Super Rugby AU rolls into our lives on a Friday night this weekend with out opening game between the winning streak Force who are back at home against the winless Rebels who should be 2-0! Following that on Saturday, the top powerhouses of Australian rugby finally do battle as the Brumbies host the Reds in a rematch of last years grand final. The weekend is improved knowing the Waratahs are on the bye. Shane was again a champion to come on and have his say again this season and you can catch that stream below and be sure to turn into the channel on Youtube on a Thursday afternoon to catch the stream each and every week! If you want a quick overview, check out below the video!
FORCE vs REBELS – Rebels +3
The Force finally have a win under their belts, albeit a grind down result against the terrible Waratahs, and what greets them the very next weekend is an interesting match up. The Rebels have not won a game yet this season but pushed the two best sides, the Brumbies and Reds, to the very limit, missing a goal to win in their opener against the Reds and then conceding one to lose against the Brumbies… Rough start.
The recipe to the Rebels success if you would call it that, is their ability to keep that scoreboard turning over. Yes, they haven’t looked like scoring tries over 160 minutes but they have still managed to accumulate plenty of points and we all know the power of scoreboard pressure. The Force will want to score in more than threes as usual and I expect the Rebels may kick things off a little more adventurous than usual but will clam up very quickly if things start to go wrong.
The pack battle and territory will be key for this match as anyone giving away penalties in the wrong half will be punished by the Rebels and do that a few times too often and your quickly 12 or 15 points behind. The Force will struggle to deal with that pressure but their passion should keep this an exciting encounter.
BRUMBIES vs REDS – Reds +2
Well…. flip a coin on this one! Its going to be the best we see of Australian rugby between these two sides. Two teams who have very strong forward packs and plenty of dominant runners but use them in very different ways. Both sides will try to control the set piece which will go a very long way to determining a winner but for me it will depend who deals best defensivly.
The Brumbies will go for the maul as we always know, with Folau Faingaa back in the line up he will be keen to grab some more tries. The Reds however will want to use that talented backline. The midfield everyone has been calling for is finally together, Hunter Paisami at 12 and Jordan Petaia outside him at 13. Suliasi Vunivalu gets his first start out on the right wing also. James O’Connor has had fun against the less experienced fly halves this season so I’d expect a challenge for the young Noah Lolesio in that battle.
This will be decided by moments of brilliance and a standout display by one or two particular players, big game players. Reds will want to defuse the mauls and the Brumbies will want to cut off the backline which leaves us with an intriguing battle on Saturday evening and a preview into what will surely be our grand final yet again this year.
Previews and reviews are right here Behind The Posts for each and every round of Super Rugby AU! Rugby is back in Australia! Let me know your thoughts on the action this weekend in the comments and thanks for stopping by Behind The Posts. If you would like to have your say here, get in touch on the contact page today!
BEHIND THE POSTS 