Super charged: Big game, forlorn Chiefs and ‘Specmagic’

David Skippers
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Making its return to Planet Rugby, we bring you Super charged, in which we preview the main talking points ahead of the upcoming Super Rugby action.

Game to watch – Crusaders v Blues

The Crusaders finished off their tour of South Africa with a draw against the Stormers in Cape Town last weekend and will be keen to return to the victory trail against their arch rivals, the Blues, in Christchurch on Saturday.

After some off-field distractions, which hit the headlines earlier this week, the Crusaders will be happy to be back at their home ground where they have been unbeaten in 26 Super Rugby matches since the start of Scott Robertson’s tenure as head coach at the beginning of the 2017 season.

They won 25 of those 26 matches but nearly came unstuck in their previous home match – against the Sharks in Round 12 – and only a late converted try from Mitchell Hunt secured them a 21-21 draw.

That result and their narrow 24-22 victory over the Blues in the corresponding fixture in Round One will give their visitors some hope of causing an upset against the defending champions.

What will be concerning for the Blues, however, is that they have lost their last nine matches against the Crusaders and their previous win in Christchurch was way back in 2004.

Player to watch – Rosko Specman (Bulls)

After several successful years on World Rugby’s Sevens Series, Specman took the step up to the 15-a-side game and has been one of the Bulls’ most impressive players during their 2019 Super Rugby campaign.

Specman has provided a cutting edge to the Bulls’ attacking play and his ability to create try-scoring opportunities out of nothing means he will get special attention from the Brumbies defence when the men from Pretoria take on Dan McKellar’s troops in Canberra on Friday.

The 30-year-old’s brilliance with ball in hand is known as “Specmagic” to his adoring fans and that is exactly what he produced in his team’s win over the Rebels in Melbourne last weekend.

Specman crossed for a well-taken try and his Sevens skills also came in handy when he set up this try for Burger Odendaal.

One-v-one battle to watch – Kurtley Beale (Waratahs) v Emiliano Boffelli (Jaguares)

These are two of the most versatile players that will be in action in this match in Sydney on Saturday and despite not being their respective sides’ first-choice full-backs at the start of the season, they have come to the fore with brilliant performances which have helped their teams to crucial wins in recent weeks.

Beale is equally at home at inside centre or fly-half but is thriving at full-back and has benefited hugely from the recent Israel Folau saga. Since replacing Folau in the Waratahs’ number 15 jersey, Beale has caught the eye with his brilliance on attack from the back and he has also thrived as one of his team’s chief playmakers.

Boffelli, who can also play on either wing, has come on in leaps and bounds since replacing the injured Joaquín Tuculet in the Jaguares’ number 15 jersey. His counter-attacking from the back and ability to win valuable ground with his booming boot means he too will have a big role to play in this match as the men from Buenos Aires look to build on last weekend’s win over the Hurricanes in Wellington.

Subplot to watch: Chiefs fighting to stay in contention

With just four rounds of the league phase of the competition left, both the Chiefs and Reds can ill afford a defeat when they get Round 15’s action underway in Hamilton on Friday.

These sides are in joint-13th position on the overall table – 11 points ahead of the bottom-placed Sunwolves – but it’s a do-or-die situation for the Chiefs as they have played one game more than the Reds, who despite being second from bottom in the Australian Conference, are just six points behind the leading side in their Conference, the Brumbies.

The Chiefs will be desperate for victory after winning just four out of 13 matches so far this year and they are 26 points adrift of their Conference leaders, the Crusaders.

They head into this match in poor form, after losing to their closest New Zealand rivals, the Blues, last weekend but will be confident on their home turf where they beat the Sharks in their previous match in Round 13.

Best of the rest

There are three other matches taking place over the weekend with plenty at stake in the South African derby between the Sharks and Lions in Durban on Saturday.

The Lions will be out for revenge after suffering a humiliating 42-5 defeat when these sides met in the corresponding match in Johannesburg in Round Eight.

Just before that encounter, the Stormers will be hoping to build on last weekend’s draw against the Crusaders when they host another New Zealand side, the Highlanders, at Newlands.

In other action, the Rebels will be keen to return to winning ways when they go head-to-head against a struggling Sunwolves side in Tokyo.

by David Skippers

Blues