Oracle of Delphi
KC Hill
Denise Gabbard
Paladin
Craig HillSuper 14 Round Four Wrapup
March 8th 2009 08:18
Three teams remain unbeaten after the fourth round of the Investec Super 14 concluded this morning.
The Bulls of South Africa rounded out a perfect start to their campaign, heading into the bye on the back of a hard fought 14-10 win over the Stormers at Loftus Versfeld, which maintained the Pretoria outfit’s hold on top position on the standings.
The South Africans, who won the title two years ago, shade the Waratahs on point’s differentials, with both sides having collected two try-scoring bonus points alongside their four championship wins.
New South Wales made it four from four during a rugged inter-state struggle with Queensland on Friday night, scoring a try in each half through prop Benn Robinson and replacement centre Timana Tahu to grind out a 15-11 win.
With the Bulls on the sidelines next weekend, the Waratahs have the chance to go top when they travel to Canberra on Friday night to face the Brumbies who are themselves coming off the bye.
Queensland, whose Friday night try was supplied by Qantas Wallabies winger Peter Hynes, are next in line for the third of the unbeaten teams – the Sharks of South Africa – who edged the Blues 35-31 in a pulsating Saturday afternoon clash at Eden Park.
The Sharks scored four tries to three, and held out a late rally by the home side, to complete the New Zealand section of their overseas tour with back-to-back wins.
Their next stop is Brisbane, where they have won just twice since Super Rugby began.
With the Lions also enjoying the weekend off with the bye, the Cheetahs were unable to complete an undefeated round for the South African teams, being over-run 29-12 by the Hurricanes in New Plymouth.
The maximum-point win, which was achieved despite an error-ridden performance, has allowed the New Zealand side to move into fourth place on the standings, with three straight wins after their opening round loss to the ‘Tahs.
While the Hurricanes always appeared to hold the upper hand, and led 17-5 at halftime, they were not always entirely convincing against a Cheetahs outfit that performed a lot better than their 17-point margin of defeat suggests.
The same could be said of the Western Force, who looked like they would be swamped at one point, but came back resolutely on Friday night against the Chiefs.
Although the Chiefs prevailed 31-13 to register their first win of the year, the Force enjoyed much the better of the second half, after two quick tries just before halftime had left them staring at a 6-21 deficit.
The Force missed 14 tackles in the first half, but tightened up significantly after the break, and would have denied the Chiefs their try-scoring bonus point had they not tried to run it out from behind their goal-line after the final siren, only to turn possession over in a prime attacking position for the home side.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the championship after four weeks is the plight of the defending champion Crusaders, who have now lost their last three after falling 0-6 to the Highlanders at Dunedin last night.
Todd Blackadder’s men have just five teams below them on the standings.
At Carisbrook, they were held scoreless for the first time in their 172-game history in what was also Super Rugby’s lowest scoring match, eclipsing the 6-3 game between the Brumbies and the Reds two years ago.
The Crusaders woes were added to by the medial ligament injury that was suffered by their skipper, Richie McCaw, which could see him sidelined for an extended period of time.
His absence is good news for the Force, who visit Christchurch on Saturday night.
The Bulls of South Africa rounded out a perfect start to their campaign, heading into the bye on the back of a hard fought 14-10 win over the Stormers at Loftus Versfeld, which maintained the Pretoria outfit’s hold on top position on the standings.
The South Africans, who won the title two years ago, shade the Waratahs on point’s differentials, with both sides having collected two try-scoring bonus points alongside their four championship wins.
New South Wales made it four from four during a rugged inter-state struggle with Queensland on Friday night, scoring a try in each half through prop Benn Robinson and replacement centre Timana Tahu to grind out a 15-11 win.
With the Bulls on the sidelines next weekend, the Waratahs have the chance to go top when they travel to Canberra on Friday night to face the Brumbies who are themselves coming off the bye.
Queensland, whose Friday night try was supplied by Qantas Wallabies winger Peter Hynes, are next in line for the third of the unbeaten teams – the Sharks of South Africa – who edged the Blues 35-31 in a pulsating Saturday afternoon clash at Eden Park.
The Sharks scored four tries to three, and held out a late rally by the home side, to complete the New Zealand section of their overseas tour with back-to-back wins.
Their next stop is Brisbane, where they have won just twice since Super Rugby began.
With the Lions also enjoying the weekend off with the bye, the Cheetahs were unable to complete an undefeated round for the South African teams, being over-run 29-12 by the Hurricanes in New Plymouth.
The maximum-point win, which was achieved despite an error-ridden performance, has allowed the New Zealand side to move into fourth place on the standings, with three straight wins after their opening round loss to the ‘Tahs.
While the Hurricanes always appeared to hold the upper hand, and led 17-5 at halftime, they were not always entirely convincing against a Cheetahs outfit that performed a lot better than their 17-point margin of defeat suggests.
The same could be said of the Western Force, who looked like they would be swamped at one point, but came back resolutely on Friday night against the Chiefs.
Although the Chiefs prevailed 31-13 to register their first win of the year, the Force enjoyed much the better of the second half, after two quick tries just before halftime had left them staring at a 6-21 deficit.
The Force missed 14 tackles in the first half, but tightened up significantly after the break, and would have denied the Chiefs their try-scoring bonus point had they not tried to run it out from behind their goal-line after the final siren, only to turn possession over in a prime attacking position for the home side.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the championship after four weeks is the plight of the defending champion Crusaders, who have now lost their last three after falling 0-6 to the Highlanders at Dunedin last night.
Todd Blackadder’s men have just five teams below them on the standings.
At Carisbrook, they were held scoreless for the first time in their 172-game history in what was also Super Rugby’s lowest scoring match, eclipsing the 6-3 game between the Brumbies and the Reds two years ago.
The Crusaders woes were added to by the medial ligament injury that was suffered by their skipper, Richie McCaw, which could see him sidelined for an extended period of time.
His absence is good news for the Force, who visit Christchurch on Saturday night.
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