This weekend’s Super 14 was as always filled with excitement, injuries, last-minute drop goals, the whole works. Here are the results:

Force 16 Stormers 15

Scorers: Western Force – Try: David Pocock; Conversion: James O’Connor; Penalties: O’Connor (2); Drop goal: David Hill.
Vodacom Stormers – Penalties: Peter Grant (5).

Blues 32 Bulls 17

Scorers: Blues – Tries: Isaia Toeava, Joe Rokocoko; Conversions: Stephen Brett: (2); Penalties: Brett (5).
Vodacom Bulls – Try: Pierre Spies; Penalties: Morne Steyn (3); Drop goal: Steyn (1).

Waratahs 40 Cheetahs 17

Scorers: Waratahs – Tries: Rob Horne, Benn Robinson, Al Baxter, Kurtley Beale, Josh Holmes; Conversions: Daniel Halangahu (2), Berrick Barnes; Penalties: Halangahu (3).
Vodacom Cheetahs – Tries: WP Nel, Corne Uys; Conversions: Meyer Bosman (2); Penalty: Naas Olivier.

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Hurricanes 26 – Sharks 29
Scorers: Hurricanes – Tries: Ma`a Nonu, Victor Vito; Conversions: Piri Weepu (2); Penalties: Willie Ripia (2), Weepu (2). Sharks – Tries: Patrick Lambie, JP Pietersen; Conversions: Ruan Pienaar (2); Penalties: Pienaar (5).

The Sharks recorded their second win in the 2010 Vodacom Super 14 after defeating the Hurricanes and became the fourth South African franchise to defeat the Wellington outfit in consecutive weekends.

Western Force 15 – Vodacom Bulls 25
Scorers: Western Force – Penalties: James O`Connor (5). Vodacom Bulls – Tries: Pierre Spies, Morne Steyn, Zane Kirchner; Conversions: Steyn (2); Penalties: Steyn (3).

Highlanders 39 – Auto & General Lions 29
Scorers: Highlanders – Tries: Hayden Triggs, Kenny Lynn, Penalty try; Conversions: Israel Dagg (3); Penalties: Dagg (6). Auto & General Lions – Tries: Wigan Pekeur (2), Michael Killian, Cobus Grobbelaar, JP Joubert; Conversion: Carlos Spencer, Earl Rose.

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The Crusaders adapted best to the conditions to beat the Chiefs 26-19 in a tense Super 14 rugby clash here Friday.
With the wind behind them and a dry ground, the Crusaders  ensured the game was played at a frenetic pace in the first half and turned with a 23-16 lead as they outscored the Chiefs two tries to one.
But when the rain came down at halftime, and the Crusaders faced the wind, they switched to a dogged pick-and-drive style as they slugged out the final 40 minutes in which the only rewards were a penalty apiece.

The Waratahs ran in 11 tries to thrash the Lions 73-12 at the Sydney Football Stadium on Friday.
The hosts fired on all cylinders as they outclassed a sorry-looking Lions side who have now lost five in a row. Drew Mitchell scored four tries, Lachie Turner and Josh Holmes both got braces while Wycliff Palu, Dean Mumm and Tom Carter also got in on the act.

The Brumbies managed to scrape past the Sharks for a narrow win in Canberra on Saturday.
For the second time in the week there was heartbreak for the Sharks as they fought all the way to death when a Matt Giteau penalty snatched back the lead to hand the home side victory.

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The Lions suffered their second successive defeat in Australasia when they went down 24-13 to the Brumbies in Canberra on Friday.
The wet conditions made for a forwards battle which the Brumbies’ all-Wallaby pack dominated. The Lions had very little possession to speak of and never really troubled the Brumbies on the scoreboard.

Flyhalf Daniel Carter won a goalkicking duel with former teammate Stephen Brett to lead the Crusaders to a 33-20 win over the Blues in Super 14 rugby Saturday.
Carter kicked seven goals from seven attempts – three conversions and four penalties – for 18 points to steer the seven-time champions to their third win in four matches.
Brett, in his first match for Auckland against his former team, kicked four penalties and a dropped goal for 15 points.  Canterbury scored tries through flanker George Whitelock plus centres Ryan Crotty and Robbie Fruean, while Auckland had a late try by halfback Alby Mathewson.

Referee Paul Marks denied the Sharks a penalty try at the death to gift the Waratahs a four point win in controversial circumstances in Sydney on Saturday.
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The Vodacom Bulls continued their impressive title defence in the Vodacom Super 14 following their 48-38 victory over the Waratahs at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

The victory by the Pretoria outfit was the only successful South African result after the Vodacom Cheetahs (24-31), Vodacom Stormers (19-17), the Auto & General Lions (33-18) and the Sharks (35-6) all conceded defeats this weekend.

Vodacom Bulls winger Francois Hougaard scored a brace of tries while Stephan Dippenaar, Gerhard van den Heever, Wynand Olivier and Jacques-Louis Potgieter all added five-pointers for the hosts.

The Waratahs though secured a bonus point for losing within seven of the Pretoria side. The defeat ensured that the Sydney franchise ended round three in eleventh position, while the Vodacom Bulls continued their dominance at the top of the log.

In Bloemfontein the Highlanders continued their undefeated run over the hosts in Bloemfontein on Saturday. The Otago side has now also won their last five games against the Vodacom Cheetahs, whose only win against the Highlanders was in Invercargill back in 1997 when the tourists outclassed the hosts to triumph 49-18.

The Auto & General Lions are still in search of their first victory in the 2010 Vodacom Super 14 following their 33-18 defeat to the Hurricanes in Wellington. The hosts secured their third win of the competition and are currently in second position on the log after round three.

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The Bulls were definitely the favourites going into the Super 14 final at Loftus on Saturday, but few could have foreseen the rampage that ensued. The Bulls beat the Chiefs 61 – 17.

The Bulls players and management have for a while now spoken about their desire to build a dynasty, to start an era of dominance in the competition to rival that of the Crusaders.

At Loftus on Saturday, in front of a sell-out crowd awash in light blue, they added substance to their words with a performance that was emphatic as any seen in any final anywhere. It was their second title, and only two teams have won more Super 14 trophies now than they have – the Crusaders and the Blues.

The Bulls scored eight tries to two, they led 34-7 at half-time, the game was effectively over when they led 21-7 after just 15 minutes. The eight tries was a record for a Super 14 decider, so was the winning margin of 44 points, which eclipsed the 30 the Brumbies won by when they beat the Sharks 36-6 in Canberra in 2001.

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Chiefs and All Blacks eighth man Sione Lauaki is off the hook for a high tackle on Bryan Habana due to a technicality in the citing process.

Lauaki was cited for a high stiff-arm tackle on Bryan Habana in the 33-27 loss to the Bulls, where he received a yellow card for the incident.

But the disciplinary hearing on Monday was dismissed as the citing wasn’t received within the 12 hour period after the match finishes. In exceptional circumstances the judicial officer can allow citings submitted after the time period, but officer Dekker Govender could not find exceptional circumstances in this case that would have allowed the hearing to continue.

Lauaki will now be available for selection to face the Stormers on Saturday.

Source: keo.co.za