JON CARDINELLI looks ahead to the first four matches in round four of the competition.
CRUSADERS vs BLUES (Friday, 08:35)
The Crusaders, Chiefs and Stormers are the only teams that remain unbeaten after three rounds in 2017. The smart money is on the Cantabrians adding a fourth win to their tally on Friday.
The Crusaders have won seven of their last eight games in Christchurch. They've won their last five against the Blues, a side that has battled against Kiwi opposition in recent years (one win in 21 matches).
Tana Umaga's side hasn't made a particularly good start to the new season. The Blues have battled on attack and defence, and it's a weakness in the latter department that bodes badly for a meeting with the red-hot Crusaders.
The Crusaders lead the competition for average offloads (18.7) and passes (192.3), rank second for average carries (134.7), and third for metres made (543.3). They scored comeback victories against the Highlanders and Reds, and should be especially dangerous in the fourth quarter of the contest on Friday.
To date, five of the Crusaders' 10 tries have been scored during this period. While their overall defence record is unremarkable, something should be read into the fact that they've conceded zero tries during the fourth quarter of the past three games.
There's cause to believe that the Crusaders will do enough to claim a bonus-point win on Friday.
Crusaders – 15 David Havili, 14 Manasa Mataele, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 George Bridge, 10 Mitchell Hunt, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Whetu Douglas, 7 Jed Brown, 6 Jordan Taufua, 5 Sam Whitelock (c), 4 Scott Barrett, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody.
Subs: 16 Ben Funnell, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Michael Alaalatoa, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Pete Samu, 21 Mitchell Drummond, 22 Marty McKenzie, 23 Sean Wainui.
Blues – 15 Michael Collins, 14 Matt Duffie, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 George Moala, 11 Melani Nanai, 10 Piers Francis, 9 Augustine Pulu, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Blake Gibson, 6 Jimmy Tupou, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Gerard Cowley-Tuioti, 3 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 2 James Parsons (c), 1 Pauliasi Manu.
Subs: 16 Matt Moulds, 17 Sam Prattley, 18 Sione Mafileo, 19 Akira Ioane, 20 Murphy Taramai, 21 Billy Guyton, 22 Ihaia West, 23 TJ Faiane.
REBELS vs CHIEFS (Friday, 10:45)
Chiefs coach Dave Rennie has made some interesting backline selections ahead of the match in Melbourne, with Damian McKenzie moving from 15 to 10.
That said, the Chiefs can afford to experiment. They made a big statement in the first three rounds of the tournament by beating three Kiwi opponents, including last year's champions. The Chiefs should be too strong for a Rebels side that is yet to register a log point in 2017.
The Rebels have conceded 212 points in their last three games against New Zealand opposition. They've lost their last seven games against Kiwi teams.
The men from Melbourne have missed an average of 34 tackles per match in 2017. They would do well to avoid a hammering at the hands of the Chiefs this Friday.
Rebels – 15 Jack Debreczeni, 14 Sefa Naivalu, 13 Tom English, 12 Reece Hodge, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Jackson Garden-Bachop, 9 Nic Stirzaker (c), 8 Amanaki Mafi, 7 Colby Fainga’a, 6 Jordy Reid, 5 Steve Cummins, 4 Culum Retallick, 3 Laurie Weeks, 2 James Hanson, 1 Fereti Sa’aga.
Subs: 16 Pat Leafa, 17 Cruze Ah-Nau, 18 Tyrel Lomax, 19 Murray Douglas, 20 Jake Schatz, 21 Ben Meehan, 22 Sione Tuipulotu, 23 Ben Volavola.
Chiefs – 15 Shaun Stevenson, 14 Toni Pulu, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Stephen Donald, 11 Solomon Alaimalo, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8 Liam Messam, 7 Sam Cane (c), 6 Tom Sanders, 5 Brodie Retallick, 4 Dominic Bird, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Sabastian Siataga, 1 Kane Hames.
Subs: 16 Hika Elliot, 17 Siegfried Fisi'ihoi, 18 Atu Moli, 19 Mitchell Brown, 20 Mitchell Karpik, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 Aaron Cruden, Johnny Faauli.
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BULLS vs SUNWOLVES (Friday, 19:00)
The Bulls can't afford to lose another game at this stage of the season. Indeed, it's fair to say that the pressure is on Nollis Marais' charges to claim a bonus-point win against the Sunwolves in Pretoria on Friday.
They will hope that a return to Loftus Versfeld witnesses a change in fortunes. Since beating the Sunwolves 50-3 last season, the Bulls have won 10 of their last 13 games at home.
The Bulls are coming off a bye and will be determined to prove a point. Marais has made eight changes to the starting side, and while much has been made about the inclusion of Warrick Gelant at fullback, Jan Serfontein at centre, and scrumhalf Piet van Zyl, the focus should be on the big men up front. Lood de Jager has returned from concussion and should boost the lineout, while the pack as a whole will be under pressure to lift its standards at the collisions and breakdowns.
The Sunwolves have missed 30.7 tackles per match and have the second-worst tackle-success rate in the competition (76%, only the Rebels have been worse). The Japanese franchise has leaked 21 tries in three matches this season.
Bulls – 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Travis Ismaiel, 13 Jan Serfontein, 12 Burger Odendaal, 11 Jamba Ulengo, 10 Handre Pollard (c), 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Hanro Liebenberg, 7 Renaldo Bothma, 6 Ruan Steenkamp, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Edgar Marutlulle, 1 Pierre Schoeman.
Subs: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Lizo Gqoboko, 18 Jacobie Adriaanse, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Jannes Kirsten, 21 Ivan van Zyl, 22 Tian Schoeman, 23 Jesse Kriel.
Sunwolves – 15 Shota Emi, 14 Takaaki Nakazuru, 13 Jamie-Jerry Taulagi, 12 Timothy Lafaele, 11 Kenki Fukuoka, 10 Hayden Cripps, 9 Keisuke Uchida, 8 Willie Britz, 7 Shumei Matsuhashi, 6 Ed Quirk (c), 5 Uwe Helu, 4 Sam Wykes, 3 Yasuo Yamaji, 2 Yusuke Niwai, 1 Koki Yamamoto.
Subs: 16 Atsushi Sakate, 17 Masataka Mikami, 18 Heiichiro Ito, 19 Liaki Moli, 20 Yoshitaka Tokunaga, 21 Kaito Shigeno, 22 Jumpei Ogura, 23 Ryohei Yamanaka.
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HURRICANES vs HIGHLANDERS (Saturday, 08:35)
The last outing against the Chiefs hurt the Hurricanes in more ways than one. Not only did the champs lose the game, but a couple of key players to injuries.
Jordie Barrett will replace Nehe Milner-Skudder at fullback this week. Callum Gibbins will start at openside flank, while Ardie Savea will pack down at No 8.
Traditionally, there hasn't been much between these two teams. The last 10 games have seen each side claim five victories, with all but one of those 10 fixtures decided by a margin of no greater than the value of a converted try.
The Highlanders have won on five of their last seven visits to Wellington to face the Hurricanes, though were pipped in a 27-20 loss when these teams met in round 14 last season. The Hurricanes have won their last seven games on home soil, their longest streak in franchise history and the equal longest current streak of any team in the competition (Lions).
The Highlanders have also suffered injuries in the lead-up to Saturday's derby. In fact, as many as 15 players are currently available. All Blacks Lima Sopoaga, Liam Squire and Waisake Naholo are all crocked.
The only bit of good news for the Highlanders, who currently sit in last place on the New Zealand conference log, is that captain Ben Smith has been cleared to play.
Hurricanes – 15 Jordie Barrett, 14 Vince Aso, 13 Matt Proctor, 12 Ngani Laumape, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Callum Gibbins, 6 Brad Shields, 5 Michael Fatialofa, 4 Mark Abbott, 3 Jeffery To'omaga-Allen, 2 Dane Coles (c), 1 Chris Eves.
Subs: 16 Ricky Riccitelli, 17 Ben May, 18 Mike Kainga, 19 Sam Lousi, 20 Reed Prinsep, 21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 22 Otere Black, 23 Wes Goosen
Highlanders – 15 Ben Smith (c), 14 Richard Buckman, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Rob Thompson, 11 Tevita Li, 10 Fletcher Smith, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Luke Whitelock, 7 Dillon Hunt, 6 Elliot Dixon, 5 Tom Franklin, 4 Joe Wheeler, 3 Siate Tokolahi, 2 Liam Coltman, 1 Daniel Lienert-Brown.
Subs: 16 Sekonia Pole, 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Guy Millar, 19 Jackson Hemopo, 20 Gareth Evans, 21 Kayne Hammington, 22 Marty Banks, 23 Matt Faddes.
Photo: Johan Rynners/Getty Images
