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Ah, now where are we in the 2016 Super Rugby finals race after we were so rudely (especially for the Wallabies!) interrupted with the June Tests?
Well, for the Brumbies and the Waratahs it was a case of so far, so good as they powered their way to impressive bonus points victories over the Reds (43-24) and the Sunwolves (57-12), in the 13th round of the 2016 Super Rugby tournament.
The two Australian sides are on equal points on the table, 39. But the Brumbies are on top of the Australian Conference because they have won 9 matches to the 8 won by the Waratahs.
Bruce Stadium was icy cold on a Friday night that brought out the True Believers in the Brumbies cause.
For most of the first half, the young Reds side looked as if they were going to cause a boilover.
The youngish veteran Liam Gill was dynamic, as he has been all season, smashing into rucks, winning turnovers, knocking down runners, making barges through a tough Brumbies defensive line. In most other generations (aside from George Smith in his pomp) or with more sympathetic selectors Gill would have been a first-choice flanker and a probable Wallabies captain.
For most of the first half anyway, Gill inspired a terrific effort from his Reds teammates. But instead of killing the ball on half-time, the inexperienced Reds played on and a sweeping Brumbies movement saw Ben Alexander burst through a gap like a cannon-ball to score a try that took the score line to a handy 15-10 Brumbies lead.
The Brumbies piled on the pressure and the points towards the end of the match when Tomas Cubelli, the Pumas halfback, came on. Cubelli’s running carved up the tiring Reds and the six tries to three was enough for a handsome victory and, crucially a bonus point.
The Reds unveiled some young talent. It included ‘Tongan Thor’ – Taniela Tupou, a crashing-ball runner and, although young and inexperienced, a solid enough prop. There was also Lukhan Tui, a rangy, athletic lock in the mould of Maro Itoje. Finally Jack Tuttle, a cross-over from league, who made a neat debut at fullback.
The Reds co-interim coach, Nick Stiles, pointed to these youngsters as boding “well for the future” of the Reds. It is moot whether Stiles should be the Reds coach for that future, however.
The difference between the two teams essentially was that the Brumbies, admittedly a more experienced side all over the field, knew what they were doing or trying to do whereas the Reds, as they demonstrated with their mind explosion just before half-time seemed, to be playing without a script.
The Reds need a new head coach who has had experience as a head coach. Whether there is such a person in Australian rugby, here or coaching overseas, is a matter for discussion.
But with only five Super Rugby franchises and one of them already coached by a New Zealander with aspirations to coach the All Blacks (Daryl Gibson with the Waratahs), it is crucial for the future of Australian rugby that Richard Graham’s long-term successor be an Australian.
I throw one name into the ring – David Nucifora. He is one of the few Australian coaches to win a Super Rugby title as a coach, with the Brumbies. He is currently running Ireland’s successful High Performance unit. And he is a former Reds hooker.
Having said all this, I have nothing but praise for what Daryl Gibson has done with the Waratahs. He has changed the Cheika Game Plan that had run out of steam last year.
This was a brave call. The key shift of Israel Folau to the centres has worked brilliantly for the Waratahs and has been the main reason why they are playing their way into the finals so explosively.
Folau was sensational against the Sunwolves. So, too, was Andrew Kellaway, a talented youngster who Cheika ignored. Matt Lucas, having his first start at half-back since 2013, was also lively. His width of pass released Bernard Foley to set up attack after attack against the spirited Sunwolves.
Of the three franchises brought in this year to Suoer Rugby, the Sunwolves offer the most promise. Admittedly, they have only won one match, compared with the three won by the Jagueras and two by the Southern Kings. But their crowds at Prince Chichibu Stadium in Tokyo have been excellent and very appreciative of good play, on both sides. And the style of rugby that they are playing is entertaining and likely to give them success when their fitness and skills levels improve.
Like the Brumbies, the Waratahs are on a roll and their match on Saturday night at Sydney against the Hurricanes will be crucial for both teams.
The Waratahs (on 39 points) are playing for a top spot in the Australian Conference and, as a sort of consolation prize, for one of the three wild card places in the Australasian Group if the Brumbies beat them out of the top spot.
The Hurricanes (on 44 points) are playing for an unlikely top spot in the New Zealand and a more likely slot as one of the three wild cards in the Australasian Group.
The Hurricanes play the Crusaders at Christchurch in their last match. You would think, therefore, that they will have to defeat the Waratahs to ensure their wild card.
I am picking the Waratahs to beat the Hurricanes mainly because they are playing at home and the home ground advantage, as the Hurricanes showed in their match against an impressive Blues team at Wellington, can be a palpable asset in a tight match.
I am also picking the Brumbies to beat the Blues at Auckland on Friday night, even though it is an away match in this case. I just think that the Brumbies solid grinding game, based on driving mauls and a strong scrum, is too organised and well-constructed for the more spontaneous Blues to cope with.
We learnt over the weekend with the startling Australian Election results that predictions often are not worth the voting paper they are written on.
You don’t have to be Nostradamus, though, to predict that the Lions, winners already of Africa 2 Conference, will be the top South African Group side. They have, in fact, virtually clinched that position.
They are on 47 points and the Stormers, the leaders in Africa 1 Conference, are on 41 points after their seven-try, 57-31 victory over the Melbourne Rebels at Melbourne.
The Stormers play the Force at Perth and the Kings at home. You would expect them to pick up 10 points from two bonus points wins in these matches.
But the Lions play the Kings at home which is an obvious bonus point win for them and then the Jagueras at Buenos Aires, a match the Lions should win.
For me, the Lions have been the great story of the 2016 Super Rugby tournament. They are playing rugby in the best South African way, with tremendous physicality in the backs and the forwards and with a willingness to run and pass their way out of trouble and into the wide spaces.
This is the sort of rugby that entranced old timers like myself many decades ago before isolation from world rugby forced South African rugby into its laager of the kicking game and the disdain for skills over brutal and often brutish play.
Watching the Lions play is a delight. The high energy they bring to their play is allowing players to burst, almost literally, into greatness. Is there, for instance, a better winger (Ben Smith perhaps) in world rugby than the big finisher Ruan Combrinck?
The point here is that Combrinck is 25 and only this year won his first cap for the Springboks.
The likelihood, then, is that the Lions will top the South African Group. If this happens, it means that they will play all their finals matches in Johannesburg in front of a fiercely partisan crowd.
There were 55,000 spectators to see the Lions blast the Sharks away with a 27-0 lead before half-time. The final result, 37-10, sends out an ominous warning to the rest of the finals-bound sides.
We come now to the New Zealand sides. There are four of them (the Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes and Highlanders) still in contention.
Dan Coles was quoted during the week as saying that it was unfair that the New Zealand teams play each other twice: “Moving forward, if we want to see New Zealand teams with the competition, then playing the Kiwi teams once will be enough.”
He has a point but this is what it is. With the Blues now playing well – Tana Umaga has worked wonders as their head coach – there are now five New Zealand teams out of five capable of beating any team in the tournament.
Because of this overall strength, the New Zealand teams are getting to that stage in the tournament where they cannibalise each.
The Chiefs (23) knocked the Crusaders (13) off their top spot in the New Zealand Conference in a splendid match at Suva. The match was played in driving rain in front of a packed stadium and was of the highest quality. The Crusaders, in fact, tried to play too much rugby in the conditions, and this undid them in the end.
Both teams, though, were strong in the set pieces. This is not a surprise for the Crusaders but it is an indication that the Chiefs have improved their scrumming, for instance, since the early days in this year’s tournament when the Lions scrummed them out of the game at Hamilton.
The Chiefs backs were clever, fast, elusive and strong in their defensive attitudes and skills.
New Zealand pundits are anticipating that the Crusaders will be the top NZ side. But, to my mind, the Chiefs are the more likely side to go on and win the tournament, in a final perhaps against the Lions.
The Chiefs have more threats over the field than the Crusaders and, dare one say it, a much better coaching staff.
The cannibalisation effect will be important in how the NZ table finally works itself out. The Crusaders last game is at home against the Hurricanes.
The Chiefs last game is away against the Highlanders.
I will finish on this note. We all thought that the break in Super Rugby hostilities would somehow take the edge off the tournament. Exactly the opposite has happened.
This 13th round was just sensational from its opening match at Suva in the driving rain and heat to the last match at Buenos Aires, in the rain and cold this time, between a Jagueras team that outplayed the Bulls at their traditional driving, abrasive forward play.
One driving maul by the Jaguares rolled on for over 30 metres before they scored.
And at Suva we saw ensemble play from both sides that belied the conditions with brilliant running, skilful passing and fearsome tackling that would have done credit to the ebullient Fijian Sevens side itself.
Rugby like this played in different conditions and in different but effective ways reflects the greatness of a game that caters for players of all sizes and all weathers. Super Rugby, indeed!