1
Hurricanes under 'the most pressure' in tense final rounds before playoffs
By Ned Lester
There are three rounds of Super Rugby Pacific separating us from the playoffs, and those three rounds offer remarkably different challenges for each of the teams looking to make a run towards the finals.
As it currently stands, there are five teams in a tier above the rest; the Chiefs sit atop the table with the Brumbies five points behind, the Crusaders and Hurricanes both sit four points further down and the Blues are fifth, enjoying a somewhat comfortable cushion over the sixth-placed Waratahs.
Looking at schedule difficulty based on the opponent's record, the Hurricanes' remaining schedule is by far the most challenging. The Wellington team face the Chiefs, the Blues and finally, the Crusaders to round out their 2023 regular season.
"You would think those four sides, the Chiefs, Crusaders, Brumbies and the Hurricanes should make up that top four," Justin Marshall told The Platform. "The biggest vulnerability I can see is the Hurricanes.
"Having three New Zealand franchises; that physicality, that intensity, knowing each other so well, they're the team that's got the most pressure on them."
The Platform host Martin Devlin agreed with the take, adding the Wellington side have got "effectively three final matches before they would play their first finals match.
"Sense and sensibility would suggest that they might actually drop to four or five."
Resting three of his All Blacks this week to ensure his best side is fit and available for the finals push, Hurricanes head coach Jason Holland is hoping to secure a home quarterfinal after briefly enjoying the No 1 seed earlier in the season. The Hurricanes will need to win two of their final three matches to do so.
Marshall also offered his preferred finals matchup, unsurprisingly naming the six-time defending champion Crusaders and the table-topping Chiefs as his predicted championship contenders, provided the two avoid each other throughout the quarter and semifinals.
"I think they're probably the two best sides in the competition at the moment.
"I certainly think that the Blues have the firepower, but they're just not playing as well as those other two teams.
"Equally, I think the Hurricanes are a very capable side, you've just got to think about their forward pack, is it as strong as the Blues, Chiefs and Crusaders when it comes down to knockout rugby? I certainly think their backline is playing well enough.
"Even though the Crusaders lost twice to the Chiefs, they were intense, high-quality games. Those two teams for me, if they met in the final, I tell you what, everyone would be pretty happy because it'll be one hell of a final."
Trending on RugbyPass
2
All Blacks XV player ratings vs Munster
3
Suaalii strikes awe as Wallabies lose midfielder
4
Scott Robertson responds about handling errors
5
Latest Comments
Nah, that just needs some more variation. Chip kicks, grubber stabs, all those. Will Jordan showed a pretty good reason why the rush was bad for his link up with BB.
If you have an overlap on a rush defense, they naturally cover out and out and leave a huge gap near the ruck.
It also helps if both teams play the same rules. ARs set the offside line 1m past where the last mans feet were😅
Go to commentsYeah nar, should work for sure. I was just asking why would you do it that way?
It could be achieved by outsourcing all your IP and players to New Zealand, Japan, and America, with a big Super competition between those countries raking it in with all of Australia's best talent to help them at a club level. When there is enough of a following and players coming through internally, and from other international countries (starting out like Australia/without a pro scene), for these high profile clubs to compete without a heavy australian base, then RA could use all the money they'd saved over the decades to turn things around at home and fund 4 super sides of their own that would be good enough to compete.
That sounds like a great model to reset the game in Aus. Take a couple of decades to invest in youth and community networks before trying to become professional again. I just suggest most aussies would be a bit more optimistic they can make it work without the two decades without any pro club rugby bit.
Go to comments