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SuperBru S15 Round 7 preview

Cape Town - How about that for a week of Super Rugby? The highest-scoring round of the tournament so far, three sides scored more than 40 points in a fascinating set of matches that didn’t all go the way of the SuperBru form book.

Teams: Super Rugby Round 7

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No match was arguably better than the one in Wellington, where the Hurricanes and the Cheetahs smashed out an 85-point thriller, eight tries coming in the first half alone. A three-try salvo from the Cheetahs brought them back from behind to eventually tally up a 47-38 victory.

The other two games in New Zealand saw the Highlanders get back to winning ways by hammering the Rebels 43-12 in Friday’s only match, while the Chiefs took apart the Waratahs in Hamilton thanks to a brilliant effort from their pack and flyhalf Aaron Cruden.

Across the Tasman it all went wrong for the Reds in Perth against the Western Force, their ugly losing streak continuing as the Force picked up their first ever try bonus point at NIB Stadium. The champions are looking in a poor state right now, in urgent need of a fit again Mike Harris or Quade Cooper. The other match saw the Brumbies make it four losses out of five for Australian sides in Round 6 after they were pipped to the post by the Sharks, though they did put in a spirited effort.

Finally in South Africa the Lions went down to the Crusaders as widely expected on SuperBru, while the Stormers kept their unbeaten streak going against the Bulls to stay top of the log.

Looking ahead to Round 7, the competition gets even tougher:

We start on Thursday back in Melbourne, where although the Rebels have put in some encouraging performances in the last few weeks, they’ve struggled to finish games off. This week they take on the Blues, who have only won once out of their first five matches this season. Picking a winner out of two strugglers is not easy, but the Rebels feel as though they’re on the brink of finally clicking. Rebels by 4.

The Hurricanes then kick things off on Friday against the travelling Sharks. Both sides have been playing some excellent stuff in recent weeks, but the visitors should take this one. Sharks by 7.

Next in Brisbane the Reds face a must-win match against the Brumbies to keep their season alive. The defence will have to be tighter, but they need the leadership of James Horwill and Will Genia more than ever now. The Brumbies are outstandingly well-drilled and could follow-up their win at Suncorp from last year. Brumbies by 5.

The final match on Friday sees the confident Force face the Chiefs in Perth. Repeating last week’s success though looks against the odds given the visitor’s firepower. Chiefs by 10.

Saturday starts with the Highlanders taking on the Stormers in the clash between the top two sides on the log. The visitors are leaving South Africa for the first time this season but arrive in good shape, mainly down to the fact that apart from Schalk Burger and Gary van Aswegen they have a fully fit squad. The home pack will give them everything, but this could be an important away win in the course of the season. Stormers by 8.

Back on home territory the Cheetahs finally return home to take on the Lions in Bloemfontein, buoyant after last week’s big win and they should follow it up with another. Cheetahs by 8.

Last but not least, two of Super Rugby’s giants battle it out in Pretoria as the Bulls take on the visiting Crusaders. In what has the potential to be a classic, the home pack will rise to the occasion. Bulls by 7.

That’s all for this week, best of luck with your SuperBru picks and see you in Round 8!

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