S5, R5: Hurricanes vs. Sharks - Completed

%srhurricanes

Alan Parker
Jonty Rhodes
Cattwat Smith
Jason Denton
Tom Clough
Paul Oz
League Lover
Leumas Himann
Luke Pilgrim
Chad Dyer
Damien Taylor
Ed Ames
Gareth Weaver
Chris Warrington
Alistair Son

Substitutes

16. Thad Bochat
17. Tool Man
18. Amyia Shreyas
19. Bosh Burger
20. Jake Harding
21. Zohaib Ikram
22. Maroon Faithful

%sharks

David Dafter
Eddie Morris (C)
Shane Masters
James McDougal
Samual Yates
Simon Laing
DJ Edwards
Dexter Astele
Sam Bakkum
Matthew Scoble
Zac MacDonald
Michael Edwards
Sam Graham
Chris Devonshire
Regan Hutchinson

Substitutes

16. Soumyanil Das
17. Niru Gurupur
18. DH Mulray
19. Lee Sweetman
20. James Hughes
21. Matt James
22. Paul Adams

 

After their dodgy start the Sharks need to be putting these games away now. Should be theirs.

 

Preview

The match of the round this one as both teams harbour realistic hopes of taking this game out. The Hurricanes - with home advantage behind them - need to take this one out to retain the chance of making the knock-out stages. The Sharks on the other hand will feel they have the superior team despite the continued absence of injury hit Sam Verigotta.

So, on the field the Hurricanes will be delighted to welcome back Alan Parker and Luke Pilgrim. Pilgrim has struggled so far this season (FQ - 0.05) but he has proven quality and the Hurricanes will be hoping he can start to develop a good understanding of first-five Chad Dyer's game. Dyer has had a very good start to the season (FQ + 0.14); rating positively with every game he's taken to the field which has freed up iconic player Ed Ames to take control from second five-eighth. Both Ames and Gareth Weaver have yet to hit top gear, and the Sharks better look out if they do as there is arguably no better centres pairing in the Seasonal Rugby Championship.

There is enough quality in the rest of the backs - Chris Warrington, Damien Taylor and Alistair Son to keep the Sharks worried every time the ball comes out to the Hurricanes backs and the defensive qualities of Sam Graham and Regan Hutchinson are sure to come under a stern examination. The rest of the Sharks backline looks a bit unsteady, but Michael Edwards has shown enough (FQ + 0.08) to suggest he can potentially foot it at this level.

The story is reversed in the forward pack where the Hurricanes look seriously short of quality whilst the injury hit Sharks still have a number of top class players. For the Hurricanes, Jonty Rhodes has been a stand out performer (FQ + 0.07) though his form took a hit after a woeful performance for the BaaBaas. His opposite number this week is Eddie Morris who has dined at the top table of the SRC for some time, but who won't be pleased with his form this season so far.

In the 2nd row, the Jason Denton battle with James McDougal should be epic and allow the heat to be taken off the makeshift number 5s as Tom Clough faces down Samuel Yates - who would definitely feel more at home in the boot of the scrum.

Both back rows have the air of the makeshift about them as the Hurricanes sport inexperience in Paul Oz with tried and tested - but out of form - options in League Lover and Leumas Himann. They take on the returning Simon Laing, youngster DJ Edwards and the in-and-out-hokey cokey is he good enough or isn't he figure of Dexter Astele.

This should be a close battle, with the outcome potentially hinging on the weather. As such, I have two predictions for you to ponder:

Prediction: (Dry) Hurricanes 28 - 25 Sharks
(Damp/Wet) Hurricanes 12 - 18 Sharks

 

Come on 'Canes!

 

leggo of what?

 

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?

 

Starting in 2 minutes, aye?

 

Looks to be a good contest