Super Rugby Pacific Round 7 | Tips & Preview

Moana Pasifika were on the wrong end of a blowout again last Saturday, losing to the Crusaders 21-50. Once again, Moana were in the fight early on, and even led 14-12 for five minutes midway through the first half, before heading into the sheds down 14-17. Things quickly turned ugly for MP from there, however, as they conceded five second half tries to see the game quickly slip away from their grasp, with Siaosi Nginignini’s consolation intercept try being one of the few positives from the half. It was mainly in the forwards where the battle was lost, as their scrum was put under constant pressure and they were bullied at the breakdown, resulting in 14 turnovers and 13 penalties conceded. Julian Savea suffered an arm injury early on and although that is terrible news for him and Moana, Tevita Ofa impressed again when he came onto the field. Allan Craig defended staunchly and Miracle Fai’ilagi was a workhorse once again.

The Highlanders were also given a lesson last week, getting thumped by the Hurricanes 7-50. They would have been hoping for a win after a reasonably solid start to the season, and Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens’ try early in the piece suggested that the hosts were up for the fight. However, things came falling down as the first half went on, with the Landers heading into the break behind 7-19, and they went scoreless in the second half to see the Canes record an easy win. It was as ugly as the final score suggests, with the Hurricanes recording 11 line breaks on the back of 32 missed tackles from the Landers, who had just 38% possession across the game. Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens and Timoci Tavatavanawai tried to get the Highlanders going forward and Caleb Tangitau looked dangerous when he got his chances, while the trio of Hugh Renton, TK Howden and Sean Withy defended valiantly.

There are seven new players in Moana’s squad this week, including Solomon Alaimalo, while Jackson Garden-Bachop starts at first five-eighth. Likewise, Tomas Lavanini returns from injury while Tanielu Tele’a starts for Timoci Tavatavanawai, who has been moved to the bench, as has Sean Withy. That removes a little bit of fire power from the Highlanders’ starting lineup but they will still be far too good. It’s a very strong Landers bench and their firepower out wide will give Moana all sorts of headaches, making for a big win on the North Shore.

Best
Highlanders -15.5 ($1.90)

Value
Highlanders 21-30 ($4.00)

Try Scorer
Caleb Tangitau ($8.00 First, $1.62 Anytime)

Same Game Multi
Caleb Tangitau Try / Jack Taylor Try / Veveni Lasaqa Try ($11.05)

The Brumbies got back to winning ways last week, producing quite the comeback to beat the Chiefs 33-24. Trailing 7-24 with just over 20 minutes to play, a loss looked like a sure thing for the hosts, but Declan Meredith got a miracle ball away to send in Ryan Lonergan to get the Brumbies some momentum. Charlie Cale burrowed over five minutes later before Meredith scrambled in to score in the corner, with Lonergan’s conversion giving the team a two-point lead. That set up a grandstand finish and the Chiefs had the chance to steal it at the death, deep inside Brumbies territory, but Corey Toole pulled off a nifty interception and ran the length of the field to score and secure the win.

The Waratahs slipped to another loss last week, seeing their 20-8 lead fade away into a 20-35 defeat. Nothing went right in the second half for the Tahs, as they struggled to string together phases and found themselves playing defence for much of the 40 minutes, which resulted in 27 unanswered points from the visitors. It wasn’t for a lack of effort, especially from the forwards who worked hard all night and had the better of the visitors at set piece, but the team’s 19 turnovers and 13 conceded penalties made it hard for them any kind of momentum. Recent debutant Sid Harvey had some incisive runs and Jack Debreczeni had an assured performance at first five-eighth, while the forwards’ best were Matt Philip and the starting loosies trio of Pete Samu, Clem Halaholo and Jamie Adamson, who were all tireless.

It’s a reasonably steady lineup for both teams, with the Brumbies welcoming back Lachie Shaw, David Feliuai and Ollie Sapsford from injury, while Andrew Kellaway, Charlie Gamble and Angus Scott-Young all enter the NSW squad off injuries. Those are some big ins for the Tahs but they are going to need more help than that if they are to beat the Brumbies on the road. The market still hasn’t adjusted to the quality of this NSW team, with their home-heavy schedule to start the year making them look better than they are. This will be a blowout.

Best
Brumbies -12.5 ($1.90)

Value
Power Plays — Brumbies to Win by 26+ (refund if Brumbies Win by 16 – 25) ($4.00)

Try Scorer
Charlie Cale ($15 First, $2.25 Anytime)

Same Game Multi
Charlie Cale Try / Corey Toole Try / Declan Meredith Try ($15.18)

The Hurricanes looked unstoppable in Dunedin last week, dominating the Highlanders in a 50-7 win. The bonus point victory has them at the top of the table after six rounds of play, and while their schedule has been very soft to start the season, it was another impressive performance from Clark Laidlaw’s side. The eight-tries-to-one victory saw them run away with the win in the second half, as they controlled the game in virtually every aspect. It became the Fehi Fineanganofo show, with the electric winger scoring a hattrick, while Ruben Love and Cam Roigard controlled the game expertly in the halves to lead a very impressive Hurricanes attack. They recorded 11 line breaks and enjoyed 62% possession, and up front they had the better of the breakdown and of the set piece, with Peter Lakai, Warner Dearns, Du’Plessis Kirifi and Devan Flanders all having big shifts.

The Reds put it all together in the second half to beat the Fijian Drua 21-6 last week. It was another hot and humid game in Lautoka, but this time it was the visitors who dealt with the conditions best by holding the hosts try-less and running in three tries of their own to pick up a bonus-point win. It was a mix of desperate defence and some patient attack which got the Reds over the line, as Queensland built into the game before finishing with a bang, courtesy of two second-half tries through Harry McLaughlin-Phillips and Richie Asiata. It certainly wasn’t a perfect performance, with 18 turnovers and plenty of missed tackles, but the sharp play of McLaughlin-Phillips, Filipo Daugunu and John Bryant, and the bench impact from Asiata, Vaiuta Latu and Louis Werchon, all helped the Reds pick up an impressive win.

It’s a strong Hurricanes XV, with Tyrel Lomax returning from injury and Josh Moorby replacing the injured Callum Harkin (concussion) at fullback, while Du’Plessis Kirifi comes back into the starting team for Braydon Iose. It’s also a steady squad for the Reds, with Fraser McReight returning from rest, Tom Lynagh in line for his season debut off the bench and Werchon coming back into the starting team. That is going to make for a tough matchup for the hosts, with the Reds’ pack and outsides set to really challenge them. As 13.5-point favourites, I have to bet against the Canes here.

Best
Reds +13.5 ($1.95)

Value
Hurricanes 1-12 ($3.20)

Try Scorer
Cam Roigard ($12 First, $1.92 Anytime)

Same Game Multi
Cam Roigard Try / Josh Moorby Try / Fraser McReight Try ($18.12)

The Blues romped their way to a 35-20 victory in Sydney last week to stun the Waratahs with a huge second half. Down 8-20 shortly after halftime, things were looking grim for the visitors, but they flipped the game on its head with two quick tries through Cody Vai and AJ Lam to draw level with NSW, before a pair of tries in the final 10 minutes put the nail in the coffin and gave the Blues a deserved bonus-point win. It wasn’t a pretty opening 50 minutes or so for the Aucklanders, who were made to complete plenty of tackles and withstand a lot of defensive pressure. However, Beauden Barrett found his attacking form down the stretch to expertly pull the strings for his team, and Torian Barnes was rewarded with a try at the death after a busy second half off the bench, with a team-high 12 carries and eight tackles. Sam Darry and Josh Beehre were also immense, while Lam looked strong in the carry all night, playing a key role in the Blues’ comeback.

The Drua will be disappointed to have come up short against the Reds last week, dropping the game 6-21. Going try-less across the 80 minutes, it was an unusually dull attacking performance from the hosts, as they really struggled to convert on their opportunities and committed a slew of costly errors, making for a staggering 18 turnovers, with their most costly error coming on the stroke of halftime as Ilaisa Droasese spilled the ball with only the try line in front of him. With just four line breaks, the Drua missed their usual ability to create something from nothing, despite the likes of Droasese and Elia Canakaivata getting involved plenty. Joji Nasova had some strong carries and Kitione Salawa got through a tonne of work on both sides of the ball, but the Drua’s lack of execution proved to be costly.

Barnes starts for the injured Dalton Papali’i (back) this week, while Payton Spencer comes in at fullback for Zarn Sullivan (concussion). Taufa Funaki gets his first start of the season at halfback while, for the Drua, Joseva Tamani, Mesulame Dolokolo and Epeli Momo all come back from injury. Kemu Valetini starts at first five-eighth and he will have his hands full in Auckland, and against a very good Blues defence, the Drua are going to struggle to score. That’s going to limit the amount of total points we see at Eden Park, and makes the under an appealing play. The under has hit in the Blues’ last three games and in three of the Drua’s last four.

Best
Under 57.5 ($1.92)

Value
Under 49.5 ($2.80)

Try Scorer
Caleb Clarke ($7.50 First, $1.58 Anytime)

Same Game Multi
Caleb Clarke Try / AJ Lam Try / Marcel Renata Try ($22.15)

The Force had a hard-earned bye week last week, returning from a three-game road trip in New Zealand with a 1-2 record. Their win over Moana Pasifika in Round 3 was soon forgotten after a loss to the Highlanders, and then to the Hurricanes in Napier. The 23-31 loss to the Canes, however, came in a valiant effort, coming into the game as 23.5-point outsiders and giving the hosts a good run for their money thanks to a couple of late tries. Down 11-31 with less than 15 minutes to play, the Force set up an interesting finish with tries from Darby Lancaster and Lopeti Faifua, however they couldn’t find another try for a losing bonus point, which now has them sitting above only Moana Pasifika on the ladder.

The Chiefs dropped to a 2-3 record on Friday, losing to the Brumbies 24-33. The visitors were primed for a win in Canberra, being up 22-7 after 56 minutes of play thanks to an excellent try that was finished off by Damian McKenzie. However, the wheels rapidly came off for the Chiefs, as the Brumbies ran in four tries in the game’s final 22 minutes to steal the victory. It was a disappointing result for the Hamiltonians, especially after being in such a strong position, and their inability to convert their chances into points really came back to hurt them. They scored just three tries on 12 entries into ACT’s 22 and gave up some costly turnovers. On the positive side, Quinn Tupaea had another bustling attacking game and Cortez Ratima provided a good mix of service and carries from halfback, while Samisoni Taukei’aho got stuck in defensively, however, the Chiefs failed to execute when it mattered most.

It’s an electric Chiefs back line this week, which sees Emoni Narawa start on the wing and Xavier Roe slot in for Ratima, while Brodie McAlister makes his season debut at hooker and Naitoa Ah Kuoi and Samipeni Finau rejoin the starting team. The big news for the Force is that Vaiolini Ekuasi returns from injury, and fresh off a bye, I expect the Force to at least be competitive in this matchup. They have the quality to do so, especially up front, and in their first home game in over a month, I fancy them to cover the 14.5-point line.

Best
Force +14.5 ($1.92)

Value
Chiefs 1-12 ($3.30)

Try Scorer
Emoni Narawa ($9.00 First, $1.65 Anytime)

Same Game Multi
Emoni Narawa Try / Leroy Carter Try / Carlo Tizzano Try ($7.71)