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Super Rugby Form Gauge: Round 14 - South Africa strikes back

By RugbyPass
(Photo by Shaun Roy/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

The South African teams have turned the tables on their foreign opposition after bouncing back from last weekend’s horror round. This week, the Bulls picked up an away win over Australia’s floundering Rebels while the Stormers held the Crusaders to a draw and the Lions overcame the Highlanders in South Africa.

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In contrast, only one New Zealand team recorded a victory this weekend and it was the lowly Blues who saved NZ’s blushes. Admittedly, their victory came over fellow Kiwi side the Chiefs – but a win’s a win. The Waratahs performed the same role for Australia, notching a win over conference rivals the Reds to give Australia their sole win of the weekend.

The strong performances from the South African teams sees the Lion, Bulls and Sharks all climb the rankings. The form gauge has been volatile in 2019 due to the close nature of this year’s tournament, but could we finally be seeing the finalists emerge in the upper half of the rankings? The current top eight would be good bets to all make the knockout rounds of the tournament in four weeks.

Trivia:

  • Teams on their highest rank for 2019: Crusaders (1st), Hurricanes (2nd), Jaguares (3rd)
  • Teams on their lowest rank for 2019: Rebels (13th), Sunwolves (15th)
  • The points exchanged between the Hurricanes and the Jaguares is the 5th most exchanged throughout the season to date and the most since round 7
  • Less than a point separates the Hurricanes from the Jaguares, the Sharks from the Highlanders, the Bulls from the Stormers, the Blues from the Chiefs, and the Waratahs from the Rebels.

How it works

The form gauge is designed as an objective measure of how Super Rugby teams are performing throughout the season. Points are exchanged between teams based on their results. Relevant factors such as where the game is played, how the teams ranked prior to the match and how significant the victory/loss was are all accounted for in the calculations.

The maximum number of points possible is 100 and the minimum number of points possible is 0.

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Trevor 1 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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B
Bull Shark 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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