Super Rugby Pacific hasn't even kicked off and we've already seen the tournament's opening match postponed with Moana Pasifika returning a number of positive Covid cases. Still, there is plenty to look forward to with the Drua set to make their tournament bow against the 'Tahs.
The long-awaited start to the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific season is just around the corner with the competition getting underway on Friday.
Unfortunately, COVID has reared its ugly head again with the opening fixture against Moana Pasifika and the Blues being called off due to an outbreak in the Moana Pasfka camp.
There’s still a plethora of quality action on the go, however, with the Waratahs taking on the Fijian Drua on Friday and the pick of Saturday’s action seeing the Crusaders and Hurricanes battle it out.
Friday 18 February
Waratahs 1/5 | Draw 28/1 | Drua 7/2 (10:45)
Handicap
Waratahs (-12.5) 9/10 | Drua (+12.5) 9/10
The Fijian Drua will make the bow this Friday when they take on a Waratahs side that has looked somewhat rejuvenated during pre-season.
The hosts had a miserable time of it last year being beaten by all in sundry during the Super Rugby AU and Super Rugby Trans-Tasman campaigns. There is hope for fans on the New South Wales side, however, as they were solid in the warm-up fixtures beating last season’s stand out Australian sides the Reds (21-14) and the Brumbies (24-14).
The Drua also had a decent time of it during the warm-up fixtures as the Fijians beat the Rebels 28-26.
If I was writing this preview a week ago I would have been all over the Drua to win it. However, the Waratahs have shown enough about them during the off-season to inspire some confidence. With the Waratahs pre-season form in mind, I’m only going to back the Drua on a pretty handy double-figure plus.
Saturday 19 February
Chiefs 4/10 | Draw 22/1 | Highlanders 2/1 (05:35)
Handicap
Chiefs (-6.5) 9/10 | Highlanders (+6.5) 9/10
We move onto Saturday’s action now and the first of the day’s all-Kiwi affairs seeing the Chiefs take on the Highlanders. Both teams had strange campaigns last year as the Highlanders, after a dismal Super Rugby Aotearoa season, came back in style during Super Rugby Trans-Tasman and made the final where they went down to the Blues.
The Chiefs, on the other hand, were solid in Super Rugby Aotearoa and made it to the final where they lost to the Crusaders, but weren’t as free-flowing in Super Rugby Trans-Tasman where they ended up finishing fifth.
In terms of their preparation leading into this one, the Chiefs have been in great touch beating Moana Pasifika 61-7 and then beating the Blues and Highlanders in the ‘Game of Three Halves’.
The Highlanders haven’t got as much game time under their belts as they had their game called off against Moana Pasifika this past weekend. They did register a 20-19 win over the Crusaders and also a 21-19 win over the Blues.
I think the Highlanders will be done over by their old boy and one-cap All Black Josh Ioane, who was pulling the strings at fly-half for the men from Waikato during the pre-season build-up. Get on the Waikato side to clear a modest 6.5 ‘cap at 9/10.
Crusaders 1/3 | Draw 25/1 | Hurricanes 5/2 (08:05)
Handicap
Crusaders (-8.5) 9/10 | Hurricanes (+8.5) 9/10
We move to Saturday’s headline clash now which sees the most successful team in Super Rugby history, the Crusaders, take on the Hurricanes.
The men from Canterbury had a solid enough time of it last year winning the Super Rugby Aotearoa comp while finishing third in Super Rugby Trans-Tasman. They have endured a rather disrupted pre-season, however, with a number of their big-name All Blacks being given extra time to recuperate. This has shown in their pre-season results as they have lost to the Highlanders, while they went down 27-24 to the Hurricanes this past weekend.
The Hurricanes had a very poor 2021 by their standards finishing at the foot of the log in Super Rugby Aotearoa having only won two of their games, while they finished fourth in Super Rugby Trans-Tasman, with their slight upswing in fortunes courtesy of some phenomenal performances from Jordie Barrett.
As noted already, the Hurricanes beat the Crusaders this past weekend but went down 28-21 to the Blues in their other pre-season fixture.
The Crusaders tend to start Super rugby campaigns really slowly which is why I’m rather confident of the ‘Canes making this a real contest and remaining within the (+8.5) handicap.
Reds 1/6 | Draw 33/1 | Rebels 4/1 (10:45)
Handicap
Reds (-12.5) 9/10 | Rebels (+12.5) 9/10
We head back to Australia for our next fixture which will see last season’s Super Rugby AU Champions, the Reds, take on the Melbourne Rebels.
The host enjoyed a solid old 2021 winning the Super Rugby AU comp while they were one of only two Australian franchises – The Brumbies being the other – to beat New Zealand opposition in Super Rugby Trans-Tasman as they registered a 40-34 win over the Chiefs.
While their hosts had a solid 2021 campaign, the Rebels were subpar with the Melbourne side winning only three of their eight fixtures in Super Rugby AU and
losing all of their Super Rugby Trans-Tasman games.
Both teams have struggled in pre-season with the Reds losing 21-14 to the Waratahs and 42-33 to the Force. The Rebels only played one pre-season fixture, going down 28-26 to the Drua.
They’ve had a poor pre-season but the Reds are a stacked side. I expect them to fire against the Rebels who have shipped a lot of players since they last played a Super Rugby match. Get on the (-12.5) here.
Sunday 20 February
Brumbies 2/9 | Draw 33/1 | Force 33/10 (05:00)
Handicap
Brumbies (11.5) 9/10 | Force (+11.5) 9/10
Things come to a close on Sunday with the Brumbies playing host to the Western Force. The Canberra outfit had a decent if not spectacular season last year losing the Super Rugby AU final to the Reds while claiming one win in Super Rugby Aotearoa, where they beat the Hurricanes 12-10 and went down by just a point to the Crusaders.
The Force also had a decent 2021 making the Super Rugby Au play-offs, where they went down to the Brumbies.
The hosts for this weekend didn’t really impress in the pre-season warm-up as they went down 24-14 to the Waratahs. The Force had a far better time of it as they beat the Reds by nine pionts in a high scoring thriller.
While they weren’t great during the pre-season, the Brumbies are still a solid and settled outfit who should be able to take the Force to task here and clear the (-11.5) handicap.
