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The final stretch for another Super season

Queensland Reds player Digby Ioane is tackled during their round 10 Super Rugby match against the ACT Brumbies (AAP Image/Dan Peled)
Roar Guru
1st July, 2013
34

Whilst South Africa was embroiled in a pre-World Cup pool tournament, the All Blacks were hosting the French, and the British and Irish Lions tour is still rolling, there is still a little matter of settling the Super XV.

Although this year’s Super rugby competition can be compared to that of a student having to study for his exams before his summer break, only to put his books away and then commence his exams on the first day back at his tertiary education institution, the realities are that one had little choice in doing a mix and match Southern Hemisphere season for 2013.

Be that as it may, this past weekend, the Super XV gathered momentum with round 18. Whilst some teams looked like they have put their boots and balls away for a while, it was business as usual for the most part.

The Chiefs managed a bonus point victory over the Hurricanes in an impressive display by their All Black Fly Half Aaron Cruden to win by 34-22.

It was then the turn of the Crusaders, who admittedly struggled to break free from the Highlanders during a first half, which only provided them a six-point half time lead; but as the second half started, it did not take long before the Dan Carter master class provided the spark for the Crusaders to romp home with a victory of 40-12 over an increasingly unfortunate Highlanders team.

Hosea Gear, who ran on for his 100th Super Rugby cap, would not have envisioned that he would celebrate this milestone.

The show then moved to Durban, where the Sharks managed to score a last-minute try over an ever-dangerous Blues team to win 22-20. The Sharks may have had the lion’s share of possession and territory in this match, but it was the Blues who excelled in open play, scoring three very well-executed tries. It must be said though, Patrick Lambie had one of his worst kicking performances of the season, missing four penalty kicks and a conversion.

The Bulls did not have it all their own way in beating the Kings in what looks like a comfortable scoreline of 48-18.

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The upset of the weekend was when a spirited Stormers team, without their captain Jean De Villiers, dismissed an uninterested and flat Cheetahs team by 28-3. It was surely the worst performance of the Cheetahs in 2013, and a win here would have secured them the final playoff spot for the season.

As things stand now, the Blues are still in with a shot of making the playoffs; and looking at their ability to attack from virtually anywhere on the field, it is a definite possibility.

There are only 12 matches left before the playoffs. The top five teams have been decided. It is up to one final showdown between the Cheetahs and the Blues in Bloemfontein next weekend in deciding whether the Cheetahs may progress to the playoffs, or whether they will have to wait and see whether the Blues can topple the Chiefs in Auckland to ensure they, rather than the Cheetahs, go through.

Who will make the home semi-finals?

There are realistically only three teams within shouting distance of a home semi-final – the Brumbies who have one match left against the Force in Melbourne, which could theoretically put them on a maximum of 64 log points (including those silly little bye points), the Bulls, who still face the Sharks at Loftus and the Stormers at Newlands, and the Chiefs.

The Bulls need only 6 log points to finish above the Brumbies to secure a home semi-final, but would need to at least win both matches in a hope of ending top of the log.

The Chiefs are sitting on top of the heap, but having to face the Crusaders in Canterbury and the Blues in Auckland; this means that they need to end their season with two away wins to secure top spot. If they lose even one of those matches, the Bulls might just go past them at the final hurdle.

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As for the three wildcards, the Crusaders will need to gain two bonus point wins over the Chiefs and Hurricanes to overtake the Chiefs in the NZ conference, which is a bit of a long shot; but it is safe to say the Crusaders will once again be a dangerous team as they enter the playoff stage.

The Reds, after a season which has been impressive in some parts, but never really provided any real signs of dominance, will make it through to the playoffs even if they lose their final match against the Waratahs.

So it comes down to the Cheetahs vs Blues match – the big decider; everything else becomes semantics.

If the Cheetahs win, they are through; if they lose, they have to wait and see whether the Blues can overturn the Chiefs.

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