After a strong start to the season, and with a stellar 2017 campaign behind me, my confidence was high with last week’s picks – which duly delivered 3 correct picks, and only one with a Superbru margin point.

There’s little consolation in the fact that most other people did terribly, with five of the seven results predicted by less than half of the 185,000 people playing Superbru. It’s rounds like that in which you can get ahead of the masses, and sadly I failed to do so.

So with my dander slightly lower, we look ahead to Round 6, with only six games to predict and a renewed determination to bounce back.

Crusaders v Bulls
An easy one to start with, even if the Bulls did give the Chiefs a scare in Hamilton last weekend. The final result was as expected though, and as per last week, if you lose away at the Reds, you will almost certainly lose away at the Crusaders. The home side has work to do following two away defeats to their New Zealand rivals, and they might find the Bulls slightly deflated after all that effort last week still left them with nothing. Crusaders by 23

Rebels v Sharks
I have been overrating the Sharks so far this season, and so now I’m just looking at the cold hard facts – they thrashed the Sunwolves in Round 3, but lost to the Brumbies last week, drew with the Waratahs at home and succumbed to the Lions in the opening round. Those are not the results of a great team. The Rebels have been looking impressive with all their off-season recruits, and despite defeat to the Tahs last weekend, I’m backing them to bounce back as they return home for their first-ever win over the Sharks. Rebels by 6

Sunwolves v Chiefs
It’s difficult to gauge how good the Sunwolves really are – they seem to do better than expected one week before being thrashed the next week. They ran the Lions close last weekend, but to what extent does complacency affect their opponents? I suspect the Chiefs will take them seriously having had a fright against the Bulls, and that could be bad news for the home team. Chiefs by 28

Hurricanes v Highlanders
Both teams enjoyed good wins over the Crusaders in their most recent match, and the Hurricanes have had the benefit of a rest week in between – they’ll be fully recovered from their early-season tour by now, and have to be favourites for this match in Wellington. They’ve won the last two at home to the Highlanders, including a 41-15 thrashing last season – it’s unlikely to be a 26-point margin this weekend, but you have to pick them for the win. Hurricanes by 9

Stormers v Reds
I picked both sides to lose last weekend, and they duly won. Normally the Stormers at home are a safe pick, but the Blues’ performances had made me think twice before last weekend – but the Stormers are at home to an average Australian side this time, and one that has been flying around the world in the last 10 days, so should win comfortably. Stormers by 21

Jaguares v Lions
For the last two seasons, the Lions have sent an understrength side to Buenos Aires, but the 25-man squad travelling this year consists mostly of frontline players. The home side has won each of the five meetings between the teams, but I suspect things will be different this year. The Jaguares have been less convincing at home so far, scoring only 9 points against the Hurricanes in Round 3 and 7 points last week against the Reds (with a 38-28 win over the Waratahs in between). The Lions have scored an average of over 39 points across their five matches so far, including 47 at home to the Jaguares in Round 2, and I’m backing them to win this one. Lions by 9

What do you think of these picks? Four home wins, apart from the Sunwolves and Jaguares – it has to be a GSP week don’t you think?