Three matches take place in Super Rugby Week 8, with the Highlanders and Hurricanes getting the weekend’s action underway on Friday the 5th of April.
The Highlanders will be fresh coming off a bye and are looking to add to their worrisome tally of just two wins for the season when they clash with the Hurricanes at Forsyth Barr Stadium. However, the Otago side will be buoyed by their recent home record, which has seen them win 14 of their last 15 home games, four of those victories coming despite trailing at the interval. The ‘Canes will be smarting from their 32-8 victory to the Crusaders last time out.
Verdict: Hurricanes (-2.5) 9/10
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Next up on Friday, the struggling Reds will be looking to bounce back from their 32-13 defeat to the Melbourne Rebels last weekend and have made three alterations for this weekend’s encounter with the Stormers. The men from Cape Town have made seven changes to their side, after Eben Etzebeth, Pieter Steph du Toit, JD Schickerling and Wilco Louw were all ruled out. The Reds are bracing themselves for a titanic battle at scrum-time as they face arguably the competition’s best front-row.
Verdict: Reds (+1.5) 9/10
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Lions vs Sharks
The Sharks will be looking to leapfrog the Lions at the top of the South African conference when the sides meet in what should be a highly-charged derby at Ellis Park on Friday evening. Swys de Bruin extended his stay as Lions’ head coach in the week while Cyle Brink will make his first start in seven months. While the Lions will be raring to go after their bye week, the Sharks would have been devastated by their last-gasp defeat to Jukskei rivals the Bulls last weekend. However, coach Robert du Preez has refused to panic, making only two changes to his starting XV, as the Durban side look to break their winless streak against South African opposition this year.
Verdict: Lions (+7.5) 9/10
