There's a classic in the making coming up on Friday with domestic foes the Crusaders and Chiefs locking horns in the first of this weekend's Super Rugby Pacific semi-finals.
The hosts come into this one as favourites with the books but they will need to be wary of a Chiefs side that impressed during their quarter-finals clash with the Waratahs last weekend.
Crusaders v Chiefs
Friday 10 June
Orangetheory Stadium
09:05
To Win (80 Mins)
Crusaders 1/3 | Draw 22/1 |Chiefs 24/10
Handicap
Crusaders (-735) 9/10 | Chiefs (+7.5) 9/10
The Crusaders showed their pedigree last weekend as they put in a polished performance in their quarter-final against the Reds, running out 37-15. While the Reds did manage to narrow the scoreline to just one point before the 60-minute mark, the Crusaders never looked like losing this one with All Blacks Richie Mo’unga and Sevu Reece unplayable at times.
Like their semi-final opponents, the Chiefs also put in a solid display last weekend beating the Waratahs 39-19 in Waikato. A cracking opening to the game saw the teams locked at 10-10 after 20 minutes but a try off the back of a rolling maul and then Alex Nankivell scoring off a Ben Donaldson error saw the Chiefs pull away just before half-time.
A long range try from Will Harrison would spark hopes of a Waratahs revival but this was short-lived as All Black scrum-half, Brad Webber, would grab his second of the game eight minutes later.
Both teams have some injury concerns headed into this one with the hosts set to be without flanker Ethan Blacadder due to a serious shoulder injury while the Chiefs could well be without Josh Lord who sat out their quarter-final with a knee injury.
There is some positive news for the duo, however, with All Black Sam Cane set to return to the Chiefs squad this week while lock Quinten Strange has recovered from a calf injury and could well be named on the Crusaders bench.
Verdict: Chiefs (+7.5) 9/10
The sides met twice during the round-robin phase with the Crusaders running out 19-34 victors in Waikato while the Chiefs won 21-24 in Canterbury. I expect this game to be as tight as the last one played in Canterbury which is why I’m on the Chiefs plus.
