Auckland Blues beat the Wellington Hurricanes 17-11 in Super 15 rugby on Friday.

The New South Wales Waratahs scored three first-half tries, largely against the run of play, to build a 26-22 win over the Wellington Hurricanes.

The Wellington Hurricanes edged Auckland by a point in a thrilling local derby on Saturday to end the Blues' unbeaten start to rugby union's Super 14. The Hurricanes held on to a 23-22 lead for the last 19 minutes of a match in which the lead changed hands four times.

New Zealand promised "a tournament based on traditional rugby values" and stunned observers when it won the rights to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup. A promise of government support "both moral and financial" and a campaign that turned New Zealand's diminutive size into an asset clinched the tournament for New Zealand.

The Queensland Reds and the Stormers will have to lie in wait for the two survivors of this weekend's first Super Rugby play-offs round.

Chris Martin has missed out on a hat-trick, but bowled out South Africa's three best bestmen in the first Test between the Proteas and the Kiwis.

While the other teams in the World Cup quarterfinals have made a show of being blasé, Bok captain John Smit admits the heat is on: "It's do or die."

Graham Henry has quit as coach of the All Blacks after their World Cup win, ending one of the most successful rugby coaching careers of all time.