Blues hold the key to finals for Brumbies and Waratahs

Which Blues team turns up will determine whether the Brumbies or the NSW Waratahs wins the Australian conference.

Brumbies playmaker Christian Lealiifano finds space against the Reds on Friday night.

Which Blues team turns up will determine whether the Brumbies or the NSW Waratahs wins the Australian conference and gains automatic entry to the Super Rugby playoffs.

With two rounds to go, the Brumbies and the Waratahs are equal on 39 competition points, but the Brumbies are on top of the conference because they have won one more game than the Waratahs.

The Brumbies and the Waratahs both play the Blues at Eden Park in Auckland, a ground that has been a graveyard for Aust­ralian teams from Super Rugby to the Wallabies.

The Blues are on the bottom of the strong New Zealand conference and are out of contention for the playoffs, but they showed in their 37-27 loss to the Hurricanes in Wellington last Saturday that they are a dangerous team.

“The top position in the Australian conference might actually be decided by which Blues team turns up to the Brumbies and the ­Waratahs,” former Brumbies and Wallabies backrower Owen Finegan said.

“If the Blues haven’t got their heads screwed on the Brumbies and Waratahs could beat them,” he said. “They might have a different mindset because they are not playing another New Zealand team.

“If the Blues turn up for both games, it will be difficult for both teams.”

The Brumbies play the Blues on Friday and Finegan said they had been a bogey team.

“Even in the last five years we’ve actually struggled against them,” Finegan said. “Even at Canberra Stadium we were playing them to get a finals spot and they weren’t even in contention and they still played well and beat us (in 2012).

“Home or away they have always been a difficult team for the Brumbies. Tana Umaga (coach) is there this year. He is trying to establish his style.

“They have some dangerous players across the park and experienced players like Jerome Kaino. A bit of X-factor. They can conjure tries from nothing. They are a difficult sort of team.”

Finegan said the fact the Blues have nothing to lose could make them even more dangerous. “If they throw the ball around and hit a purple patch they are very difficult to stop,” Finegan said.

Finegan was impressed with the Brumbies’ bonus point win over Queensland in Canberra last Friday night, while the Waratahs’ big win over the Sunwolves in Tokyo was to be expected.

“A bonus point win against the Reds was fairly solid,” Finegan said. “It was good in the circumstances. David Pocock is injured and a new No 8 (Ben Hyne) lasted five minutes. It’s a disruption to the pack.

“The Brumbies had to win and get a bonus point and they did that. They piled on the points in the last 20 minutes. Good teams will do that. They will be ruthless at the end.

“The Waratahs had a fairly easy game, but you add travel to that. They’ve got two tough teams coming up.”

Finegan said the Brumbies, who play the Western Force in Canberra in the last round, had an easier run home than the Waratahs, who host the Hurricanes in Sydney on Saturday night.

“If I had a choice, I would have taken the Brumbies’ run home,” Finegan said. “The Brumbies are playing two teams that are not in contention.”

Hyne, who sustained an ankle injury after five minutes of his Super Rugby debut, is expected to be replaced in the Brumbies squad by Canberra Vikings back-five forward Dean Oakman-Hunt.