Super Rugby Semi-Finals – What to Expect

The Super Rugby semi-final round is here; and with it comes a spectacular encounter on home soil, along with a New Zealand derby that’ll produce who will be vying for the coveted trophy this year around.

Crusaders v Hurricanes

Saturday, 09:35

First up is the Crusaders and Hurricanes – both Super Rugby championship sides, who have been in hot competition with one another all season. That said, each of the previous 11 all-New Zealand semi-finals have been won by the hosts on the day, and given that the Crusaders are the tournament’s in-form side, everything is in their favour to dispatch the Hurricanes in Christchurch.

Crusaders: 15 David Havili, 14 Seta Tamanivalu, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 George Bridge, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Matt Todd, 6 Jordan Taufua, 5 Sam Whitelock (captain), 4 Scott Barrett, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody. Replacements: 16 Andrew Makalio, 17 Tim Perry, 18 Michael Alaalatoa, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Pete Samu, 21 Mitchell Drummond, 22 Mitchell Hunt, 23 Braydon Ennor.

Hurricanes: 15 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 14 Julian Savea, 13 Jordie Barrett, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Ben Lam, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Blade Thomson, 7 Gareth Evans, 6 Brad Shields (captain), 5 Sam Lousi, 4 Michael Fatialofa, 3 Jeff To’omaga-Allen, 2 Ricky Riccitelli, 1 Toby Smith. Replacements: 16 James O’Reilly, 17 Chris Eves, 18 Ben May, 19 Vaea Fifita, 20 Ardie Savea/Reed Prinsep, 21 Jamie Booth, 22 Ihaia West, 23 Wes Goosen.

Prediction: Crusaders by 10.

Lions v Waratahs

Saturday, 15:05

Whiteley and his team mates have hit form at the most appropriate time, with the men in red and white dispatching the Bulls in their last regular season fixture and then producing an even better display last week to comfortably triumph over the powerful Jaguares team in the quarter-final. The Lions have also won their last three games against the Waratahs, including a 29-0 victory when the sides last met in March in Sydney, but they know that the Sydney side have improved remarkably since then. Beale, Foley, and Co. put on an impressive second-half comeback to defeat the Highlanders last week, but as valiant as it was, a similar late resurgence at Ellis Park will be unlikely.

Emirates Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Ruan Combrinck, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley (captain), 7 Lourens Erasmus, 6 Kwagga Smith, 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Marvin Orie, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Jacques van Rooyen. Replacements: 16 Corne Fourie, 17 Dylan Smith, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Hacjivah Dayimani, 20 Marnus Schoeman, 21 Dillon Smit, 22 Courtnall Skosan, 23 Howard Mnisi.

Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Alex Newsome, 13 Curtis Rona, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 10 Bernard Foley (captain), 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Michael Wells, 7 Will Miller, 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Jed Holloway, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Tom Robertson. Replacements: 16 Damien Fitzpatrick, 17 Harry Johnson-Holmes, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Tom Staniforth, 20 Brad Wilkin, 21 Jake Gordon, 22 Bryce Hegarty, 23 Cam Clark.

Prediction: Lions by 12.

Who do you think will come out on top this weekend? Let us know your predictions below or on Facebook or Twitter!