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Despite going at nearly ten cards per round for the first month of the season, last weekend saw ten teams across five games suddenly became angels, conceding not one card of any colour between them.
Even the six teams who up to last weekend had given up at least one card a game, remarkably learned the error of their ways. It’s a quite incredible turnaround!
But can it last? Probably not. Just as the remaining two cardless teams probably won’t keep that record up for the remaining ten rounds. So maybe enjoy last weekend as the anomaly it almost certainly is.
Round 6 is the last full round for the next few weeks, as we start heading into the bye rounds and dropping back to four games each weekend. So, prepare yourselves to do things you’ve not done for six weeks, like household chores and maybe even spending time with your families.
Of course, dropping back to four games a week has to help the perfect round count, right? Not that Digger needs much help at the moment, recording his second straight blemish-free round to take the outright lead by a point.
His actual winning streak now extends to 15 correct tips on the bounce, which of course we certainly wouldn’t want to come to an end, nor create any undue pressure to go to a third straight perfect round by making a bit of a thing about it all, would we? No, of course not.
Fifteen.
Out of fifteen. Hell of a run already. Be a shame if it ended.
TIPS: HIGHLANDERS, CRUSADERS, DRUA, CHIEFS, BRUMBIES, HURRICANES
The Highlanders look to be well on the improve while Moana Pasifika do not. MP will be better this week but I think the Highlanders will continue their wee winning streak. The Reds are a tempting choice for an upset, certainly against the Crusaders missing some artillery but I just do not trust the Reds to get it done. The Crusaders structure will see them through.
Folau Fakatava of the Highlanders. (Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)
We know the Drua are a different prospect at home and after a disappointing few weeks away, I suspect the Rebels will be in for a torrid time while perhaps the match of the round sees the Chiefs hosting their neighbours, the Blues. It should be a cracking affair but the Blues set piece has me leaning to the home side.
Brumbies and Waratahs also promises to be a must-see clash but the Brumbies at home should be too strong for a Waratahs side they have already beaten.
Sunday, Canes by plenty.
SURE THING: A bit more sniping across the codes would be fun, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the wee snippets, while in truth, the only convert I want to hear about is Joey Manu. If there was a league player running around worth a big pay cheque to jump over it is him, a more natural second five you won’t find.
TIPS: HIGHLANDERS, CRUSADERS, DRUA, CHIEFS, BRUMBIES, HURRICANES
A surprisingly tough round to tip, this one is. The middle four certainly are. The Highlanders and Hurricanes we can certainly knock off early, though it wouldn’t be a bad thing for the comp if both teams lost their respective games.
The Crusaders are missing a dozen-plus apparently, but they don’t appear to be in the key positions and that still makes them hard to tip against. But, I wouldn’t mind getting this one wrong, because it will have meant that the Reds learned the lessons from a game they should have won last week, and almost certainly won’t have given up as many penalties as their opposition. So come on Queensland, prove me wrong.
Drua-Rebels is a flip of a coin. The Rebels are playing well enough to beat them anywhere in the world bar Suva, and that’s a bit of a problem when the game is indeed in Suva. Home team gets the significant benefit of the doubt.
Chiefs at home should be too good in the battle of the Bombays, think they’re just a wee bit too consistent for the Blues at the moment. And that extends to the Brumbies in Canberra, too.
When sales to travelling Waratahs fans are down at the Sutton Forest McDonalds, you know that confidence can’t be high. But I do look forward to seeing how they try and bounce back from last week. Actually, the same goes for the Brumbies, on that front.
SURE THING: A jumper will be grabbed somewhere and the penalty will be rightly blown again, but because it happened either before the 70-minute mark or outside the attacking 22, there will be nothing said about degrees of obstruction or calls for clear infringements to be overlooked.
TIPS: HIGHLANDERS, CRUSADERS, DRUA, CHIEFS, BRUMBIES, HURRICANES
We’re getting to that stage where the herd is separating. It was always going to, wasn’t it? The Crusaders might have stumbled out of the blocks but that was never going to last.
The Highlanders, meanwhile, are showing that whilst they’re no longer a heavyweight, they can still put away the strugglers. They’ll be too strong for a Christian Lealiifano-less Moana Pasifika.
The Reds should be in the fight against a Crusaders side missing several stars. But their tight-five issues are coming home to roost.
Saturday is very much Super Saturday, with the Rebels in need to carry their momentum to Suva. It proves a huge moment for their season. Win and they’ll be on their way, lose and it’ll be hard to front up a week later. The heat and humidity got the better of the Crusaders, but can the Rebels learn from their pre-season loss?
The Rebels will be out for another victory this Saturday. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)
The Chiefs and Blues are set to put on a show. The Blues’ lineout struggles could hurt them. Then it’s to Canberra, where Stephen Larkham’s men are out of cotton wool. Against a Waratahs side light in the tight-five and struggling for confidence, they should be far too clinical.
As for Sunday, the Force will continue to fight but that’s all they’ll do against a Hurricanes side that will be sniffing five points.
SURE THING: Round six is an ominous weekend for Australia’s coaches. Seasons could be made or broken. Queensland needs a result at home while the Waratahs have to take something into the bye, otherwise it will be a long Easter.
TIPS: HIGHLANDERS, CRUSADERS, REBELS, CHIEFS, BRUMBIES, HURRICANES
The timing isn’t great for Moana Pasifika, battered last week by the Canes at precisely the same time the Highlanders got some key personnel back and finally clicked. Mind you, the Landers got a lot of help from the Drua, who failed to show, so there is potential there for a Pasifika upset, even if I can’t bring myself to tip it.
The Reds’ recent record against NZ sides is abominable. The Crusaders will ensure it will stay that way. Saturday afternoon should be a ripper; the Drua at home is fast becoming the toughest road trip in world rugby, but the Rebels will bring with them a clear plan to be physical, cut their mistakes and limit broken field opportunities for the home side.
The Blues were dreadfully unlucky not to beat the Crusaders, and after a week off for some of the name players, will easily get themselves up for another big match in Hamilton. But the more reliable bet at this stage still feels like the Chiefs.
Scratching around for an upset, the Tahs initially appealed as a possibility, but the Brumbies have too many good players coming back in. To Sunday, and the best thing that can be said for the Force is that this is the final match of their three-week torture test.
SURE THING: What a relief it will be to leave behind the ‘Gus said, Robbo said’ ruckus about Joseph Sua’ali’i, and move on into the ‘After Sua’alii, who’s next?’ phase.
TIPS: MOANA, CRUSADERS, REBELS, BLUES, BRUMBIES, HURRICANES
This is getting out of hand. Digger can’t miss and I am not getting the drag of the jersey. A Red tugged on a Rebel who was going the wrong way; he was actually helping him. But that’s the thorn in the red roses.
This week, I have high hopes. I feel like the newest league import: full of speculative excellence without a body of work to support my pride.
Moana Pasifika is due. The Highlanders are ravaged. The scene is set at Mount Smart. The panel will surely miss this obvious upset and I will inch my way back. The Reds host the Crusaders. Typically, it has been a bad idea to welcome a crusade into your midst. Saders by four falcons and a dummy.
The Fijian Drua and the Melbourne Rebels square off at ANZ. Kevin Foote has changed places with Darren Coleman as a hard-won self-made Australian-based coaching revelation. Change is afoot. Rebels by a Geoff Parkes three-iron bump and run.
The Chiefs-Blues match shapes as the game of the round and diabolical to tip. I reckon the Blues are the better team overall, but it is in Cowbell Town. Still, I will tip the mighty and somewhat harebrained Blues, almost surely differentiating my sheet from Brett’s.
The Waratahs are less than mighty this season. Coleman foreshadowed this fall from grace on The Roar podcast, when he pointed out that his rags to riches story of 2022 was now unavailable and wondered how to motivate a team playing in a stadium where one tomato sauce packet costs as much as a beer in Manly. Brumbies in an arm wrestle.
The Hurricanes ‘host’ the Force in Palmerston North. The Canes will run too fast, for too long and using exquisite lines. Canes by 15 plus.
SURE THING: Both Ian Foster and Scott Robertson should be in Hamilton this weekend.
| Round 6 | Geoff | Digger | Harry | Brett | Christy | The Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 23 | 25 | 21 | 23 | 24 | 24 |
| Last week | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| MOA v HIG | Highlanders | Highlanders | Highlanders | Highlanders | Highlanders | Highlanders |
| RED v CRU | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders | Crusaders |
| DRU v REB | Rebels | Drua | Rebels | Drua | Drua | Rebels |
| CHI v BLU | Chiefs | Chiefs | Blues | Chiefs | Chiefs | Blues |
| BRU v WAR | Brumbies | Brumbies | Brumbies | Brumbies | Brumbies | Brumbies |
| HUR v FOR | Hurricanes | Hurricanes | Hurricanes | Hurricanes | Hurricanes |
Get your tips in now – The Crowd’s tips will be revealed Friday afternoon (AEDT).