaker also shows promise and his performance relative to that of his opposite number Nic White should be another highlight of the game.

Stirzaker returns from a week’s suspension for allegedly stomping on Crusaders star flanker Richie McCaw in Round 1, who must have been laughing his head off, given that video replays did not reveal any connection with McCaw at all.

If Stirzaker wanted to stomp McCaw, then he most certainly could have. No-one intentionally stomping a player would place their feet where Stirzaker did. If he wanted to truly stomp McCaw he would have planted his boot firmly on either one or both of McCaw’s legs or smack back in his groin. If anything, it looked to me as if he avoided McCaw.

Either Stirzaker, the referee or the judiciary were blind. My bet is the latter. The only other possibility is that I am blind – and the older I get perhaps that shouldn’t be discounted!

The art of a great flanker is to appear to be doing the opposite of what you are really doing and McCaw was doing a great job of lying at the back of the Rebels ruck, when he clearly could have removed himself if he had wanted to do so.

There is no doubt McCaw is a great flanker – and he knew exactly what he was doing – purposely getting in the way, while appearing not to.

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While this does not justify a stomp, my point is that after numerous replays of the incident, I cannot see where Stirzaker actually connected with McCaw at all. So how in the hell is that a stomp?

In my view, the referee’s yellow card was an error of judgment on the referee’s part, and the judiciary giving Stirzaker a week’s suspension was a joke. The caveat to this of course is whether or not Stirzaker pleaded guilty to the charge (and why) in which case the judiciary would have little choice.

In any event, the team that is the most consistent will be the most likely to get the gong at the end of the championship and this is a strength of both the Chiefs and Brumbies.

On paper, the Waratahs should be in the mix, but at this early stage in the competition I cannot see them taking out back-to-back Super Rugby titles. They certainly have name players on paper, but they seem soft in the underbelly for my liking.

The Reds are showing that they don’t lack tenacity, and despite an embarrassing start to the season when they were pistol whipped by the Brumbies 47-3, they have picked themselves up and played with a great deal of commitment in their last two outings, which saw them defeat the Western Force, before going down to the Highlanders 13-20 in Saturday night’s Super Rugby clash in Dunedin.

Positive signs for the Reds have been Will Genia’s return to form, and the performance of James O’Connor at number 10. Genia seems to have a new lease of life, and the recent spate of misfortune that has befallen the Reds has only seemed to invigorate him, which is indeed a welcome sight.

I expect the Reds to be gallant throughout the season but cannot see them in the mix when the whips are cracking near finals time.

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As for the Force, they are too inconsistent.

After stitching up the Waratahs in Round 1 of the competition, the Force gave a pretty ordinary performance in Round 2, going down to a heavily depleted Reds outfit, and were belted 42-13 in Perth by the Hurricanes on Saturday.

Speaking of the Hurricanes, they also have come out of the starting gates well, with three wins from three, so obviously cannot be discounted. The Cheetahs have also been impressive with two wins from two and the Sharks and the Stormers will not lie down.

Nonetheless, I stand by my prediction.

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