The target for a Super 14 rugby semifinal berth for the Sharks was clear — a bonus-point victory initially or a win by 18 points or more — as they took to the field against the Chiefs of New Zealand at the Absa Stadium in Durban on Saturday night. In the end, it was a convincing triumph as the necessary tries were secured and surpassed.
The Canterbury Crusaders wrapped up top spot going into the Super 14 play-offs but the battle for the remaining three berths stayed wide open after the penultimate round over the weekend. With one game to play, six teams hold a mathematical chance of joining the Crusaders in the semifinals.
The Lions of South Africa answered harsh criticism from former All Blacks skipper Sean Fitzpatrick with a rousing 33-27 Super 14 triumph over the Waikato Chiefs of New Zealand on Saturday. Legendary hooker Fitzpatrick laid into the South Africans after a heavy loss to the Hurricanes in Wellington last weekend.
All Blacks hooker Andrew Hore scored his fifth try of the season and the Wellington Hurricanes boosted their semifinal chances in the Super 14 with a 21-10 win on Friday over the Western Force. Wellington entered the penultimate regular-season round in third place on the championship table, behind the Canterbury Crusaders and New South Wales Waratahs.
Wallaby flyhalf Matt Giteau kicked a penalty just before the whistle to give the Perth-based Western Force a thrilling 22-21 win over the Waikato Chiefs in their Super 14 rugby clash in Perth on Saturday. The Chiefs appeared to have clinched victory when centre Callum Bruce kicked a drop goal with only three minutes left but the Force threw everything at the visitors in the dying stages.
Waikato wing Lelia Masaga scored twice as the Chiefs outplayed Otago Highlanders 39-24 in an all-New Zealand Super 14 clash in Hamilton on Saturday. Masaga scored either side of halftime as the Chiefs piled on six tries to secure a bonus point and remain in the top half of the standings midway through the season.
The Waikato Chiefs ran away with a 43-27 win over the Northern Bulls in a Super 14 rugby match that came alight with a flurry of second-half tries in New Zealand on Saturday. Their third win from six matches produced Chiefs’ first bonus point of the season and lifted them from 10th to eighth on the ladder.
South Africa’s Stormers beat New Zealand’s Waikato Chiefs 35-26 in Hamilton on Friday to record their second successive win in the Super 14. The Stormers outscored the Chiefs four tries to two to claim a bonus point for the second week in a row after losing their first three matches at home in South Africa.
New Zealand’s Waikato Chiefs staged a brilliant second-half comeback to beat South Africa’s Cheetahs 22-20 in a Super 14 match at Hamilton on Saturday. The Cheetahs looked to have the game sewn up when they raced to a 17-0 lead at half-time, but the Chiefs suddenly turned things around.