Rugby: Playoffs spot assured, but first...

Tony Brown.
Tony Brown.
The Highlanders are in the playoffs for a third straight year and could still finish top of the Super rugby ladder.

But the side has a demanding week in front of it and will first have to complete its round-the-world trip.

The side had a comfortable 34-8 win over the Jaguares yesterday morning [NZ time] and is scheduled to get on the plane this afternoon [NZ time] to fly back to Dunedin.

The team is due to land in Dunedin tomorrow morning and from there will have just four days to prepare for a blockbuster game against the Chiefs at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday night.

Assistant coach Tony Brown said the side just had to get the minds right for the Chiefs game.

"We just have to get back, recover well and make sure we are mentally ready to go, to take on one of the top teams in the competition,'' he said.

"We heard it is near enough to a sold-out game and the boys are really excited to be playing the Chiefs. Plenty of things have to go our way [to go top] so we just want to concentrate on being ready to play the Chiefs.''

Brown said the side had played well against the Jaguares, feisty opponents who did not go away.

"We are pretty happy to come away with a win in what is a pretty tough place to play. We had a really good first half and then in that second half they put us under a fair bit of pressure and it all got messy.

"That is the style they play with a strong set piece, really niggly at the breakdown and physical. We have to be thankful that we came away with the win.''

Brown said the side did well to not be drawn into a battle.

"We take pride in ourselves being a really smart team and we kept our heads, focused on the game, focused on the job and just getting it done.''

Lock Tom Franklin cut his head during the warm-up and he left the field a couple of times during the game as the bleeding did not stop.

With Alex Ainley and Liam Coltman getting through club play in Dunedin on Saturday, the side should have plenty of options for next week.

There are four sides within three points of each other in the New Zealand conference and they play each other on Saturday.

The Crusaders take on the Hurricanes in Christchurch before the Highlanders host the Chiefs.

Any of those four teams could win the conference but only one can host a playoff game in the first week.

The Highlanders would go top of the New Zealand conference if the Hurricanes beat the Crusaders and then they beat the Chiefs.

If teams are tied on points it goes to number of wins and then points differential.

The Lions sit top overall but have a tough game to finish, taking on the Jaguares in Buenos Aires.

In games over the weekend, it was a miserable round for the Australian teams.

All five lost, scoring a total of 66 points while conceding 225.

After the Blues beat the Brumbies 40-15 and the Chiefs beat the Reds 50-5 on Friday night, the Crusaders smashed the Rebels 85-26 in Christchurch, the Hurricanes beat the Waratahs 28-17 in Sydney and the Stormers beat the Force 22-3 in Perth.

In other games, the Lions beat the Kings 57-21 in Johannesburg, the Bulls beat the Sunwolves 50-3 in Pretoria and the Sharks beat the Cheetahs 26-10 in Durban.

 


Super rugby
Going down to the wire

Lions 52pts, last game: Jaguares (a)

Chiefs 51pts, Highlanders (a)

Stormers 46pts, Kings (h)

Brumbies 39pts Force (h)

Crusaders 50pts, Hurricanes (h)

Highlanders 48pts, Chiefs (h)

Hurricanes 48pts, Crusaders (a)

Sharks 39pts, Sunwolves (h)

Waratahs 39pts, Blues (a)

Bulls 37pts, Cheetahs (a) 


 

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