Super Rugby round 18 preview: Waratahs v Highlanders blockbuster, Force v Reds and key Kiwi derby clashes

A TAHS v Highlanders blockbuster, Force v Reds and two key Kiwi derbies — it’s another bumper weekend. Check out our round 18 Super Rugby preview!

Israel Folau on the attack for NSW Waratahs Vs ACT Brumbies Saturday 28th June 2014. Pic: Mitch Cameron

THE race for a Super Rugby finals berth heats up with the penultimate round of the regular season this weekend.

The tight Kiwi conference should become a little clearer following two key New Zealand derby games, as well as Sunday’s blockbuster clash between the top-ranked Waratahs and red-hot Highlanders.

Out west the Force will be out to bounce back against the resurgent Reds, while South Africa’s five sides return to action following the completion of the Springboks’ June Test schedule.

Read on for our Round 18 Super Rugby preview!

Chiefs v Hurricanes

5.35pm AEST Friday, Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, Fox Sports 2HD

A crunch New Zealand derby ushers in the start of round 18 as the two-time defending champion Chiefs try to keep their “three-peat” hopes alive.

Dave Rennie’s side produced an improved performance before going down by four points to the Highlanders last weekend and actually outscored their hosts three tries to two.

But it still wasn’t the polished display we’ve come to expect from the Chiefs at this time of year and that probably has a lot to with a horror injury toll that’s ripped apart their squad. Rennie has had to mix and match his starting XV throughout the season although last week’s decision to bench Tawera Kerr-Barlow and Tim Nanai-Williams was questionable.

Aaron Cruden and the Chiefs need a win on Friday night.

Both players return to the starting line-up this week as two of seven changes, the biggest of which sees Tom Marshall replace Gareth Anscombe at fullback and Jamie Macintosh come in for Pauliasi Manu at prop.

Much like their opponents the Hurricanes too need to win in Hamilton on Friday. The Wellington side could theoretically survive with a loss but it would leave them with a nervy weekend of viewing as they endure the final-round bye.

Last week’s hard-fought win over the Crusaders certainly took its toll. Victor Vito, Alapati Leiua and Faifili Levave have all joined skipper Conrad Smith on the sidelines while hookers Dane Coles and Ash Dixon remain in such doubt that coach Mark Hammett was forced to print “TBC” on his teamsheet earlier in the week.

Luckily they have stability at No. 10 and that means Beauden Barrett will line up against his All Black rival Aaron Cruden.

Cruden missed the Chiefs’ earlier encounter with the Hurricanes which ended in a 45-8 hammering and his presence alone will ensure a far-tighter contest this time around.

Lions v Rebels

3.10am AEST Saturday, Ellis Park, Johannesburg, Fox Sports 2HD

Pride will be on the line come early Saturday morning (Australian time) as the Lions welcome the Rebels to Joburg for a clash that will go some way to deciding the wooden spoon.

The Lions haven’t played since they upset the Bulls 32-21 in round 16 with all five South African franchises sitting out last week as the Springboks walloped Scotland.

As has been the case with all five of their victories this year the win over the Bulls was largely down to a superb kicking display from one of the finds of the season, Marnitz Boshoff.

Marnitz Boshoff has been superb for the Lions in 2014.

The flyhalf and No. 8 Warren Whiteley have been the shining lights of a Lions side that has surprised a few people along the way but one that probably needs one more win over the final two weeks to earn a pass-mark.

It’s been a similar sort of season at Melbourne Rebels although last week’s first-half capitulation against the Reds resulted in a hefty spray from coach Tony McGahan.

McGahan lamented his side’s “lazy options” and “bad decision-making” as they slumped to a 22-3 half-time deficit from which they never recovered.

It’ll take a greatly improved performance in Joburg if they’re to register a historic first win outside of Australia.

Crusaders v Blues

5.35pm AEST Saturday, AMI Stadium, Christchurch, Fox Sports 2HD

The New Zealand conference should hopefully look a little clearer by about 7.15pm (AEST) on Saturday following the completion of the second of this weekend’s two Kiwi derbies.

The Crusaders are the top-ranked New Zealand side but are coming off a last-start loss to the Hurricanes, while the Blues sit equal last in the Kiwi conference yet are high on confidence after a breakthrough away win over the Western Force.

Of course, the Blues are only six points behind the Crusaders and could jump into the top six with a bonus-point win and other results going their way.

To do so they’ll need to knock over a Crusaders side that welcomes back skipper Kieran Read, gun fullback Israel Dagg, rising winger Nemani Nadolo and, most significantly of all, includes star playmaker Dan Carter in the starting line-up for the first time in 2014.

Dan Carter will start at inside centre for the Crusaders.

The All Blacks ace has been named at inside centre, with Colin Slade holding on to the No. 10 jersey, but his presence in the XV should provide a massive boost to the Cantabrians as they look to get their finals campaign back on track.

For the Blues nothing less than victory will suffice. The Auckland-based outfit finally overcame its road blues — pardon the pun — with that 40-14 thumping in Perth last weekend, but will have to overcome a drought in Canterbury that stretches back to 2004.

Last time these two sides met — way back in round three when a certain Benji Marshall was on the bench — the Blues pulled off what was then considered a shock as a four-try blitz in the 10 minutes either side of half-time helped turn a 17-3 deficit into a 35-24 victory at Eden Park.

Force v Reds

7.40pm AEST Saturday, nib Stadium, Perth, Fox Sports 2HD

Western Force will surely have spent the week fuming about the way they were blown off the park by an early Blues blitz last round.

They get the chance to prove it was just a bad day at the office and relaunch their push for a maiden playoffs berth when they host an injury-raved Reds on Saturday night.

Samu Kerevi will start in the centres for the Reds.

It could hardly be a better match-up for Michael Foley’s men, who haven’t lost to the Queenslanders in their past four meetings and have only dropped one game to them in Perth.

They get a big boost in the return of star winger Nick Cummins, who missed the Blues defeat, although that’s been offset by the loss of injured halves Alby Mathewson (hip) and Sias Ebersohn (bicep) with Ian Prior and Zack Holmes to start at 9 and 10.

The Reds were excellent in routing the Rebels in Melbourne last weekend, but their already-depleted squad has taken further hits following injuries to prop Greg Holmes, centre Anthony Faingaa and winger Dom Shipperley.

Big centre Samu Kerevi gets his first start and is joined in the Reds run-on side by prop Ben Daley and winger Lachie Turner as Richard Graham’s side looks to play the role of spoilers against their Australian conference rivals.

Last week’s loss snapped the Force’s five-game winning streak at nib Stadium, and they’ll be desperate to sign off with one more home victory to ensure their final round clash against the Brumbies in Canberra is for a spot in the finals.

Stormers v Bulls

1.05am AEST, Newlands, Cape Town, Fox Sports 2HD

The Bulls’ long-shot bid for a finals berth goes on the line when they travel to Cape Town early Sunday morning (AEST).

Currently 10th on the ladder, the Pretoria-based outfit sits seven points behind the sixth-placed Brumbies and realistically needs a pair of bonus-point wins over the final two rounds to stay in the hunt for finals.

They won’t find it easy against a Stormers side that — prior to the June Test break — looked to have put a horror start to the season behind it, and shocked South African conference winners the Sharks last start.

Schalk Burger forms part of a superb Stormers back-row.

To make the challenge even tougher for the Bulls, they have lost regular skipper and Matfield’s lock partner Flip Van Der Merwe to a knee injury that will sideline him for six months, while abrasive flanker Jacques du Plessis is also missing after breaking his jaw.

The absence of du Plessis could be particularly telling as the Bulls back-row will have a tough time at the breakdown against the Stormers loose forwards led by Springboks stars Schalk Burger and Duane Vermeulen.

Gun winger Gio Aplon makes his long-awaited return from a gruesome elbow injury to boost the Stormers backline, which is still missing Jean De Villiers.

Cheetahs v Sharks

3.10am EST Sunday, Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein, Fox Sports 2HD

The other team in contention for the wooden spoon is the Cheetahs and after last season’s ascension to the playoffs 2014 has been full of disappointment.

They haven’t had any trouble scoring points, it’s just that they’ve usually leaked them at double the rate. If only they had the defensive mettle to match the attacking talents of arguably world rugby’s form player, Willie le Roux.

The diminutive fullback was the standout Springboks performer throughout the June Test series and he is easily the Sharks’ biggest concern at Vodacom Park this weekend.

Willie le Roux was in scintillating form for the Springboks in the June Tests.

Luckily for the Durban side they had a number of players involved at the Springboks who will have seen first-hand just how damaging le Roux can be.

However the likes of Bismarck and Jannie du Plessis and Willem Alberts will come off the bench in Bloemfontein while coach Jake White has handed a start at flyhalf to youngster Tim Swiel.

White’s side has the South African conference locked up but needs to win one if not both of its final two games to secure a crucial top-two finish.

Waratahs v Highlanders

4.05pm EST Sunday, Allianz Stadium, Sydney, Fox Sports 2HD

Sunday afternoon footy returns to Allianz Stadium for the third and final time this season as the in-form Waratahs and Highlanders meet in what is probably the game of the round.

Riding high on the back of five-straight victories and last week’s 39-8 thrashing of the Brumbies, the Waratahs are now title favourites and in pole position for the coveted top playoffs seeding. The loss of skipper Dave Dennis to a season-ending knee injury will hurt but veteran Stephen Hoiles is a proven replacement.

Ben Smith is a key attacking weapon for the Highlanders.

Aside from Dennis, the Waratahs will line up as they did against the Brumbies last week. Coach Michael Cheika has made a point of keeping his side grounded and it seems to have worked with this group refusing to believe their own hype — a problem that has derailed many of their NSW counterparts in season’s past.

Not even some unwanted talk about Kurtley Beale’s future could derail them in Sydney last weekend although the challenge the Highlanders present will be far greater than that of the injury-hit Brumbies.

The Dunedin side has three major attacking threats in Aaron and Ben Smith, and Malakai Fekitoa but wouldn’t have been able to work wonders out wide had it not been for the emergence of players like Kane Hames and Shane Christie.

A hard-working pack and the reliable boot of flyhalf Lima Sopoaga has also helped the Highlanders to within striking distance of a first playoffs appearance since 2002, and a win this weekend will all but secure that overdue achievement.

It promises to be a fast free-flowing encounter at Allianz Stadium, a venue where the Waratahs hold a 6-2 winning record.

Originally published as Super Rugby round 18 preview: Waratahs v Highlanders blockbuster, Force v Reds and key Kiwi derby clashes