G&GR Nostradamus Competition: Your Picks

A couple of months ago we unveiled the G&GR Nostradamus Competition, a chance for everyone to display their rugby prediction skills for all events in the year. Well, the responses are in and I can reveal what everybody picked. Overall there is an astounding sense of optimism around Australian rugby coming into the World Cup.

First, you can view the entries at:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0An3jnXDdmxm4dDVYbzg4RVRvM05waTdhRnRZR0hKVHc&hl=en#gid=0

Here are a few graphs to give you an overall view of where the mood is at. Let’s start with the big one — the World Cup:

World Cup Winner
	New Zealand 66 29% Australia 153 67% South Africa 3 1% England 2 1% Scotland 0 0% Ireland 0 0% Wales 0 0% France 6 3% Italy 0 0% Argentina 0 0% Other 0 0%

Australian Finishing Position
	Winner 155 67% Runner Up 51 22% 3rd 18 8 4th 6 3% Knocked out in QF 0 0% Knocked out in pool 0 0%

Who will be the starting Tight-head Prop in Australia’s final game?
	Ben Alexander 71 31% James Slipper 137 60% Al Baxter 3 1% Salesi Ma’afu 1 0% Laurie Weeks 9 4% Ben Daley 5 2% Dan Palmer 1 0% Other 3 1%

Who will be the starting Inside Centre in Australia’s final game?
	Berrick Barnes 127 55% Matt Giteau 60 26% Quade Cooper 2 1% Anthony Faingaa 4 2% James O’Connor 12 5% Kurtley Beale 0 0% Stirling Mortlock 3 1% Cooper Vuna 3 1% Will Chambers 11 5% Tom Carter 1 0% Adam Ashley-Cooper 5 2% Other 2 1%

Super 15 Winner
	Chiefs 3 1% Highlanders 0 0% Crusaders 67 29% Hurricanes 2 1% Blues 2 1% Waratahs 61 27% Brumbies 6 3% Reds 55 24% Rebels 0 0% Force 1 0% Cheetahs 0 0% Lions 0 0% Bulls 17 7% Sharks 1 0% Stormers 15 7%

Australian Conference Winner
	Waratahs 120 52% Reds 97 42% Brumbies 12 5% Force 1 0% Rebels 0 0%

Australian Conference Wooden Spoon
	Waratahs 9 4% Reds 0 0% Brumbies 11 5% Force 106 46% Rebels 104 45%

New Zealand Conference Winner
	Blues 20 9% Highlanders 1 0% Hurricanes 13 6% Crusaders 190 83% Chiefs 6 3%

South Africa Conference Winner
	Bulls 138 60% Stormers 73 32% Sharks 15 7% Cheetahs 2 1% Lions 2 1%