Blues
Luckily for the Blues in 2016 the only possible way to go is up. The franchise had a 2015 to forget, winning only three of their matches, losing their first nine and dealing with a raft of off field challenges, ending with the resignation of coach Sir John Kirwan.
Players to Watch: Akira Ioane
Best Buy: Rene Ranger
Chiefs
The Chiefs will be looking to go two games further in 2016 after finishing 5th in 2015, bowing out to eventual champions The Highlanders in the quarterfinals. It’s a new look team this year with 14 new faces, including 2011-world cup hero Stephen Donald.
Players to Watch: Aaron Cruden
Best Buy: Stephen Donald
Crusaders
For the first time in a while the Crusaders will be without both Dan Carter and Richie McCaw. Not since 2008 have the seven time champions lifted the trophy, last reaching the final in 2014. There are high hopes for a better season for the men from Canterbury after a tough 2015, missing the play-offs by one point after being edged out the Brumbies.
Players to Watch: Israel Dagg
Best Buy: Marty Mckenzie
Hurricanes
Sadly for the Hurricanes, a loss in last years final has left them as the only team in New Zealand to have not won a Super Rugby title. After coming so close in 2016, after an almost flawless season, the men from the capital will be looking to continue that form this season and take it one step further, securing some gold for the trophy cabinet at headquarters.
Player to Watch: T J Perenara
Key Player: Beauden Barrett
Highlanders
The 2015 champions will be looking for a repeat this year. At the start of last season, Highlanders were unlikely champions. However, they finished the season strong and ended up beating the season favourites, The Hurricanes, at home in the final. There are high hopes in 2016 for back to back championships with a large number of the squad returning to defend their title.
Player to Watch- Malakai Fekitoa
Best Buy- Luke Whitelock
Since 1996, Super Rugby has established itself as the premier rugby competition in the Southern Hemisphere, if not the world. It began originally with 12 foundation teams, growing again in 2006 to 14 with the inclusion of the Cheetahs and the Force and more recently 15, with the Melbourne based franchise; the Rebels being included in 2011.
However in 2016, just twenty years on from its original inception, the competition is set to add three additional teams in an attempt to add news fans, new markets and new excitement.
Those three teams will be the Jaguares from Argentina, Sunwolves from Japan and the Kings out of South Africa.
This has seen a drastic change in the formatting of the competition with teams now divided into two regional groups, each of which will contain two conferences.
However, it does mean a few changes to the scheduling for teams. Each Kiwi team will play six games against other Kiwi franchises, five games against each of the Australian teams and then four games against opponents from one of the South African conferences.
The finals series will then see eight teams compete in the quarterfinals. These finalists will be comprised of the top team in each conference and then one wildcard, the team with the next best points from the African group and three wild cards from the Australasian group. Finalists will be seeded from highest to lowest and will face off in quarterfinals series with the winners advancing to the semi finals and on to the final in which a champion team will eventually be found.