“There is pleasure within pain, good within evil, beauty in ugliness and benefit within harm? This is so relative truths may be established; so there may be many things within one thing, and so they may find existence and become apparent.”
Siya Kolisi, well done, son. May your bones be in good health this year, and allow you to be a great leader of men. Salute!
* Calling this year’s Super Rugby is no easy task. As usual, the New Zealanders are in the mix and are rightly favourites, with four of their five teams in the favourites’ column. Some things just don’t change. My beloved Canes are at a short 7/2, Chiefs and Crusaders at a cool 5/1 and Highlanders just outside at 11/2 (take a young dip).
Then there is a surprising addition of the Lions close behind at 13/2, which shows the bookmakers, journos, players and public took note and have new-found respect for ‘die manne van Jozi’, papa.
* Super Rugby needs some serious improvement from our peoples and those Aussies, so let’s touch on teams most likely to add a couple more Ws OR Ls in their columns. Bones sees Red and ’n bietjie blue, so look at the Queensland Reds and Jaguares (it can’t be indicating the Crusaders as they are usually quite sound) improving this year.
Look into Siya’s Stormers and Brumbies seeing some flames this year, with the “no longer new” Sunwolves and Force to do much of the same. They will bring up the ass end and battle it out for that “wooden spoon”.
Knockouts to feature Hurricanes, Highlanders, Crusaders and Lions with Bulls, Reds, Waratahs and Chiefs to battle out for the other spots.
* By the time you read this, we will be one or a couple games into the opening round – depending on how urgent it is for you to see these bones! To display some clairvoyant skills (ala Cape Town City ’n Rafa), you will know by now that you have missed an easy spread of 3-4 points for the Blues at the Rebels on Thursday morning, possibly missing the banger of Chiefs away to Highlanders, and you may also miss our home-brewed Sharks (depending if you are the boss or not) away in Queens-john to the Reds.
So I say away teams Sharks and Blues to do the business, while the Highlanders takes a tight one at the ‘dladla’(home).
Look into the spreads for some extra value in the case of Blues and Highlanders and +4.5 points at 1/1 for the Sharks.
Joy shall be found in Hurricanes, Lions, Jaguares and Bulls all away from home, with Canes on the spread of 25 odd points. Crusaders and Waratahs should both hold it down at home and possibly both on the handicap of -14.
* The Six Nations graces our screens again (unlike Super Bowl and All-Star Weekends, and so much top British boxing coming up – SuperSport has dropped the ball, yet they are upping prices!).
Anyway, the title race now looks straightforward after Wales dropped the ball, or kicked it rather – Jamie Roberts you ‘Dizzy Monk’!
Get England at home with a spread over 40 points and the Bones be liking France to come close, if not an upset, along with the boys in skirts to hold down the fort against the Welsh who ‘porned’ it a fortnight ago.
* ‘Never forgetting our weekly main-stay
Teams competing in Euro on Thursday
Though caught in a rut
They’re deffos not jut
Champs League and trophy amiss come May-day’
* The ‘Bones’ intuition of ‘Blue’ (previously mentioned) must refer to Everton and Blues, throw in Spurs and Hull, as variety is the spice of life!
Sangoma is Audi (Out).