Tom Taylor 31-24 Stormers
Now that the dust has settled in the southern hemisphere, Planet Rugby thought it was only right to hail the star men of Super Rugby, Round 8.
After another pulsating weekend of Super Rugby action, we have a new tournament leader after the Stormers' unbeaten run was brought to an end by Tom Taylor, erm ...we mean the Crusaders.
The Chiefs' bonus-point win over the Cheetahs took the Kiwis top of the pile, while the Brumbies reinstated themselves as Aussie conference leaders thanks to their crushing win over the Rebels.
Another Bulls victory leaves them breathing down the Stormers' necks in the SA conference, while the Sharks left New Zealand on a high with five more valuable points in the bag after seeing off the struggling Blues.
So without further ado, here comes our offering - be sure to send in your own 15-1 team line-ups.!
15 Joe Pietersen (Stormers) - His return from Bayonne has been such a plus for the men from Cape Town. Not only is he in the high percentage from the tee but Pietersen offers a lot in attack. We saw that against the Highlanders and also over this past weekend as he caused the Crusaders plenty of bother.
14 Akona Ndungane (Bulls) - Nothing flash but frighteningly efficient from the veteran winger. Ndungane scored his first try of the season on Saturday and once again showed that he is more than capable of avoiding the touchline when under pressure. Great lines from him, getting in ahead of Lelia Masaga.
13 Richard Kahui (Chiefs) - Maybe a touch harsh on Juan de Jongh of the Stormers - who seemingly never misses a tackle - as he was strong in Christchurch. However, for his solidity and intelligence both in defence and attack, Kahui is our man. Must be nice playing outside offload king Sonny Bill Williams.
12 Pat McCabe (Brumbies) - Speaking of Sonny Bill, we come to the number twelve slot where three names popped up. McCabe for his bustling showing against the Rebels, Tim Whitehead for running good lines in Auckland and finally Williams for his moments of brilliance. But McCabe was consistently excellent.
11 Bryan Habana (Stormers): Much-improved performances of late from Habana, with his pace looking threatening once again while his work-rate was also mighty impressive. Scored a crucial try too that gave the Stormers a sniff at victory.
10 Tom Taylor (Crusaders): The final scoreline should have read: Taylor 31-24 Stormers. What else can we say? Keep hold of that number twelve jersey for now, Daniel.
9 Francois Hougaard (Bulls): Piet van Zyl has taken to Super Rugby like a duck to water in Bloemfontein was again busy for the Cheetahs on Saturday. If the livewire keeps this up during the current Springbok camp he is attending then Heyneke Meyer may keep him around. Unfortunately for Van Zyl though, we've plumped for the probable new South Africa scrum-half, Hougaard, who showed immense power to score against the Lions and was nuggety throughout.
8 Keegan Daniel (Sharks): Played a real captain's innings for his team: Daniel set up the Sharks' first touchdown after intercepting and running half the length of the field before being brought down just short of the line, scored himself in the 47th minute to give his team back the advantage, and again featured in the lead-up to the visitors' bonus-point try.
7 Michael Hooper (Brumbies): The 20-year-old (named player of the tournament in last year's junior World Cup) is enjoying a stand-out season in 2012 for the Brumbies. He made his mark with a brilliant performance over the Highlanders and proved it was no fluke with another impressive display against the Rebels.
6 CJ Stander (Bulls): With first-choice flanks Deon Stegmann and Dewald Potgieter nursing early-season injuries, Stander has taken his chance to shine with both hands. The talismanic forward who carries the ball strongly, turns over opposition ball at the breakdown and holds up opponents in the tackle, has proved to be a very valuable player for the three-time champions.
5 Brodie Retallick (Chiefs): Another solid outing from the Chiefs tall timber. At 2.04m, Retallick - playing in his first Super Rugby season - has taken to the competition as if he was a veteran.
4 Scott Fardy (Brumbies): Was pushing for a place on the Brumbies bench, never mind the starting line-up when the season kicked off. But this two-try, man of the match performance will certainly earn him regular starts in the future.
3 Charlie Faumuina (Blues): Muscled up superbly for the Blues in a solid all-round performance. Tony Woodcock may have crossed for a try, but it was Faumuina who powered his way to the line to get his front-row colleague over it.
2 Craig Burden (Sharks): The former wing had mighty big shoes to fill following the injury to Bok hooker Bismarck du Plessis, but has now put in strong back-to-back performances that has left coach John Plumtree with a selection headache ahead of Saturday's clash with the Chiefs.
1 Sona Taumalolo (Chiefs): If this guy gets within touching distance of the tryline, he scores. It's no wonder he's currently the leading try-scorer in Super Rugby this season (six). Not bad for a prop!
Comments
Sasquatch says...
Something tells me that Ed&co have post synonyms?
Posted 00:48 21st April 2012
FoxandHound says...
@ruckingkiwi Now thats a good retort and funny.
Posted 08:16 20th April 2012
FoxandHound says...
Fair enough. Moving on. I don¿t see the point in having a ¿team of the week¿. Even when most of the player¿s chosen certainly have some talent allot of aspects have to be kept in mind. Like for instance who played who (no use in rating a player when his team is more superior to the team they played that day) and isn¿t the game played with 15 men in a team. My point being you¿re only as good as you¿re team mate (or the rest of you¿re team for that matter) allows you to be. For instance a flyhalf will have a pretty bad day at the office if his forwards don¿t give him good quality ball no matter how good he is. Same goes for a centre if his flyhalf makes bad decisions. So what¿s the point in picking players every week? Maybe a team at the end of a competition when everyone on all sides has played each other will be a better option.
Posted 19:52 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@All of you: I'll see you in another post. Justice and AVP1 will undoubtedly miss that one.
@Ed: you guys are the ones allowing this trash to get through so the buck stops at your computer.
Oh, and of course I look forward to all the witty responses.
Posted 15:21 19th April 2012
FoxandHound says...
@J4A I have already provided you with an answer. The matter of this being funny or not I cant help you with as it is entirely up to you But just in case you didn't follow the thread I'll repeat it for you
APV1 says...
@ Sasquatch - you might want to read my whole comment, not just pick single words. Perhaps those big feet of your get in the way...
Sasquatch says...
@AVP1: I've read the whole comment and it still sounds "mediocre", How do you know I have big feet if you've never seen them?
The emphasis here is on "if you've never seen them?"
my analysis of this is--
FoxandHound says...
Can anyone on this site claim that they have seen a real Sasquatch. Sasquatch/Yeti/Bigfoot is a mythical creator created by the imagination of ones mind therefore no one can claim that it has big feet for no one has or will ever see it. That said why would anyone choose to engage in an argument with something that only exists in ones imagination.
Now I hope this clarifies why Sasquatch feels he is intellectually superior to the rest off us for ¿catching¿ us all with such a ¿great retort¿ because non of us could see the humor behind the matter that he actually does not exist. May we move on now.
Posted 14:59 19th April 2012
APV1 says...
@ Stellenbosched - I would rather you rang the number and asked for me:
General Sir Batfink Termite Honkdiddly Ponsonby-Farquharson and my phone number is: +44 (0) 20 7766 7300
And I was hoping for nearer 5:1, but I'll take 4 at a pinch.
@ Sasquatch - let it go. If it needs explaining, it ain't funny anymore.
@ FoxandHound - I completely disagree. Sasquatches are as real as the voices in my head. No they're not! Yes they are! Awww crap!
So. Back to the netball then.
Posted 14:22 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@Justice 4 all: uhhh... ok, back to the rugby I think, I don't visit this site to be abused over complete nonsense.
@Ed: please end this!
The editor says.... @EVERYONE. Please pick up your dummies and stop slinging mud. (If you throw mud, you should expect it to be thrown back). Now, back to rugby.
Posted 14:09 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@Fox and Hound:
Well said!
Posted 12:41 19th April 2012
FoxandHound says...
Can anyone on this site claim that they have seen a real Sasquatch. Sasquatch/Yeti/Bigfoot is a mythical creator created by the imagination of ones mind therefore no one can claim that it has big feet for no one has or will ever see it. That said why would anyone choose to engage in an argument with something that only exists in ones imagination.
Posted 12:18 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@AVP1: Actually, I want you to explain?! I'm as sure you're clueless as I'm sure the Boks will beat England.
Posted 11:48 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@AVP1: LOL!I can tell you still don't get it!
Posted 11:46 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@Justics4all: calm down mate, this is a rugby site not www.psychoanalysis-and-therapy.com. You cleraly didn't get it either... Don't vent on me
Posted 11:21 19th April 2012
APV1 says...
@ Stellenbosched - many lives were lost in order for me to be promoted sop young. None were significant though - I used to command The Colonial Corps (basically Saffas, ANZACS and the odd chap from the Raj), so the soldiers were worth a lot less than the British Tommies! The gong cost a pretty penny, but was worth it. Have you rung me yet? My staff rarely let me know if there are nuisance calls, but I would love to hear the response if you ask for me by name... Go on, you know you want to...
"Sasquatch says... @AVP1: I've read the whole comment and it still sounds "mediocre", How do you know I have big feet if you've never seen them?" - Retort? Not really. Or, at least, a terribly poor one at best.
@ j4a - bless him. Big Foot is obviously confused. And I'll let you Saffas have the prize for "Best In Class - pathetic, drivelling contingent of excuse makers", if you let us have "Best In Class - our players lack exactly that - Class". We thought we had it in the bag from the RWC last year but, as they often do, the Kiwis gave us a good run for our money with Guildford's antics. Thankfully Hartley, Clark and Youngs really brought that one home for us. Fair deal?
@ Ed - I know. It's a rugby site. I'll go and get back in my box now.
Posted 11:13 19th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@IslandPower and AVP1:
Uhmm... yes, I get it guys! Though, you two clearly didn't understand the retort. Have a read before you start talking about IQ bud! You've just made an ass of yourself.
@justice4all: stay out of it!
Posted 20:00 18th April 2012
APV1 says...
@ Sasquatch / Yeti / Bigfoot - I was actually having a bit of a jibe against us lot up north. If you regularly read my posts, you'll have noticed that I'm not as dumb as I often appear and have a whole lot of respect for SH rugby, despite being English. That's why I was (again!) "hoping" for mediocrity, but thinking that, perhaps, the SH teams will give the tourists a hell of a match-up. My point was that there seems to be a lot of talent across all three nationalities, in all of the Super teams. There seems to be new names in the "Team of the Week" every week, showing that there's depth in all positions. Either that, or they are all equally rubbish. I was hoping for the latter, but suspect the former.
And please don't use a username if you don't know what it means - it just shows you up as having an IQ-deficit.
@ j4a - maths was never my strong point. I seem to come up with 42, which seems respectable enough..! ;-)
@ isthatrightref - I think you've called it right for Wales, although I wouldn't be too surprised if it was 2:1 to Wales... England might do ok, depending on our mid-week squad. And, of course, how much of a kicking the Saffas give us, as I'm expecting some very heated encounters. Ireland are likely to get munted, especially if their set-piece is still suffering. But they've got balls and heart, so you can never write them off.
Posted 10:28 18th April 2012
BokAvenger says...
@IslandPower: We'll lose the chip on our shoulders when we start getting fair treatement from international rugby referees and the IRB, which still treat us like we're the prisoner out on parole at the dinner table
The editor says.... Sounds remarkably like the kind of thing we heard ad nauseam from BokVanDam. Find something new to say.
Posted 08:33 18th April 2012
safehands says...
Here's a thought......the top 7 positions (this number worked out nicely I thought for the purpose of this comment....wonderful how one can manipulate data to meet one's own agendas :) ) are currently filled with 4 Kiwi teams (of which only the Chiefs have played anything remotely decent so far), 2 Saffa teams and 1 Aussie team....look out world when the Kiwi boys wake from their post RWC 2011 slumber...
Posted 04:50 18th April 2012
isthatrightref says...
@ APV1... Wales may well take 1 off the Wobblies & go close in the other 2 but I suspect you're right in terms of England (wouldn't be surprised if all 3 Tests are within 7, though) & esp Ireland - their supporters should make the most of any sight-seeing opportunities 'cos the rugby's gonna hurt!
Posted 22:26 17th April 2012
Sasquatch says...
@AVP1: I've read the whole comment and it still sounds "mediocre", How do you know I have big feet if you've never seen them?
Posted 19:26 17th April 2012
Lucasrg says...
Could it be possible to Daniel to be in the South Africans's XV?
if so what would be loose forwards set up? Daniel at 7, Spies at 8 and Burger at 6?
Daniel was really impressive in the last week. He should be in the SA squad imo
Posted 17:13 17th April 2012