All Blacks great issues brutal takedown of Australian Super Rugby teams and the ‘worry’ for Scott Robertson if his prediction is right
Brumbies taking on the Waratahs in Super Rugby Pacific and All Blacks great Murray Mexted.
All Blacks great Murray Mexted has poured scorn on Australia’s Super Rugby revival and expects New Zealand dominate to second half of the season.
After a disastrous couple of years for Australian rugby in 2023 and 2024, which included a Rugby World Cup pool stage elimination and the demise of the Melbourne Rebels, there is an air of positivity in the country at the moment.
It started towards the end of the previous year as Joe Schmidt guided the Wallabies on a successful November tour and the franchises have built on that in Super Rugby Pacific.
Although the Chiefs and Crusaders are in first and second in the table, the final four positions in the play-offs are occupied by the Australian teams.
Super Rugby play-off contenders
The Reds and Waratahs have both claimed four victories out of five in 2025 so far while the Brumbies, who defeated the defending champion Blues at Eden Park, and Western Force both sit on three victories.
There is understandable excitement in Aussie ranks, particularly with many looking ahead to the huge British and Irish Lions series in July, but Mexted doesn’t expect it to remain.
“There are going to be some changes. We’re only halfway through the competition. The Australia teams are up there but by the time we get to the end of the competition they’ll be down the bottom again,” he told DSPN with Martin Devlin.
“They’re going to be down in the bottom four or five teams. There might be one or two that [make it].”
Mexted thinks it would be a concern for both countries, however, should Australia not have good representation in the play-offs.
“If there aren’t two of them in the top-six then the competition is not strong enough to develop players that are good to beat the world in their backyard, so that’s a worry,” he said.
“[But] I think the competition this year looks good to me because it’s so competitive.”
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Mexted did give some credit to the Australian teams, claiming that the majority of them have improved, but he doesn’t believe that it will be enough to alter the dominance New Zealand sides have had over previous years.
“It’s only halfway. You’ve taken one Australian team out and it has strengthened, there’s no doubt about it, but will they be strong enough? Not sure,” he said.
“You see there’s a bit of improvement in just about each of those teams.
“The Brumbies are about the same that they have been – there or thereabouts – but the Waratahs look like they might be improving, the Red look like they are improving and the Force have been shown us a little bit this year.”
High quality product
Mexted has been pleased with the overall quality of Super Rugby this season, which has been reflected in the TV viewing figures, but the All Blacks great insists that it deserves more bums on seats.
“It’s a good competition and I’m happy with it, and it’s going to be a really interesting second half,” he added.
“They’re playing a great brand of rugby and you have to say that the rules they’ve adjusted slightly, allowing the half-back to clear the ball, has got to be good for the game and it’s got to be good for the entertainment factor.
“In fact, we deserve to be getting more people in the ground in my view.”
