Superbru Preview – Round Three

For those who kept with my SuperBru prediction of a DHL Stormers win by three points, like me you will have been delighted to see Peter Grant’s penalty drop over the bar at DHL Newlands on Saturday afternoon.

Youngster Pat Lambie had drawn the Sharks level with six minutes to go in what was a typically tight encounter for this fixture, before Keegan Daniel was penalised for being offside at the breakdown. 42 metres out on the left touchline, Grant then curled the ball over to snatch the win.

Looking ahead to the coming weekend and with Alastair Coetzee’s side getting a week off with a bye in Round Three, there are still some excellent fixtures taking place across the Southern Hemisphere. The beaten Sharks take on the Lions in Durban, searching for that first win of the campaign. With Willem Alberts & Odwa Ndungane both coming back and two narrow defeats behind them, the home side should win this by 8. The Bulls are also at home against the Blues, who really struggled last week away to the Chiefs. After their powerful display against the Cheetahs last week, the Bulls should cruise this winning by 15 points.

The Cheetahs meanwhile begin their overseas tour in Australia against the Brumbies who had a bye in Round Two. They were woeful against the Bulls, completely outmuscled, so even with Oosthuizen and Ashley Johnson coming back in Jake White’s side should win by 7.

Last week’s other disappointing side the Rebels travel to Suncorp to take on the Reds, but there’s no danger of an upset in this fixture. The champions should comfortably win this by about 18 points. The other game in Australia sees the Hurricanes continue on the road away at the Western Force in what will be Nathan Sharpe’s 150th game of Super Rugby, the first player to reach that pinnacle. However it could come on the back of a defeat to Beauden Barrett’s boot, the youngster kicking the Canes to a 5 point victory.

Finally in New Zealand the Crusaders host the Chiefs at their new Rugby League Park ground for the first time, eager to put in a better performance from the pack than last weekend. They did score some excellent tries, as did the Chiefs, so this one should be high scoring with the home side edging it by 8-9 points. The other match sees the Highlanders host the Waratahs in what could be the match of the weekend, the home side coming through by about 4 points.

So no DHL Stormers action but get behind the other sides and let’s hope for some good rugby. Good luck!