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It was another half-decent week of tipping from the experts. All bar Spiro managed at least five from a possible seven points from the round, and two of us jagged six with only one incorrect tip.
Paddy and Elisha led the way, both only let down by the lacklustre Melbourne Rebels. Scott, Biltong, Tristan, and I all managed five correct. It should also be mentioned at this point that only one of us was silly enough to lay the powerplay on the Rebels…
Paddy and Elisha have the honour this week, as mentioned.
Here are the tips for Super Rugby Round 5…
Paddy Effeney
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, Highlanders, Waratahs, Blues, Sharks.
Explain yourself: This is the week, after Spiro’s article (i.e. the kiss of death) that the New Zealand sides bounce back and the Aussie sides fall in a big old heap.
I’ll tip against my Reds, against the Rebels, and against the Force. Surely, the Crusaders have to come good eventually? The Brumbies don’t have the firepower to beat the Waratahs, but I think this will be closer than the results so far this year might suggest.
The Chiefs will be too strong for an impressive Stormers side, and the Hurricanes will consign the Cheetahs to a third straight loss on the road. The Blues will round out a week of resounding success for New Zealand sides, with a win over the Lions.
The Highlanders are my powerplay, basically because every game this round is so close!
Elisha Pearce
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, Highlanders, Waratahs, Lions, Sharks.
Explain yourself: Beating the Chiefs on the road is a bridge too far for the Stormers, who lost to a poor Crusaders side.
My powerplay will be in play before dinner on Friday, the Chiefs get it. They have Brodie Retallick, Liam Messam, Gareth Anscombe returning to bolster an already good side – lock it in Eddie.
Matches I’m fairly confident about: Highlanders too committed at home for the Force, the Great White Sharks will overpower the Reds, Crusaders will be too experienced and finally play the percentages to do in the Rebels.
The ‘iffies’: I’m going with the Hurricanes over Cheetahs. With Conrad Smith’s 100th match, maybe this’ll be the second captain-inspired team performance in two rounds? There’s not much between the Lions and Blues, despite their variety in styles. The Blues in their naïve exuberance may allow Marnitz Boshoff’s boot to be the difference.
Finally, the Waratahs get my vote in a tight one over the Brumbies. We need a good nickname for this match; I’ll go with “The Hume Highway Squabble” in light of the week’s revelations about the Dublin curfew fracas.
Scott Allen
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Cheetahs, Highlanders, Waratahs, Blues, Sharks.
Explain yourself: This week I’ve tipped more away team victories – Blues to beat Lions, Cheetahs to beat Hurricanes, Crusaders to beat Rebels (just) and Waratahs to beat Brumbies in a very tough match. I think this match will confirm the Waratahs credentials for 2014.
The home team victories I can see – Chiefs over Stormers, Highlanders to beat the Force and the Sharks to beat the Reds. For the Reds to get over the Sharks their forward pack will have to play out of their skin.
The powerplay is hard this week as there is plenty of potential for upsets – I’ve gone with the Chiefs.
Biltongbek
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, Highlanders, Brumbies, Blues, Sharks.
Explain yourself: You can always rely on the Chiefs, well since 2012. Crusaders will click, it normally happens by the fifth round. Cheetahs are still on honeymoon, Hurricanes at home.
Highlanders are looking good and the Force will have left their energy in Melbourne. Lions will kick everything, and the Blues will have too much talent.
Sharks have a better pack, they will create pressure of Genia and Cooper, and their backs are looking damn good.
Powerplay is on the always-reliable Chiefs.
Brett McKay
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Cheetahs, Force, Brumbies, Blues, Sharks.
Explain yourself: The Chiefs just keep rolling on, winning games well, and winning games when perhaps they’ve not been the best team, the mark of a champion side. The Rebels burned me last week real bad, so they get my first yellow card for the year, and a two-week ban.
The Hurricanes look well off at the moment, and the Cheetahs I think are coming back. There will be plenty of teams who won’t come close to putting 33 points on the Reds in Brisbane.
I had the Highlanders initially, but then I saw their team named and was thoroughly underwhelmed.
The Force might just have more to prove this week, too, that last week wasn’t a fluke. I’ve gone with the Brumbies with both heart and head, and I think they have the better grinding game to suit what will be a tight match.
The Blues are back at the bottom of their “fuel cycle”, so it’s time to fill up again. And try as the Reds might, I can’t see them getting past the Sharks.
Though my powerplay on Jake White’s team should ensure they do, if my recent track record is anything to go by.
Tristan Rayner
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, Force, Waratahs, Lions, Sharks.
Explain yourself A tricky week for tipsters. I’m sticking to the more obvious choices, with the most teeth-gnashing around the Hurricanes/Cheetahs and Lions/Blues games.
Slightly more confident on the Lions with Kevin Mealamu out injured for the Blues.
Anything could happen with the Australian teams, and a Brumbies boilover isn’t out of the question, but I’ll let others be braver with their selections as I line-up most of the favourites.
Shout out to Brett for losing his powerplay last week on the Force/Rebels! [Brett’s note – grrrrr…]
Chiefs get the Powerplay this week.
Spiro Zavos
Tips: Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, Highlanders, Waratahs, Blues, Sharks.
Explain yourself: The hammering of my fearless predictions continues. This has been a very hard tournament to predict wins and losses.
The main impediment to success has been the poor form of the New Zealand teams. There is also the dominant tendency of teams to win at home, most of the time.
I have promised myself to take this tendency into account, but it is not always that simple.
Therefore, this week I’m picking the Sharks to beat the Reds. The Sharks are the form side and playing at home. But when faced with, say, the Blues v Lions, I can’t bring myself to support a team (the Lions) that seeks to score its points with kicks.
The Chiefs will beat the Stormers. And the Crusaders to beat the Rebels, even though they are playing an away game and the Rebels have beaten them at Melbourne in the past.
I’m sticking with the Hurricanes to beat the Cheetahs on the grounds that they have to win sooner or later.
The Highlanders to beat the Force, who are more impressive at home than away. The Waratahs should beat the Brumbies, even though it is an away game for them.
There is a customer warning on these predictions, given my dire history of picks this season.
The Sharks get my Powerplay.
The summary
| Round 4 | Scott Allen | Biltongbek | Patrick Effeney | Brett McKay | Elisha Pearce | Tristan Rayner | Spiro Zavos |
| Overall | 16 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 13 | 16 |
| Last week | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 |
| CHI v STO | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs | Chiefs |
| REB v CRU | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders |
| HUR v CHE | Cheetahs | Hurricanes | Hurricanes | Cheetahs | Hurricanes | Hurricanes | Hurricanes |
| HIG v FOR | Highlanders | Highlanders | Highlanders | Force | Highlanders | Force | Highlanders |
| BRU v WAR | Waratahs | Brumbies | Waratahs | Brumbies | Waratahs | Waratahs | Waratahs |
| LIO v BLU | Blues | Blues | Blues | Blues | Lions | Lions | Blues |
| SHA v RED | Sharks | Sharks | Sharks | Sharks | Sharks | Sharks | Sharks |
| POWERPLAY | Chiefs | Chiefs | Highlanders | Sharks | Chiefs | Chiefs | Sharks |
| Bulls BYE | |||||||