Call me parochial, naive, whatever. And I may be mistaken or perhaps influenced by my heritage, but I think the New Zealand sides in this year’s Super Rugby competition have a clear edge over their Australian counterparts.
And, by the looks of it, probably the South African teams as well.
The Chiefs will be a well-oiled machine when it gets to the sharp end of the competition. They certainly have fronted up front and their backs are getting stronger and stronger, particularly the combination in the mid-field between Sonny Bill Williams and Richard Kahui.
This could well be the next All Black Test mid-field pairing.
Interesting isn’t it?
Ma’a Nonu opted not to put up with Mark Hammett’s new wave culture and moved to Auckland, breaking his partnership with Conrad Smith, something I think was instrumental in his selection over the last few years. Nonu will not be as effective without Smith beside him.
And possibly vice versa.
With a new All Black selection panel, there could well be a change in the mid-field because these two players are clearly a handful for all opponents and the Waratahs certainly felt it in the weekend: big, strong, clever and well coached.
With Cruden on the inside, they do look formidable.
I thought the ‘Tahs had an outstanding first half. Better than I thought they would perform, and controlled the majority of possession well. They simply couldn’t keep it up in the second half and the Chiefs finished going away.
The Highlanders?
Well, under powered they may be, but effective none-the-less. And they seem to be going from strength to strength under Jamie Joseph. Last year they faded in the second half of the competition.
I have a feeling that this year they’ll be much stronger. They won’t win it, but they’ll be up there.
The Crusaders are building slowly, as they normally do. This has been the pattern for many years now.
They start quietly and slowly build. Saturday will be a big test for them at Lofters and they may be pipped at the post.
Richie McCaw’s return is imminent, and now with Dan Carter settling in nicely, I would expect the second half of this competition to see the Crusaders performing very strongly.
The honeymoon could well be over for the Hurricanes, who have performed beyond my expectation, having lost six All Blacks from last year’s team.
They have played well as a team, despite their new look combination. But nevertheless, there needs to be depth as well as spirit as this competition evolves.
The Blues? Oh, the Blues.
At the beginning of the competition we looked at their line-up and thought “a wealth of riches”. My concern was always what combinations Pat Lam would decide on, how long it would take to develop a settled selection, and the combinations required to win at this level.
The answer, of course, is not clear and the combinations are by no means settled as the Blues stagger their way through the early part of the comp. I’d expect them to get better, but will finish no better than mid-way in the table.
And the Australian teams?
Well, I see the Reds are having difficulty, not only with injury but also with performance. They are certainly a shadow of last year’s glory at this stage.
The Warratahs will be competitive, but I don’t think they’ll figure in the play-offs.
The Rebels are a bit under-gunned and the Force are slowly improving.
The Brumbies are the team to watch, despite the pre-season criticism by most people, excluding this writer, and continue to develop nicely. They haven’t got the grand players of the past, but they are certainly playing effective rugby and will finish the highest of all the Australian teams.
Of the South African teams, the Stormers, the Bulls and the Sharks are all capable of making the play-offs and only time will tell.
The Cheeters and the Lions are both improved units compared with last year, but I’d be surprised if either of them finished above halfway in the log jam.
If this impression of mine is correct and the New Zealand teams do have an edge, then why? I wonder whether this is because New Zealand hosted the RWC, which has stimulated an even greater appetite for rugby, on and off the field, from players and spectators alike.
Long may it continue on this little island of four million people, way down in the South Pacific.
Roar columnist and former All Black great, Murray Mexted, is the Managing Director of The International Rugby Academy (IRANZ), the leading global Rugby Academy. IRANZ offer an independent high performance pathway for coaches, players and teams worldwide. More details here.
Ramond
Guest
Fruean's a paper tiger. He looks big, mean and menacing but unless he runs into a gap at pace he does sweet FA. I don't see him running over the top of too many players the way a brute of his size, power and speed should. Best attacking centre in the world at the moment? I think not. Ditto SBW. If those two are so hot this season, why have the Crusaders been looking so average? Smith's gone better than both of them.
Riccardo
Guest
KPM, If the point you're making is that we have to be planning for the RWC in 2015 then I agree consideration must be given but to all positions and the Team Dynamic as a whole and this is frankly some time away anyway. Smith MAY not be 1st choice by then but he still could be in the mix, such is his allround skill. I VERY much doubt that SBW will be here by the end of the year, let alone at least 3 more years. Fruean could well be the polished product you refer to by then but there is a lot of Rugby between now & then my friend and more faces to come through the ranks. Just look at how Aaron Smith and TJ Perenara are excelling for Otago & Wellington respectively given the calamities at their clubs. Andre Taylor. Retallick. The list goes on... I'm surprised you haven't regaled me with tales of Rene Ranger as well KPM?
kingplaymaker
Roar Guru
Riccardo SBW and Fruean are probably the two best attacking centres in the world while Nonu and Smith failed to make a single break between them in the final two rounds of the RWC, and hardly any all season. They have clearly lost it. This isn't to say they never had it: from the moment they came together until the end of 2010 they were both outstanding, game-breaking players but in 2011 age caught up with them and they lost their edge. They must be retired now before their replacements get bored of waiting for has-beens and move overseas, leaving the ABs with no one for the 2015 RWC.
Riccardo
Guest
KPM, please. I know Conrad's a pet peeve of your's and of course you're entitled to your opinion. But seriously mate, have you even watched a Hurricanes game this year? You know Conrad's the captain then? He has been lauded by for his heart, skill and vision by several commentators in this Super season already, including one of the Roar's experts. SBW has a great offload and IS getting better under Wayne Smith's and Dave Rennie's tutelage but an All Black starter at centre, he is not. Fruean's skillset is still a season away too IMO. Kahui is just hitting his straps & merits consideration but I think you'll find he would be the only boulter at Centre. I'm not convinced Hansen will take too many risks this time around. If he did I tend to side with Moaman below. Possibly Kahui/Smith. But make no mistake, Conrad will be 1st cab off the rank again this year, ceteris paribus.
Riccardo
Guest
Couldn't agree more OJ. Smith is arguably the form centre in Super Rugby.
Harryonthecoast
Guest
Yes, and the Highlanders were given somewhat of a lesson.
Scot Free
Guest
So Mr. Mexted reckons the Kiwis have the clear edge this season? Mate, we've got a big river called "Murray" over here. And it's full of crap, too.
Lorry
Guest
Justin haha, good one!
Moaman
Guest
Hard to argue with that.England have led the way in showing that money and numerical superiority alone does not a champion team make.
Junkscience
Guest
Agree but the Rebels beating the Blues and the much improved Brumbies give me hope. Reds are decimated by injuries and the Waratahs flatter to deceive again. As a Force supporter I dream of a back line that can take advantage of the platform the forwards provide. Aussie teams sometimes look poor when play each other but always seem to lift when they play NZ and SA teams. Go the Wallabies !!!! -- Comment left via The Roar's iPhone app. Download The Roar's iPhone App in the App Store here.
jonny
Guest
NO! you are all lucky rugby is not the number one sport in South Africa. Everyone thinks that rugby is the number one sport in sa but that is incorrect. Only about 8% of South Africans even watch rugby let alone play it. cricket is second with about 15% actually watching it. Football(soccer) is the number one sport with a massive 90% following(inclusive of rugby and cricket supporters who consider football their number one sport.) Rugby is mostly a 'rich man's' sport although there are some exceptions in the western and eastern cape. The day the Zulu's get a taste of rugby is the day the springboks dominate consistently. Beast and Brian Mujati are both from Zimbabwe but their geneological tribe is is the same as the Zulu tribe in South Africa, if i am not mistaken mvovo is the only other person from the zulu tribe to have played super rugby. These three are just a small taste of what could follow if the Zulus took interest in rugby union like they do in football(soccer). I am tired of hearing ozzies use he excuse that rugby union is the fourth sport. Percentage wise(to population) many more ozzies play and support rugby union compared to sa. Also sa government cannot pump as much money as the ozzies into sport(probably only contribute 0.1% of what ozzie government does) as they have social-welfare issues and reconstruction and development to deal with. Ozzie rugby's problem is this year is their forward strength, you have razzle dazzle in the backs who are as talented as their AFL and League counterparts. However no razzle dazzle generally in the forwards, with a few exceptions. I have watched your best League and AFL and have to say that there is no-one there (regarding specifically forward talent) that could help your struggling super rugby packs. Yes some super rugby teams from ozzie have strong forward specialists in certain areas but what new zealand and sa are producingrecently is a lot more forwards with set-piece skills, running skills and off-loading skillls all combined- a triple threat to link with the backline. Ozzie have too few Nathan Sharpe's and Pocock's, they do their core roles but also contribute all over the field with carries and a good offloading and passing game. I have not seen the likes of Pocock and Sharpe in ozzie rugby league or AFL. Plenty of equivalent backline talent, however that is not where the depth problem in ozzie lies. There was a recent article on roar where someone was complaining about the ozzie backs this year, i don't think there is a problem with the backs- the problem is that the backs are not getting front foot ball from the forwards, and the forwrds are not linking effectively enough with the backs in the backline.
stillmatic1
Guest
its a very loose point though munter, hence why i replied with the examples of england and france, who although not their number 1 sports, have immense wealth and playing resources to choose from. football would be considered the number 1 sport in england, but how often do they win again? cricket is the number 1 sport (not national sport) of india, and yet how have they been going?
stillmatic1
Guest
just illustrating a point OJ!! saying a player should solely be in a team because he is dangerous, is like saying a piece of sashimi is dangerous because i may choke on it. there is a reason why these super athletes dont proliferate every team to the exclusion of all else.because often they have short comings elsewhere in their games. point is, the sashimi is sbw/freun et al, and the safe piece of steak is guys like conrad smith.
Nathan of Perth
Guest
Nice, haha
NF
Guest
'. NRL are always stealing our youth. ' Stop blaming the NRL for once and focus on your own grassroots. P.S: Go reds
Moaman
Guest
MARK-I like AFL.Actually played a game or three 'til I broke my ankle.I don't pretend to be naive.I am a small-town boy ....as to why I "comment on things and say little factual information"-I thought we left the factual stuff to the journos and we gave our opinion....I thought that was how it worked.It was a misguided attempt to steer you back to the thread and avoid running over well-broken ground ie "we have less cattle therefore mediocrity is acceptable"Mark..let's not get personal,rather agree to disagree and get on enjoying this site and our rugby ;-)
koko
Guest
I dont think I'll ever miss Taine randall.. yea that pass was alright.. the run down the touch line against the argies could be the second and only good thing he did for the allblacks.. mind you.. he lead a pretty mean haka.
koko
Guest
Brumbies won because highlanders made a few too many mistakes. Brumbies is like a springbok team. Defend defend defend force a mistake and attack on turnover ball.. I like eddie jones's style of coaching. I wonder when the Brumbies will start pulling out the drop goals. AS you can tell, I'm not a big fan of Jake white.
koko
Guest
too many cuzzie bro's.. thats the problem.. dropping the ball every five minutes.. Reminds me of the warriors sometimes.
Justsaying
Guest
It would be giving the Blues too much credit to say they lost because they were complacent. They were just awful, let down by both tactics and basic skills. I also think it's a bit unfair to say the Highlanders were complacent - they were beaten by a fired up Brumbies team who were playing at home and had been flying under the radar up to that point. It's pleasing that the Aussie conference seems to be a bit more competitive this year. Those games against the Force, Rebels and Brumbies are looking less like guaranteed competition points and more like potential banana skins for the top teams.