Anyway, the games, only two upsets, both tipped by Mr TenCent (sounds like a rapper), the Blues toppling the Reds, and the Highlanders tipping the Cheetahs over for their first away win in 2 seasons, and their first win of the season.

A royal flush for New Zealand too, five from five on the day, three away wins and two home wins, this has happened before, although buggered if I can remember when.  But I recall a week later I think there was one win from five, and that was a Kiwi v Kiwi game, lets hope this weekend we don't see that same flashback!

To the games, I saw some, slept through others and was astounded to see the results in the ones I slept through and missed...

Friday 26th February (games in NZ time)
Crusaders 35 v 6 Sharks  :  Christchurch  :  7:35pm
A win's a win.  It is probably good that the Crusaders were playing a team that will be vying for the wooden spoon this season, as they are not yet firing on any cylinders as they look for their 8th Super rugby title - or is it 9th.  A bucket load anyway.  Good signs of their big guns coming into some sort of form, which will lift the new contingent of future big guns.  Andy Ellis playing well even, so it is not all bad news for the Crusaders.  They just need to hang onto the damn ball a bit better, and the results will keep coming.
Bart's tip:  Crusaders by 13+
Coins tip:  Crusaders.  The coin declined to predict a margin.

Saturday 27th February
Stormers 17 v 19 Brumbies  :  Cape Town  :  6:10am
Didn't see this game, but saw the missed conversion that would have tied it up.  Bugger, but hey, we all lliuke seeing these Boers losing eh...  Although, the Boers losing mean the bloody Aussies win - so a draw would have been better eh!
Bart's tip:  Brumbies by -12
Coins tip:  Brumbies.

Hurricanes 33 v 18 Lions  :  Wellington  :  7:35pm
Hurricanes won in a canter, and would have probably lost to a better team, but like the Crusaders, they were playing a crap team.  Not quite as crap as the Sharks team, but still pretty much rubbish.  Still, take your wins when you can, and worry about the next game, don't look back to closely on the last one, except at your stupid mistakes.  Try of the season scored by Andrew Hore, three fends, a step, a dummy to the fullback, and try.  All this from a good 35 metres out, and a standing start.  Best part though, was the old school celebration.  All the other players doing the bloody war dance and shite.  Not Andrew Hore.  Got to his feet, zero emotion on the face, and trotted back to restart the game.  Frank Oliver would have been proud as punch.
Bart's tip:  Hurricanes by 13+
Coins tip:  Hurricanes.  Do I have a double headed coin here or something?

Reds 18 v 27 Blues  :  Brisbane  :  9:40pm
Dirty rotten convicts.  Losing to the bloody Blues in a test of which team has the worst kicker.  Logic says that Quade Cooper could have stolen this match if he had landed all his kicks.  But his stupid bloody kicking style remains just that, a stupid bloody kicking style, and he not only looks like a retarded chicken when he kicks, he also kicks about as accurately as a retarded chicken would.  If retarded chickens could kick that is. 
Bart's tip:  Reds by -12
Coins tip:  Blues.

Sunday 28th February
Western Force 19 v 37 Chiefs  :  Perth  :  12:05am
All the Force are missing to become a good team is fifteen good players and a coach.  Other than that, they have cracked the formula to win the Super 14.  The Chiefs, well, the carry on regardless.  All their fans just waiting for the fall from grace - it is ingrained after seven years of shite.  One final (and a shite performance against the red hot Bulls) in eight seasons of heartbreak just does not lift the hopes.  I expect a win in the final this season might, might just about raise the expectations a little for the following year.  But don't count on it!  Great to see Masaga back on deck, and not shirking anything - still bloody fast, still bloody strong, and could have had more than one try for his troubles.  Great to watch with ball in hand.  Also good to see the new boys at lock not being overawed at all - Retallick and Graham.
Bart's tip:  Chiefs by -12 (after scoring 56 points)...
Coins tip:  Chiefs.

Cheetahs 24 v 31 Highlanders  :  Bloemfontein  :  4:05am
Bugger me, the Highlanders who have made an art form of losing close games, and of losing away from home decided to turn up at the park ready to play this week - as predicted by Mr TenCent.  But not by me.  This was game four of the big Saturday, and I had run out of eyeballs by halftime of the Chiefs game.  So the clan won, well done those men.
Bart's tip:  Cheetahs by -12
Coins tip:  Highlanders.

Bulls 48 v 38 Waratahs  :  Pretoria  :  6:10am
Waratahs were up by about a thousand in this game before the Bulls pulled out all the stops and came home with a wet sail for a ten point margin at fulltime (now that was a hell of a sentence wasn't it, probably needs a few commas and the like, but it'll take too long to go back and chance it, so I'll just leave it, this way is much quicker)...
Only saw the end of this game, with Matfield directing his kicker to go for the corners, and then his big arse forward pack securing the ball and tries resulting.  It was pretty to watch.
Bart's tip:  Bulls by 13+
Coins tip:  Bulls.