Any thoughts that the champion Crusaders outfit can be discounted as possible winners of the 2009 edition of the Vodacom Super 14 were emphatically erased by their hard fought 16-13 win over the Sharks at Absa Stadium on Saturday. Like has so often happened this season when two good defensive teams play against one another, the sides cancelled each other out, with the result coming down to the bounce of the ball. Both sides had attacking opportunities, both lamented missed opportunities, and the Sharks were rightly frustrated afterwards at a refereeing decision made when they had an attacking scrum.

The Hurricanes moved right back into play-off contention with an impressive 34-11 win over a sloppy Stormers team in Wellington on Saturday.
The four tries to one win put the Hurricanes back into the top four, but more importantly left the South African side in disarray. The Stormers lost captain Jean de Villiers early in the game with an injury and there was a late change when prop Brian Mujati was ruled out.

The Lions, despite being reduced to 13 men at one stage, ended their losing streak with an impressive 31-20 win over the Reds in Brisbane on Saturday.
The win, which saw the Lions move up to 11th on the standings, was sealed by a hat-trick from flying wing Henno Mentz.

The Western Force managed to produce an Australian ‘grand slam’ – victory over all their fellow Aussie franchises – when they edged the Waratahs 15-14 in Sydney on Saturday.
The Waratahs had not lost at the Sydney Football Stadium for two years, but they had now lost at this venue two weeks in a row – also going down to the Bulls last week – a result that has certainly hurt their play-off prospects.

The Chiefs scored their sixth consecutive win when they beat the Cheetahs 28-10 in Kimberley on Saturday, keeping the team from New Zealand firmly in the play-off hunt.
However, the Chiefs required two late tries to make sure of the win, after the Cheetahs gave them a huge fright.

Source: rugby365.com

Tags: super 14 results, super 14 roundup