The Melbourne Rebels will be looking to salvage some pride from a dreadful Super Rugby season when they take on the Jaguares this Friday.
The Melbourne Rebels host the Jaguares of Argentina, with nothing but pride on the line for both sides. The Rebels have been absolutely dreadful this term, managing just one win and one draw from their 14-matches to date, while “Los Pumas” have lost eight, and won just six of theirs – indeed, Friday’s showdown will be more about building towards the future for both teams, with the playoffs way out of their respective reaches.
Rebels v Jaguares | 14 July | AAMI Park | 11:45
To Win (80 Mins)
Rebels 17/10 | Draw 25/1 | Jaguares 9/20
Handicap
Rebels (+5.5) 9/10 | Jaguares (-5.5) 9/10
Rebels
Who could have predicted how poorly this bunch would fair in 2017? The Aussies have looked positively awful from start to finish, with weak matchday strategies and disinterested players making for one of the worst performances by any franchise in the competition’s history.
A points difference of -330 tells the tale of a team that has been completely out of its depth, and the Rebels would do well to finish the season any closer than 11-points of their nearest Australian Conference competitors at the end of the weekend.
While there is certainly cause for optimism ahead of next season (if they manage to stay put in Super Rugby, that is), I still don’t see them beating a good Jaguares outfit this Friday. Their leaky defence is sure to be exploited by the likes of Jeronimo de la Fuente and company, as more groans are set to ring out in the (expectedly empty) AAMI Park.
Jaguares
The Jags have once again failed to challenge their opposition consistently over the course of the season, with some superb performances one week being overshadowed by a complete lack of synergy the next. To be fair, this is just their second season of Super Rugby, and they will only get stronger in the years ahead as they climatize to the pace and intensity of the competition. For now, however, they remain very much a work in progress.
Their victory in Sydney last week was impressive by anyone’s standards, and Raúl Pérez’s men will be desperate to keep the foot on the gas this week against a poor Rebels side. They should ease to a comfortable win here, to end their season off on a high and take some momentum into next year’s edition of the competition (and indeed the upcoming The Rugby Championship!).
Verdict: Jaguares (-5.5) 9/10
The Argentines should overpower and outmuscle their hosts, who will be positively relieved at the final whistle of what has been another car-crash season. Agustin Creevy’s boys may well put on a show… and perhaps run in one or two classic five-pointers along the way.
