Team Reason for Hope

After winning the first 2 ‘super Rugby’ tournaments way back in the 90s, the Blues have only had one victory in the tournament since. 2015 was not a great year either. Tana Umaga is coaching again and seems to have recruited quite well. He has also managed to hold onto a couple of quality veterans. Rene Ranger and Jerome Kaino to name a couple. Kaino returned to career best form for the World Cup.Male Sa’u has returned to his hometown Auckland after a stint with the Rebels and choosing to relocate to Japan in 2008 to earn a World Cup spot. He starred for Japan alongside Tanerau Latimer who also returns to the Blues from Japan. They have also picked up Matt Duffie from the Melbourne Storm Rugby League team where he played 61 games.Jerome, Do you think you can do it this year???? Yeah we aren’t sure either.

5 fom 7 finals appearances with 2 Tournament wins shows how consistent the Chiefs have been over the past few years. Plenty of All Blacks re sprinkled through the team. Their forward pack boasts Brodie Retallick and Sam Cane. Cane will Co-Captain alongside Aaron Cruden. Springbok beating, Japanese captain Michael Leitch will play his 3rd season with the Chiefs in the back row.They will miss up and coming All Black prop Nepo Laulala for the season which will put plenty of pressure on their front row bench. Sonny Bill Williams will probably be chasing Rio selection, leaving a relatively inexperienced set of outside backs.They will be strong, but their back up players will need step up to The Highlanders and Hurricanes in this conference.

The scariest Statistic for any other team in Super Rugby isn’t that they’ve won it so many times, it is that they have a knack of just making the Finals. If you play them towards the end of the season, expect a torrid time. They have only finished outside the top 10 once, in 1996. Last year they missed the Finals by one Losing Bonus point to the Brumbies.I can see 2016 playing out the same way for them. Two tough home conference games against Chiefs and Blues, a bye, then 4 weeks on the road in South Africa and Perth, a home game against the jaguars, a trip to Canberra, then another bye….All in the first 10 weeks. Its going to be a slog for themTheir best hope is their History – if they can be mid field after the first 10 weeks they will feel comfortable.

They finished 4th on the ladder in 2015 and managed to take the title. They beat their biggest conference challengers, The Chiefs and the 2014 champions The Waratahs on the way to the Grand Final against the Hurricanes.They have the best Half back and Full back in the world in “The Smiths”. They showed they can win titles last year and will be hoping that their form continues. Waiseke Naholo showed amazing strength to come back from his pre-World Cup injury and will be a force on the wing. They will battle with The Hurricanes & The Chiefs for the NZ conference title.The Smiths – still giving teams nightmares in 2016.