The Waratahs underachieved last year but the new coach – the hard-bitten former homicide detective Ian Kennedy – is expected to put some more resolve in the team’s collective spine. Their star fullback, Matthew Burke, is back on deck- which is a good start. And with some of their younger players benefiting from their World Cup run, the team should make the playoffs this year. The aging Sharks, however, start their season with a month on the road in New Zealand and Australia and look like cannon fodder at this stage.
