Cape Town – The Bulls and Jaguares ended the latest round of Super Rugby 2019 as arguably the two best-placed sides in the SA conference … and how they fare in respective, four-match Australasian tours shortly could have a very key bearing on who wins the group.

While it is important to note that all five teams undoubtedly remain in the running – including for broader playoffs places – in this crazily fluctuating campaign, that pair are the healthiest-looking on paper right now.

Both won relatively tense affairs at home over the weekend – the Jaguares against the Stormers and the Bulls against the Waratahs – which meant that the Pretoria-based outfit moved back to the top of the yo-yo conference.

They are level on points with the Sharks (28), but Robert du Preez’s charges have played an extra game, so sport only five remaining pre-knockout fixtures to the Bulls’ and third-placed Jaguares’ (they are one meagre point adrift) six each.

On the plus side for the Sharks, who put up such a gallant battle against the title-holding Crusaders on Friday for a 21-21 draw, their Australasian tour is one match from completion, and it looks pretty winnable against a Chiefs combo flirting ever more dangerously with anonymity as far as any finals series hopes are concerned.

But with only two of their five remaining tussles earmarked for Kings Park and one involving the increasingly perilous trip to Buenos Aires in the second-last round, their position is perhaps not quite as buoyant as it may seem for eventual conference bragging rights.

Fascinatingly, then, the Bulls and Jaguares will spend several of the next few weeks not too far apart in Antipodean climes, and watching each other’s progress extremely keenly – the latter no doubt increasingly emboldened about the likelihood of winning the group for a maiden time.

The South Americans travel almost immediately, as they start out their quartet of assignments (like the Bulls, two in Australia and two in New Zealand) against the Highlanders on Saturday; after that, it’s the Hurricanes, Waratahs and Reds.

Before they step on a long-haul flight themselves, the Bulls first have to focus hugely on Friday night’s potential humdinger against the ‘Saders at Loftus, albeit probably bolstered by the return of veteran livewire hooker Schalk Brits from his suspension.

Just as beating the Waratahs was of enormous importance (they blew hot and cold in the 28-21 outcome, showing alarming defensive doziness at times but also exhibiting an illuminatingly commanding scrum), knocking over the Cantabrians – seldom over-awed by Highveld conditions these days – would also be manna from heaven ahead of the gruelling trek.

The Bulls are rostered on their tour against, in this order, the Rebels, Brumbies, Blues and Highlanders, and do not have a healthy recent reputation for prosperity across the Indian Ocean.

In the Jaguares’ favour, by stark contrast, they had a quite sublime quartet of results in their 2018 equivalent trip to Australasia, remarkably beating all of the Rebels, Brumbies, Blues and Chiefs.

It is difficult to imagine bookies and observers believing lightning will strike twice and the Argentinean national team in disguise going “four from four” there once again, but even a 50 percent tour record, say, could be invaluable in their stiffening quest to embarrass South Africa by stealing the conference.

If the specifically SA-based sides needed any further motivation to improve their consistency over the almost certainly nail-biting closing weeks of ordinary season, they should take note that the Jaguares boast the dream fixture on paper in the very last round: Sunwolves at home.

The Stormers, who at least snatched a late losing bonus point from their match in Buenos Aires on Saturday, are the only team in the competition enjoying a bye in the coming round and will feel they deserve it after a tough, notably travel-heavy spell.

Next weekend’s fixtures (home teams first, all kick-offs SA time):

Friday: Blues v Hurricanes, 09:35; Rebels v Reds, 11:45; Bulls v Crusaders, 19:10. Saturday: Highlanders v Jaguares, 07:15; Chiefs v Sharks, 09:35; Lions v Waratahs, 15:05. Sunday: Brumbies v Sunwolves, 08:05. Bye: Stormers.

*Follow our chief writer on Twitter: @RobHouwing

Cape Town – Mitch Hunt scored a last-minute try before kicking the conversion as the Crusaders secured a 21-21 draw against the Sharks in Christchurch on Friday.

As it happened: Crusaders v Sharks

Although the home side outscored their visitors by three tries to none, the Sharks were in the lead for most of the match and were on course to secure an unlikely victory until Hunt’s last-gasp heroics.

In the end, the Crusaders flyhalf finished with an 11-point haul as he also kicked three conversions, with his team’s other points coming via tries from Codie Taylor and Jack Goodhue.

Curwin Bosch contributed all the Sharks points courtesy of seven penalties.

The result ends a 25-match winning run for the Crusaders in Christchurch.

The match started brightly for the visitors and even though Bosch struck an upright with his first shot at goal, he made up for that miss when he landed a penalty in the eighth minute to open the scoring.

The Crusaders did not take long to respond though and three minutes later Taylor crossed for their opening try from close quarters after Jordan Taufua and Braydon Ennor carried strongly in the build-up.

Hunt added the extras which gave the home side a 7-3 lead but despite conceding that try, the Sharks did well to keep the champions at bay during the rest of the half, and two further penalties from Bosch meant the Sharks had their tails up at the break with the score 9-7 in their favour.

The visitors were fastest out of the blocks in the second half and they held a 15-7 lead by the 50th minute after Bosch added two further penalties.

The Crusaders needed to respond and that came in the 56th minute when Goodhue crossed the whitewash after gathering a perfectly-weighted pass from Kieran Read deep inside Sharks territory.
Hunt’s conversion was successful which meant the visitors were holding a one-point lead but the Sharks struck back with another penalty from Bosch in the 69th minute.

Bosch lined up another penalty in the 72nd minute but his long-range effort was off target. He made up for that miss when he landed his seventh penalty two minutes later but it was not enough for the win as Hunt’s late try secured the draw for the hosts.

Both sides picked up two points for the draw and remained atop their respective conferences.

In next weekend’s Round 13 action, the Sharks travel to Hamilton to play the Chiefs (Saturday, May 4 at 09:35) SA time, while the Crusaders pack their bags for Pretoria where they will face the Bulls (Friday, May 3 at 19:10).

Scorers:

Crusaders 21 (7)

Tries: Codie Taylor, Jack Goodhue, Mitch Hunt

Conversions: Hunt (3)

Sharks 21 (9)

Penalties: Curwin Bosch (7)

Teams:

Crusaders

15 Will Jordan, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Braydon Ennor, 12 Jack Goodhue, 11 George Bridge, 10 Mitch Hunt, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Matt Todd (captain), 6 Jordan Taufua, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Mitchell Dunshea, 3 Michael Alaalatoa, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody

Substitutes: 16 Ben Funnell, 17 Isi Tu’ungafasi, 18 Oliver Jager, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Ethan Blackadder, 21 Mitchell Drummond, 22 Brett Cameron, 23 Tim Bateman

Sharks

15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Sbu Nkosi, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Louis Schreuder (captain), 8 Daniel du Preez, 7 Jean-Luc du Preez, 6 Philip van der Walt, 5 Ruan Botha, 4 Ruben van Heerden, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Kerron van Vuuren, 1 Thomas du Toit

Substitutes: 16 Akker van der Merwe, 17 Mzamo Majola, 18 John-Hubert Meyer, 19 Hyron Andrews, 20 Jacques Vermeulen, 21 Cameron Wright, 22 Robert du Preez, 23 Marius Louw

London – Ajax closed in on a first Champions League final for 23 years as Donny van de Beek’s early goal beat an injury-hit Tottenham 1-0 in the first leg of their semi-final on Tuesday.

Van de Beek’s opener on 15 minutes was just reward for the Dutch side’s first-half dominance as Tottenham badly missed the presence of the injured Harry Kane and suspended Son Heung-min.

Tottenham improved after the break despite another injury blow as Jan Vertonghen had to be helped down the tunnel after a sickening head knock, but lacked the inspiration needed to get back on level terms without their two top scorers.

And Ajax could easily have had an even greater lead to take back to the Johan Cruyff Arena for the second leg next week when David Neres hit the post 10 minutes from time.

Ajax had shown they are not fazed on the road despite the tender age of many of their squad by shocking Real Madrid and Juventus away to reach the last four and started confidently.

Spurs were happy to sit deep and wait for their chances to counter-attack, but that gameplan was undone when Hakim Ziyech’s through ball picked out midfielder Van de Beek who took his time to leave Hugo Lloris prone before slotting into the bottom corner.

Lloris kept his side in the game 10 minutes later from another Van de Beek effort as Ajax threatened to run riot.

Fernando Llorente was the hero with the decisive goal as Mauricio Pochettino’s men upset the odds to end Manchester City’s quest for a quadruple of trophies in the quarter-finals.

However, the cumbersome Spaniard struggled to provide the out ball his side needed to relieve the Ajax pressure.

Set-pieces provided Tottenham’s best chance of scoring before the break as Llorente headed wide and Toby Alderweireld over from Kieran Trippier free-kicks.

On top of Kane and Son, Spurs were shorn of the injured Erik Lamela and Harry Winks and lost another key player when Vertonghen came off worst as he contested a high ball with Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana.

The Belgian was patched up and briefly returned to the field before having to be helped down the tunnel with questions sure to be asked why the Spurs medical staff allowed him to continue.

Despite that latest blow, the hosts reacted well to end the half on top with Vertonghen’s replacement Moussa Sissoko driving a long-range effort wide.

Pochettino’s half-time pep talk had the desired effect as Spurs dug deep into their energy reserves to raise the tempo and intensity of their display after the break.

Yet, the quality needed in the final third to get back on level terms was missing without Kane and Son.

A sweetly struck shot Christian Eriksen shot that was too close to Onana was the best effort they could muster as too often hopeful crosses into the box failed to find a teammate.

Ajax did not make the most of their chances on the break to kill the tie off, but were unfortunate when Neres’s effort back across Lloris left the French captain helpless only for the ball to rebound kindly off the post.

Son will be back for the trip to Amsterdam next Wednesday and Spurs will hope the South Korean can repeat his double away to City in the last eight, but Ajax are in pole position for a final against Barcelona or Liverpool come June 1 in Madrid.

Cape Town – The Stormers took the honours 24-23 over the Bulls in their bruising Super North-South derby in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon.

Meanwhile, the Sharks got their Australasian tour off to a winning start with a 23-15 victory over the Waratahs in Sydney and in doing so snapped a run of eight away losses in Sydney.

Although the embattled Lions fought bravely, they were outgunned by the Crusaders who won 36-10 in Christchurch.  The Jaguares won 20-15 over the Brumbies in Buenos Aires in the last South African Conference fixture of the weekend.

The men from Durban are leading the local conference table on 26 points, two ahead of the Bulls and three more points than the Jaguares and Stormers (23), while the Lions have 22.

Stormers victorious in bruising derby

The Stormers shrugged off their indifferent form to claim a hard-fought 24-23 victory over the Bulls in their North-South derby in Cape Town on Saturday.

Siya Kolisi’s team scored three tries to two for their fifth victory of the season, while the visitors managed to salvage a losing bonus point through Manie Libbok’s converted try in stoppage time.

The home side showed plenty of attacking intent from the start and they were rewarded with two tries in the opening half by speedsters Sergeal Petersen and Seabelo Senatla (a blood replacement for Dillyn Lleyds).

Petersen went over in the right hand corner following some slick passing in a patient build-up, while fullback Damian Willemse provided the spark for Senatla to score under the poles.

Flyhalf and skipper Handre Pollard kept the Bulls in touch with the home side via three penalty goals as the Stormers went into the halftime break 14-9 ahead.

It was the visitors who scored first after three minutes of play in the second half when scrumhalf Ivan van Zyl went over for a converted try to hand them the lead for the first time at 16-14.

However, the Cape side soon regained the lead through a penalty by replacement flyhalf Josh Stander and then stretched their lead through a third try. Leyds claimed a clearance from Pollard and jinxed his way through a couple of defender before off-loading to Herschel Jantjies to score

The visitors had the last laugh when Libbok scored their second try after the hooter, following a failed attempt by the home backs to run from their own line. The result was a major boost for the Stormers ahead of their away trip to the Jaguares next weekend.

Bosch steers Cell C Sharks to victory Down Under 

The Sharks got their Australasian tour off to winning start when they defeated the Waratahs 23-15 in their early Saturday afternoon (SA time) fixture in Sydney.

The two teams were level 10-10 at the halftime break, but the Sharks’ well-deserved triumph was built on a solid defensive effort and lots of physicality upfront

Curwin Bosch was handed his first start at flyhalf for the year and the Springbok put in a composed performance to contribute 13 points in a well-deserved away victory for the Durbanites, who managed to break a losing run of eight games stretching against the Waratahs in Sydney, back to 2000.

Following back-to-back losses against the Jaguares and Reds at home in Durban, Sharks coach Robert du Preez freshened up his team with several rotational changes, which amongst other saw the selection of a new halfback pairing of Bosch and Cameron Wright.

Bosch has showed his attacking instincts this year in the No 15 jersey, but in this fixture he controlled the match for the Sharks with good tactical kicking, while he also slotted over three penalty goals and two conversions.

Waratahs lock Jed Holloway was shown a red card for an elbow to the face of Springbok prop Thomas du Toit shortly after the break, while the Sharks front ranker was in turn yellow carded for holding his opponent off the ball.

A couple of minutes later, Waratahs flank Jack Dempsey was yellow carded for a dangerous tackle, and soon after Springbok centre Andre Esterhuizen powered his way over the tryline for vital second-half score for the visitors.

Bosch added two more penalty goals to secure the winning margin, although Bernard Foley managed to score a consolation try for the ‘Tahs after the hooter.

Crusaders down brave Lions in Christchurch

The Lions fought bravely, but their best efforts were not enough for a rampant Crusaders side, who won their Super Rugby clash by 36-10 in front of the Christchurch faithful on Friday morning.

The defending champions also posted their 25th consecutive home victory and they are now just one win away from equaling their longest home winning streak, set between 2004 and 2007. The match was a repeat of last year’s final, which produced the same winning outcome for the Kiwi side.

The Crusaders led by 17-3 at halftime, courtesy of two converted tries and a penalty goal, and they added three more tries in the second stanza to register a comfortable and deserving win. 

It was a gallant effort by the embattled Lions, whose inspirational captain Warren Whiteley has to withdraw from the team after he failed a late fitness test on the eve of the match. Furthermore, Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx was also rested for this encounter.

The Crusaders were rewarded with tries through by Braydon Ennor, and two each by wingers Sevu Reece and George Bridge, while pivot Richie Mo’unga slotted four conversions and a penalty goal. The Jozi side scored a try through fullback Ruan Combrinck and a conversion and penalty goal by midfielder Elton Jantjies.

After three weeks on the road, the Lions will return to South Africa. They have a bye next weekend, while the Crusaders host another South African side, the Sharks, next Friday.

Cape Town – The Crusaders are eyeing a fast start in their Super Rugby encounter against the Lions in Christchurch on Friday.

The defending champions scored just seven first half points in their past two games – at home against the Brumbies and Highlanders – but managed to run out comfortable winners after stunning second half displays.

The Crusaders trailed 7-0 at half-time against the Brumbies before running out 36-14 victors, while they trailed 10-7 at the break against the Highlanders before winning 43-17.

According to the Stuff.co.nz website, the slow starts have been addressed, and it comes with a warning for the Lions ahead of Friday’s rematch of last year’s final in Christchurch.

“Obviously, we can’t always rely on the back end of our game. We’ll definitely look to fix that this week, start with a roar and finish with one, too,” Crusaders centre Braydon Ennor said.

Crusaders coach Scott Robertson said the reasons for scoring 72 points in the second half of their most recent wins, yet only managing a lone try against the Highlanders in the first half, could not be pinned on one factor.

“We’ve had a couple of desperate teams we’ve played against, obviously the Brumbies and the Highlanders were incredibly physical and we couldn’t get the ball back off them,” Robertson said.

“Really… a little bit about our discipline and our ability tactically and how could we hold the ball, and if they do hold the ball for a long time, how could we get it back off them?

“Is it a mindset thing, or is it a structural thing? We’ve covered both.”

The Crusaders are hunting their 25th straight win on home soil, one short of their record of 26 between 2004 and 2007.

The Lions, on the other hand, have a torrid record against the Crusaders, with only three wins in history and all of those coming at Ellis Park – 55-23 in 1996, 9-3 in 2007 and 42-25 in 2016.

The Cats, who were a combination of the Lions and Cheetahs, did beat the Crusaders 32-31 in Nelson in 2001.

Friday’s clash is scheduled for 09:35 (SA time).

Teams:

Crusaders

15 David Havili, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Braydon Ennor, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 George Bridge, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Mitchell Drummond, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Billy Harmon, 6 Whetukamokamo Douglas, 5 Sam Whitelock (captain), 4 Quinten Strange, 3 Michael Alaalatoa, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody

Substitutes: 16 Ben Funnell, 17 Harry Allan, 18 Oliver Jager, 19 Michael Dunshea, 20 Jordan Taufua, 21 Eretara Enarai, 22 Mitchell Hunt, 23 Ngane Punivai

Lions

15 Ruan Combrinck, 14 Sylvian Mahuza, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Elton Jantjies, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Shaun Reynolds, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Kwagga Smith (captain), 7 Cyle Brink, 6 Marnus Schoeman, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Stephan Lewies, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 Robbie Coetzee, 1 Sti Sithole

Substitutes: 16 Jan-Henning Campher, 17 Nathan Mcbeth, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Wilhelm van der Sluys, 20 Hacjivah Dayimani, 21 Ross Cronje, 22 Franco Naude, 23 Tyrone Green