Canberra scoreboard all set to keep ticking along

Brumbies v Rebels - 10.40am SKY SPORTS 3

A FINE night for attacking rugby is forecast in Canberra and 50 or more total points on the scoreboard is the call.

World Cup-winning coach Jake White has clearly got the Brumbies buzzing again after their nightmare campaign last season.

But their position at the top of the Australian conference before the Reds picked up their bye points was still something of a surprise and down as much to the inconsistencies of the champion Reds and Waratahs as their own strong form.

They are won three, lost three for their six games played and while there blistering attack has clicked into gear on the back of powerful pack performances from the likes of Stephen Moore, Ben Mowen and Michael Hooper, they have still been conceding points too easily.

The last two games in Canberra have been a 39-36 loss to the Sharks and 33-26 win over the Highlanders.

It is a similar problem for the Rebels who definitely have the backline genius in the form of Danny Cipriani, James O'Connor and Kurtley Beale to cause chaos.

The Melbourne men beat the bewildering Blues 34-23 last Thursday after being hammered 43-12 by the Highlanders the week before.

And it was a similar story in weeks four and five when they lost 33-26 at home to the Cheetahs but then edged out the Force 30-29.

Recommendation

Nore than 49.5 total points, 1pt 5-6 Ladbrokes

Brumbies: J Mogg; H Speight, T Kuridani, P McCabe, J Tomane; C Lealiifano, N White; R Murphy, S Moore, D Palmer; S Fardy, S Carter; B Mowen, M Hooper, F Auelua. Replacements: A Hegarty, B Alexander, P Kimlin, I Vaea, I Prior, R Coleman, A Smith

Rebels: K Beale; L Mitchell, M Inman, J O'Connor, M Gerrard; D Cipriani, N Phipps; N Henderson, G Robinson, R Blake; A Campbell, H Pyle; L Jones, J Saffy,G Delve. Replacements: L Holmes, E Aholelei, M Lipman, T Davidson, R Kingi, J Huxley, L Johansson.

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Crusaders v Stormers - 8.35am SKY SPORTS 3

THE SO FAR perfect Stormers (in terms of five wins from five) have never triumphed in Christchurch.

And that will probably still be case after this prime Super 15 week eight showdown.

But the Cape Town outfit should still be backed with a five-point start from the Crusaders on what is forecast to be a wet and windy Cantabrian night.

The Stormers began their four week Australasian tour with successful 21-6 raid on the Highlanders in Dunedin last Saturday so should be content and settled in New Zealand whereas the red and black machine have just back arrived from a fortnight up on the veldt in Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Before their win at the Lions - their only one by ten or more so far this season - and loss to the Bulls last Saturday, the Crusaders had been pushed all the way in Christchurch by the Cheetahs.

And before their bye week, the Crusaders had lost to the Chiefs in Napier and the Highlanders at their new greenhouse of pain and sneaked a 19-18 win in Auckland over the Blues. The Blues have lost all six of their games since.

The Crusaders won both of last seas0n's meetings in Cape Town but the previous season at Newlands, the Stormers sauntered to a 42-14 win. In 2009, the Stormers lost 11-7 in Christchurch.

Recommendation

Stormers +5, 1pt 10-11 Paddy Power

Crusaders: I Dagg; S Maitland, R Fruean, D Carter, Z Guildford; T Taylor, A Ellis; W Crockett, C Flynn, B Franks; T Donnelly, S Whitelock; M Todd, K Read. Replacements: Q MacDonald, O Franks, L Romano, L Whitelock, W Heinz, R Crotty, T Marshall.

Stormers: J Pietersen; G van den Heever, J de Jongh, J De Villiers, B Habana; P Grant, D Duvenage; S Kitshoff, T Liebenberg, B Harris; E Etzebeth, A Bekker; S Kolisi, R Elstadt, D Vermeulen. Replacements: D Fourie, F Malherbe, De K Steenkamp, N Carr, L Schreuder, B Francis, G Aplon/ JP du Plessis.

Return to racingpost.com/sport for the remaining two Super 15 week eight games