Sharks’ Aphelele Fassi scores a try during the Super Rugby match between New Zealand’s Highlanders and South Africa’s Sharks at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on February 7, 2020. (Photo by Marty MELVILLE / AFP)
Super Rugby 2020: Five things we learned from round two
Two rounds of Super Rugby 2020 have passed but there is already plenty to talk about for fans of the sport.
Sharks’ Aphelele Fassi scores a try during the Super Rugby match between New Zealand’s Highlanders and South Africa’s Sharks at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on February 7, 2020. (Photo by Marty MELVILLE / AFP)
Super Rugby round two wrapped in the early hours of Sunday morning with the Hurricanes beating the Jaguares 26-23.
Jordie Barrett channelled Frans Steyn with an enormous penalty kick from inside his own half to get the Hurricanes on the board in the game, and they went on to snatch their first log points, but they remain fourth in the New Zealand conference.
The Stormers top the South African conference just ahead of the Sharks, both sides having won their opening two matches of the Super Rugby season. The Jaguares defeat leaves them third in the SA conference two points ahead of the Lions. The pointless Bulls are bottom.
The Chiefs picked up a big scalp and lead the Kiwi conference. Warren Gatland’s side got one over on the Crusaders. The Blues bounced back from defeat to the Chiefs to hammer a sub-par Waratahs side to move up to second.
But let’s look beyond the log to what we learned in week two of Super Rugby.
Fassi is a Super Rugby weekend special
Supersport’s Xhosa commentary team have the same enthusiasm for the play of Sharks Fullback Aphelele Fassi as fans of the Durban-based franchise.
A Springbok call-up is a near certainty if he can remain consistent in his performances throughout the season. Fassi was calm under pressure and produced two moments of brilliance that ensured the Sharks powered to a second successive win.
The Lions need to be better at the basics
The Lions may have seen off the Reds, but they had a big assist from referee Jaco Peyper who punished the visitors severely with a pair of yellow cards.
After a big loss in Argentina, the Lions needed a response. While they got on the board in terms of log points, they have a lot of room for improvement.
Despite the presence of Dr Jannie du Plessis, the Lions scrum struggled against a Reds pack they should have bullied.
The contest between the Lions and Reds was a dour affair, and it is matches like this one that have people worried for the future of the tournament.
A number of game-breaking players are present in the Lions team which can cover up that the basics of the game are where they are falling flat
Don’t expect much from the SA derbies
The Stormers won their encounter with the Bulls which is all that really mattered to them although they might feel they missed out an opportunity to build a log lead with a second bonus point.
The Bulls have been abysmal in the ‘strike-zone’ failing to score a try against the Sharks and then failing to score at Newlands.
But as much as they failed going forward, they were also able to stifle most of the Stormers attempts to attack.
This match showed us we can’t expect much out of the SA derbies in terms of free flowing rugby even when the better sides are involved.
Cruden and Gatland make the Chiefs dangerous
Aaron Cruden has been instrumental in s strong start to the season for the Chiefs while it seems Warren Gatland has begun to implement his learnings from Wales slowly.
The Chiefs are proving to be the grinders of the New Zealand conference, and they exposed a raw Crusaders outfit.
Damian McKenzie’s dynamism at fullback could combine with Cruden’s dependability fantastically well. McKenzie made his return after a long spell out with injury and made a statement in the All Blacks fullback conversation.
Australian Super Rugby is in a state
The saying goes that people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones but while South African rugby faces massive challenges, it is tough to see a lot of positives for Australian rugby in the first two weeks of Super Rugby.
The Sunwolves are second in the conference, and they had a bye in week two. The Rebels, Reds and Waratahs lost, and while the Brumbies have won both their matches and top the standings, they played their second match in front of less than 8,000 people.
There have been significant positives for Australia’s Southern Hemisphere rivals in the last few years. The All Blacks remain the gold standard in world rugby while South Africa enjoy the glow of a third Rugby World Cup. The Jaguares have progressed even if the same can’t be said for the Pumas.
In Australia, the popularity of the sport is plummeting due to competition for viewership from several other sports combined with a string of failures on the field.
Tags:
