The calculators have been put away and bonus points are all but redundant as the Super 14 season comes down to an all-South African clash and a couple of winner-takes-all Trans-Tasman shootouts this weekend.
With seven teams still in contention for four playoff spots, all that is certain before the 14th weekend of action is that the champion Bulls will finish top of the table and have a home semifinal in South Africa later this month.
Their final match against the second-placed Stormers on Saturday still has implications elsewhere, however, and reports the Bulls could rest most of their top players have prompted Australian accusations of a South African conspiracy.
The Stormers will go through to the last four for the third time with a win or a bonus point draw against the Bulls in Cape Town.
“I would expect the Bulls to rest a few players after finishing a tough and tight series, but resting 13 would be a very, very surprising move,” Waratahs chief executive Jim L’Estrange told the Australian newspaper.
“We would ask [governing body] Sanzar if it was part and parcel of the competition. Is it in the rules and is it in the spirit of the rules? We have to make sure the competition maintains its integrity.”
Although the third-placed Waratahs just need to beat the Hurricanes in their crunch match in Sydney on Friday, they are also concerned they do not lose out to the Stormers in their bid for a home semifinal.
Home dominance
The fifth-placed Hurricanes will not be taken lightly, particularly after an impressive 42-21 win over the Reds last weekend, but the Waratahs will be boosted by the fact that they have won all of their home matches this season.
The fourth-placed Brumbies visit New Zealand to play the Crusaders in Friday’s other decider.
The Australians routed the Highlanders 31-3 last weekend, while the Crusaders have slumped to sixth after three defeats on their road trip through Perth and South Africa.
The Canberra-based Brumbies are under no illusions, however, about the task that faces them to get their first win in Christchurch for a decade against the seven-times champions.
“This is a big game for both sides and is effectively a quarterfinal with the loser finishing up for 2010,” Brumbies coach Andy Friend said.
“In terms of challenges, they don’t come much bigger than tackling the Crusaders in Christchurch but it’s the job we have to get done if we’re going to stay in this competition.”
The only team still clinging onto their calculators are the seventh-placed Reds, who host the Highlanders in Brisbane on Saturday needing a victory and an improbable string of results in the other matches to advance. — Reuters