Super 14 Semi Finals

Bulls v Crusaders: Rest v momentum and it look’s like rest won. Was suprised how easily the Bulls won this compared to their last encounter with the Crusaders. The Crusader’s had to be at 100% to have any chance but unfortunately they were slightly off. They actually looked like the were going in slow motion at times and looked tired. Richie refused to make excuses but the schedule they have had in the last few weeks compared to the Bulls was horrendous. Colin Slade is a more than useful player but is still a natural 10 in my book. Just needs sometime to prove himself there but not likely while Carter is playing. I appreciate he had a poor start but If the AB’s are looking for a useful back up to Carter they could do no worse than Slade. Frustrating for him. The refereeing was much better this time too but Crusaders were well beaten in the end. In fact, the Bulls looked like they had another gear and were playing slightly within themselves. Well done Crusaders, you did your best. Interesting final next week but have chosen the Stormers to take it out. The 2 best teams have made the final. May the best team win!

Stormers v Warratahs: A disappointing end to the Warratah's season after they had promised much. Just lacked the experience upfront and needed to have all players on deck if they were to threaten the rampant Stormers. Unfortunately, they didn't and were well beaten in the end. The Stormers are probably the best defensive team in the competition and more often than not this is what gets teams through to the finals. They never over commit at the ruck and simply 'man up' on defence waiting for the opposition to make a mistake or counter attack from turn over ball. The Warratahs were often in 2 minds ie their ruck ball was slow and they only 1/2 drove forward. They either needed to have quick ball from the ruck and spread it wide or drive forward until they had committed numbers to the breakdown and then go wide. Unfortunately, they were somewhere in between.