Ant Strachan: Former All Black and Gold Sport commentator ahead of the Blues v Chiefs Super Rugby final

The Chiefs and the Blues have secured their spots in next week's Super Rugby final.

The Blues blitzed the Brumbies 34-20, and the Chiefs beat out the Hurricanes 30-19 in this weekend's matches.

Ahead of the hotly-anticipated Eden Park clash, former All Black and Gold Sport commentator Ant Strachan outlined his predictions.

"We'll see two contrasting styles next week - that's what's intriguing for us."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks EDB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Right, we have our Super Rugby semi finalists. Jimmy Tupoort
takes it in.

Speaker 1 (00:18):
Yes, Hooter goes. It's sky Stadium.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
They just need to kiven in to touch save your
Road doesn't And for the second time in successive seasons,
the Chiefs are headed for the Grand Final.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Or that would have been tough for Piney. The Chiefs
beating the Hurricanes yesterday afternoon. They'll meet the Blues at
Eden Park next Saturday night to talk us through the
semis and look ahead to the final form of All
Blacks and Gold. Sport commentator At Strawn joins me.

Speaker 4 (00:44):
Now, good morning and morning Christiska. How are you good.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
Chiefs last night? Will you pick that one?

Speaker 4 (00:50):
Yeah? I did. Actually we don't often say these things,
but you when I was commentating with Elliott on Friday night,
just to say the feeling that they had really strong
momentum going into the semi final the week before, they
were really impressive, particularly their first half blitz. So yeah,
well set up for last night and they won and.

Speaker 2 (01:09):
The end well they was second last year third the
year before. They're clearly, you know, aware of how to
build up to those finals and get themselves through without
burning out too early.

Speaker 4 (01:21):
No, And I think you know, there'd been some question
marks over their consistency throughout the season, but you know,
as we all know, the sharpiends where it really counts,
and Clayton McMillan the coaching team certainly had them well
prepped for the quarterfinals. And I mean, you know, they
had a clear plan going into to last night against
the Hurricanes. They executed brilliantly early on fourteen l I
think after about ten minutes, and you know when a

(01:42):
team's on song like that and you make a statement early.
I mean they stayed in front pretty much the whole match.
So yeah, really well descripted and the players executed it
to the team.

Speaker 2 (01:52):
The Hurricanes have had an impressive season. You could see
how devastated they were at the end. What do you
think happened there?

Speaker 4 (01:59):
Yeah?

Speaker 2 (01:59):
It was.

Speaker 4 (01:59):
It was disappointing, wasn't it? Because they had been the
forerunners and I mean they finished first in the competition.
I just felt, you know, right at the back end,
they just started to tape off and there were stages
in a lot of their games, the last round robin game,
the quarterfinal, just a little cracks starting to a po guess,
and you know it's just sort of one team with
immense momentum and the other one sort of just kind

(02:20):
of holding on. And so I felt like that for
moments of the game last night.

Speaker 2 (02:26):
Okay, Blues or Chiefs, which guys are going to go?

Speaker 4 (02:30):
And well, I mean the Blues are impressive also on
Friday night, wedn't they. I mean the fort Tropletz in
the first start really dominant, and I mean they're playing
to such a simple system and it's a really process
driven Blues team this year. They keep it simple and
they're very hard to stop, and defensively they're also been impressive.
So I think you're going to see two contrasting styles

(02:50):
next week. So that's what's intriguing for us. Very direct,
hard running Blues team that defendbrigant Land and the teach
team that can really flick the switch and play some
quite in the vative and extravagant rugby. So I'll probably
stick home field advantage for mine. I think the Blues
will get up, but it should be really excited. Just
think the weather's good next weekend.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Do you think they'll get a crowd to the final?
Some of the crowds haven't been great. Should you judge
interest in Super Rugby from the crowds?

Speaker 4 (03:18):
Yeah, really disappointing. I mean I think there was only
about twelve thousand last week, sorry, this most recent game
with the Blues, and I mean I'm staggering. I mean
the weather was horrible in Auckland on Friday. But you know,
just to think that the team's played so well season,
you know, for their fans, and there was only that
many people, we get disappointing. And there's been a spattering

(03:39):
of crowds over the last probably six to eight weeks,
so I'm not quite sure it's sustainably how that stacks
up moving forward. But you'd like to think next weekend
there'll be a grove of them coming up from the
White couttle, which they always do with their cow bells,
and hopefully the Orkanders will get out and support their team.
So you'd think that they'll get up somewhere between sort
of twenty five and thirty thousand next week.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Yeah, let's hope. So what have you made of the
Super Rugby season? We're not used to a final without
the Crusaders. Is it good for New Zealand rugby that
they're having a bit of a temporary wobble.

Speaker 4 (04:09):
Well, I think it is a real temporary warble, as
you say. And what I've liked this year, to be honest,
is we've had four New Zealand teams that have been
right up in the contest. The Holand has made the
top eight to remember, and the Highlanders the Crusader's only
team that sort of dropped off. But we saw an
increase in the output from the Australian teams, which to
be honest, has been horrible over the last two to

(04:31):
three seasons, so to see a number of their teams
up in the top eight, and then obviously the Brumby's
missed in the semi finals last week, they added a
bit more spice this year, I think, because if the
New Zealand team was a bit underdone going to Australia
or even the Australian teams coming in, they could lose
those matches. So I think they had helped. But yeah,
again I don't have the answers around super rugby moving forward,

(04:54):
but the global game probably needs a further look around.
You know who we're heading in terms of as a spectacle.
I guess the financial pressures that that's the behind the game. Yeah,
lots of things, but I think the products for the
most part in Super Rugby this year has been very good.

Speaker 2 (05:13):
And finally the decision for an afternoon semifinal, my understanding
is it was it was Sky TV's decision to avoid
the clash with the Warriors. I don't know has it
ever been a situation where a rugby semi final schedule
would have been determined by a league game? I mean,
is this just an example of how the Warriors are
dominating over union at the moment?

Speaker 4 (05:33):
Oh? I mean, look, look we should probably debate that
for a long period of time, but you know, the
societal shifts in terms of people watching sport, and the
league has a really strong following NRL from New Zealanders
and it has done for many years, and I mean
suger rugby obviously does too. It's still our national game.
You know, why why create classes? I mean, you know,
common sense prevails, doesn't it, you know, And it doesn't

(05:55):
meanter whether it's a league before the rugby or vice versa.
What we're creating for the punters is that you can
watch both and you know, I mean that's sensible. Yeah,
I mean I'm a rugby player. We're watching Lee, but
I'm rugby through and through, I hope forever. But you know,
it doesn't worry me whether it's one way or the
other round. So I think you'll find most people in
New zeal And will be the same and they'll be

(06:16):
applauding the decision by Sky to do that.

Speaker 2 (06:18):
Thanks so much and as always, really appreciate your thoughts.
That was ant Strawn. I know I watched that rugby
game last night, used to have to know and it
went dark and then I went all my time for
bed and I was like, it's six o'clock. Oh thank good,
I said, some leap to keep me awake.

Speaker 1 (06:34):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
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