This Friday night, the best rugby competition in the world kicks off. Super Rugby Pacific sees teams from New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and the Pacific Islands go head to head for the best part of four months in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Crusaders will be looking to win their fifth consecutive title, but there will be plenty of competition for them this time round. The Blues were arguably the best team in the competition last year before they lost in the final and will be eager for revenge. Add in the Chiefs and Hurricanes who are always dangerous, plus the Brumbies, Reds and Highlanders, and it’s a competitive looking season in Super Rugby Pacific.
We break down all of the outright winner odds, and suggest some of the best bets to make ahead of the season starting this weekend.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: February 23rd, 8:00 A.M. (GMT)
It’s no surprise that the Crusaders are strong favourites to pick up yet another Super Rugby title this year. With odds of 2.62, they lead the Blues who are second favourite at 3.25. A reasonable gap exists to the third favourite Chiefs at 5.00 before an even bigger increase in odds to the fourth placed Hurricanes at 9.00. Rounding out the top five are the Brumbies at 13.00, who are consistently the top Australian team.
Some of the big questions to answer this season are: Can anyone stop the Crusaders? Will this year be another Blues vs. Crusaders race? Will one of the non-New Zealand teams be genuinely competitive?
While we believe that both the Blues and Crusaders will again have excellent campaigns and make at least the semifinals, there’s a good chance that one of the Chiefs, Hurricanes, Highlanders or Brumbies will be a surprise package this year.
The Highlanders have had a strong pre-season in beating the Crusaders and Moana Pacifika. Last year they were poor, but it was only a handful of seasons ago that they won the title in 2015. Likewise with the Hurricanes—they fell in the quarterfinals in 2022 but are always a threat and were the last team to win the Super Rugby title before the Crusaders went on their winning streak.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: February 23rd, 8:00 A.M. (GMT)
However, despite the potential for some other teams to make deep runs, the best bet is to back the Crusaders to win the Super Rugby Pacific 2023 at 2.62. It is highly likely this will be the last season of head coach Scott Robinson being in charge, so there’s little chance of any complacency in the squad. Expect the men in red and black to be up for this one and claim their fifth in a row.
A lucrative bet to make alongside this could be backing the Blues to win the regular season again. Last year, they finished the top of the table but couldn’t go all the way in the post-season. If the same unfolds this year, punters will be looking at a healthy return of 4.33.
