The DHL Stormers will be crowned South African Conference champions for the 3rd time in 5 years, but will also be the only representative from the Republic in the Vodacom Super Rugby playoffs this season.
In fact, the Top 6 teams for 2015 have also been determined with 1 Round left in the league phase of the competition, meaning the Vodacom Bulls and Emirates Lions will miss out, along with the 7-time champion Crusaders.
The Hurricanes have wrapped up the New Zealand Conference and Top Spot on the Log, but the 2nd position and the identity of the Australian champions – it’s between the Waratahs and the Brumbies – will only be known after next weekend’s matches.
The DHL Stormers’ 19 / 19 draw against the Emirates Lions in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon means they clinched the SA Conference, but are dependent on other results going their way in order to claim that all-important 2nd spot in the overall standings.
The draw also ended the Emirates Lions’ slim chances of finishing in the Top 6 for the 1st time ever, but they can be proud of their best-ever season in Vodacom Super Rugby, with 9 wins, 6 defeats and 1 draw.
The Vodacom Bulls’ chances also evaporated on Saturday morning when they controversially went down to the Melbourne Rebels in Melbourne by a solitary point, 21 / 20. The best they can now hope for is 8th on the Log.
The Toyota Cheetahs, in their 1st match under new coach Franco Smith, started very well but ultimately the defending champion Waratahs had too much fire-power and won easily, by 58 / 33.
Melbourne Rebels (14) 21 : 20 (17) Vodacom Bulls:
The Vodacom Bulls ended their Australasian tour with a disappointing defeat by 21 / 20 against the resurgent Melbourne Rebels in Melbourne on Saturday, a result which ended their slim hopes of reaching the Super Rugby playoffs.
The men from Pretoria started very well and led by 17 / 7 shortly before the break, with Dean Greyling and Lappies Labuschagne crossing for tries. However, the Rebels hit back on the stroke of halftime with their 2nd try and the Vodacom Bulls’ lead was cut to 17 / 14.
Jacques-Louis Potgieter, who converted both tries, added a 2nd penalty goal before the Rebels’ 3rd try put them in the lead, 21 / 20.
Moments later Burger Odendaal went over for what looked like a legitimate try, but the TMO controversially ruled otherwise and the Rebels hung on for a famous win – only their 3rd-ever against a side from South Africa (they beat the DHL Stormers in 2013 and the Toyota Cheetahs last year, both in Melbourne).
On balance it still wasn’t the kind of performance which saw the Vodacom Bulls win 3 Vodacom Super Rugby titles, but they do have reason to feel hard done by the TMO call on the hour mark.
Scorers:
Melbourne Rebels:
- Tries: Sean McMahon (1), Jack Debreczeni (1), Lopeti Timani (1)
- Conversions: Mike Harris (3)
Vodacom Bulls:
- Tries: Dean Greyling (1), Lappies Labuschagne (1)
- Conversions: Jacques-Louis Potgieter (2)
- Penalties: Jacques-Louis Potgieter (2)
Toyota Cheetahs (21) 33 / 58 (29) Waratahs:
Supporters in the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein were treated with 14 tries on Saturday afternoon, but unfortunately the home team were on the wrong side of the score board as the Waratahs beat the Toyota Cheetahs by 58 / 33.
It was a breathless affair with 6 tries scored in the 1st half hour, 3 by each team, but the Waratahs carded 2 more in the final 3 minutes of the 1st half to give them breathing space at the break.
The visitors increased their lead with a 6th try in the 2nd minute of the 2nd half, and although the home team never gave up, 3 more tries in the final quarter meant the visitors ran away with it at the end.
Israel Folau got a hat-trick of tries for the defending champions from Sydney and their flyhalf, Bernard Foley, contributed 18 points to move him up to the 2nd spot on the list of top points’ scorers for 2015.
For the home team, Cornal Hendricks and Francois Venter scored a brace of tries each and Boom Prinsloo went over for his 8th 5-pointer of the season, which places him joint-3rd on the list of top try scorers for the season.
Scorers:
Toyota Cheetahs:
- Tries: Boom Prinsloo (1), Francois Venter (2), Cornal Hendricks (2)
- Conversions: Coenie van Wyk (3), Niel Marais (1)
Waratahs:
- Tries: Israel Folau (3), Matt Carraro (2), Bernard Foley (1), Michael Hooper (1), Adam Ashley-Cooper (1), Teqele Naiyaravoro (1)
- Conversions: Bernard Foley (5)
- Penalties: Bernard Foley (1)
DHL Stormers (12) 19 / 19 (12) Emirates Lions:
The DHL Stormers were held to a 19 / 19 draw by the Emirates Lions in a hard and exciting Vodacom Super Rugby match at DHL Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon.
For both teams, it was only their 2nd ever draw in a local derby. This result, coupled with the Vodacom Bulls’ defeat in Melbourne, mean the Capetonians can no longer be caught at the Top of the SA Conference and are guaranteed a spot in the Top 3 on the Log.
It was a match of “tit for tat” with the 2 packs matching each other throughout the 80 minutes. DHL Stormers scrumhalf Nic Groom got the scoreboard ticking over with a sneaky try from close by in the 7th minute, but 10 minutes later his direct opponent, Faf de Klerk, scored in almost similar fashion.
Dillyn Leyds, for the home team, and Schalk van der Merwe, for the visitors, also scored tries in the 1st half but neither were converted and the teams went into the break at 12 / 12.
When Nizaam Carr went over in the 52nd minute, with Kurt Coleman adding the extras, it looked like the DHL Stormers could sneak it but the Emirates Lions never gave up and Malcolm Marx got his 1st try at this level with 4 minutes left.
The Emirates Lions finished strong on the attack, but the DHL Stormers’ usual water-tight defence held firm.
Scorers:
DHL Stormers:
- Tries: Nic Groom (1), Dillyn Leyds (1), Nizaam Carr (1)
- Conversions: Demetri Catrakilis (1), Kurt Coleman (1)
Emirates Lions:
- Tries: Faf de Klerk (1), Schalk van der Merwe (1), Malcolm Marx (1)
- Conversions: Elton Jantjies (1), Marnitz Boshoff (1)
Other Results – Round 17:
- Hurricanes 56 / 20 Highlanders
- Western Force 20 / 33 Brumbies
- Blues 11 / 34 Crusaders
- Reds 3 / 31 Chiefs