This is a game to get excited for with some of the best attacking backline players in the world. On the Blues side you have Rieko Ioane playing at outside center and Beauden Barrett at fullback, on the other side you have Ben Lam one of the most prolific try scorers the past few seasons and Ngani Laumape at inside center that prides himself in running over the opposition rather than round them. This is going to be the game we have all been waiting for this whole time without rugby.
what to expect:
I believe that this is also going to be a bit rusty at the beginning but when the second half comes around the game is going to open up bit and I predict that it is going to be a high scoring affair. The game is going to be determined by the pack that asserts its dominance on the other team. The backlines match up evenly and the I don’t think that there is a team that will be able to run riot in the back it is going to be decided by the forward pack that is able to dominate. having said that I do believe that the Blues have the upper hand on paper but everything still remains to be seen.
Key match-ups:
Beauden Barrett vs Chase Tiatia: I know it seams stupid to compare a player that has won the world player of the year multiple times to a young player that has not even cracked the international level yet, but if you have seen Chase with the ball in hand you will know that he is one of the most dangerous players to defend against. The Problem I see with the Blues is that they have two super stars and one of them is he play maker this means he will have to do allot of the attacking work himself the Canes on the other hand have more experience and that makes it easy for chase to get a gap because the defence will target some of the more experienced players. Beauden is the better player and I will never say otherwise but with that title of worlds best comes allot of focus and I believe that Chase will get more space to run into.
James Parsons vs Dane Coles: The battle of the hookers. James is a very experienced campaigner and Dane a few years ago was the best hooker in the world. They are completely different type of players and that just makes this battle more interesting. James is a more traditional hooker focusing on his throwing and running the crash balls. Dane on the other hand plays more like a third flanker on his team. This battle for me will be won at line out time if one of the them can make all there line out throws that will give their team a big boost at the set piece and that will help their team win the game.
Teams:
Blues
Hurricanes
| Starting XV | ||
|---|---|---|
| Alex Hodgman | 1 | Fraser Armstrong |
| James Parsons | 2 | Dane Coles |
| Ofa Tu’ungafasi | 3 | Tyrel Lomax |
| Patrick Tuipulotu | 4 | James Blackwell |
| Josh Goodhue | 5 | Scott Scrafton |
| Tom Robinson | 6 | Reed Prinsep |
| Blake Gibson | 7 | Du’Plessis Kirifi |
| Hoskins Sotutu | 8 | Gareth Evans |
| Sam Nock | 9 | TJ Perenara |
| Otere Black | 10 | Jackson Garden-Bachop |
| Caleb Clarke | 11 | Ben Lam |
| TJ Faiane | 12 | Ngani Laumape |
| Rieko Ioane | 13 | Vince Aso |
| Mark Telea | 14 | Wes Goosen |
| Beauden Barrett | 15 | Chase Tiatia |
| Bench | ||
| Kurt Eklund | 16 | Asafo Aumua |
| Ezekiel Lindenmuth | 17 | Tevita Mafileo |
| Marcel Renata | 18 | Alex Fidow |
| Gerard Cowley-Tuioti | 19 | Isaia Walker-Leawere |
| Dalton Papali’i | 20 | Vaea Fifita |
| Finlay Christie | 21 | Ardie Savea |
| Harry Plummer | 22 | Jamie Booth |
| Matt Duffie | 23 | Billy Proctor |
My prediction:
I believe that the Blues is going to come away with the win. The home crowd is also going to have a massive impact and I believe that, that is going to push them over the line to get their season of to a winning start.
Rugby dissect 
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