Here we are in Quarter Final week for the 2022 Super Rugby Pacific competition and there’s four fascinating matchups to look forward to this weekend.
It all kicks off in Christchurch on Friday night with the Crusaders hosting the Reds for the second time in seven days before a Saturday triple header from Waikato, Auckland and Canberra.
We’ve got our Super Rugby tips and previews below so read on check out what our best bets are.
As we saw last week, the Reds are more than capable of pushing the Crusaders in spurts but over 80 minutes, the better team came away with the victory.
While the Reds will be helped by the return of Hunter Paisami, but his removal is just a minor dent on an incredibly lengthy absentee list.
It is a bit of a surprise to see Crusaders given another three points on the line compared to last week, but you get the feeling that if they open up a big lead like they did last Friday, they won’t take their foot off the accelerator.
It’s not so much that the Waratahs are going to win, but they are a much better chance than their $4 quote suggests.
There has been so much to like about the Tahs in 2022, especially when you consider the mess they were in 2021 and the turnaround has been nothing short of exceptional.
With the confidence they have gained after last week’s narrow loss to the Blues, they will throw it all at the Chiefs and I’ll happily jump on them at this price.
It’s really tough to make a case for this one to be overly close, these teams are not at all evenly matched.
Consider the Blues were the best team in the competition and have been comfortably swatting away most opponents.
On the other side, the Highlanders barely made the finals and have the generosity of the Rebels in the final game to thank for their progression.
Even though the visitors might fancy their chances of springing an upset, I don’t.
It’s fair to be a little concerned about the Brumbies stumbling to the finish line in Super Rugby Pacific.
After all, they dropped their last three games including a pair of double digit defeats to the Crusaders and Moana Pasifika.
But this is finals time and the Brumbies are set to bid farewell to a handful of players who are likely to play their last game at GIO Stadium on Saturday night.
It might not be pretty, but they should be able to take care of business and book a Semi Final spot here.