What We Learned from the Super Rugby Semi Finals

Jaguares well up for title fight, Crusaders poised for three peat, Dark arts not all bad are the points we will discuss in this past weekend’s what we learned from the Super Rugby semi-finals. 

Jaguares well up for title fight

If there were any lingering doubts regarding the Jaguares’ title credentials ahead of the Super Rugby playoffs, they have been well and truly put to bed over the past fortnight. Gonzalo Quesada’s men won an arm wrestle two weeks ago in seeing off the red-hot Chiefs 21-16 before putting the Brumbies away in a convincing 39-7 final-four result on the weekend.

The latter game in particular showcased the Argentines’ superb game-management, with the Brumbies never really threatening to mount a real challenge. While both fixtures were admittedly played at the Estadio Amalfitani, a venue that has become a proper fortress of late, the semi-final win was their seventh in succession. As they prepare for their daunting date with the Crusaders in Christchurch this Saturday, they should feel well and truly ready to stage a proper assault on the title – no matter the odds.

Crusaders poised for three peat

In what many have described as the game of the tournament, the Crusaders managed to come away with a nail-biting 30-26 semi-final victory over the Hurricanes in Christchurch on the weekend.

While the Canes – and particularly Beauden Barrett – did well to come back after a questionable first-forty and nearly claim the result in the end, it was ultimately the two-time defending champions that earned the right to play in a third-consecutive final. They will start as overwhelming favorites as they host the Jaguares at Orangetheory Stadium this Saturday – and rightly so. They have been nigh-on unplayable over the past several seasons and while the Argentines will certainly have their moments in the contest, expect the competition’s most successful side to come away with the spoils.

Dark arts not all bad

With the Hurricanes staging a last-gasp attack inside the Crusaders’ twenty-two in the dying moments of Saturday’s second semi-final, TJ Perenara looked to send the ball wide only for Saders skipper Sam Whitelock to cynically knock the ball out of his hands from the ruck. Referee Nic Berry missed the infringement and blew for full time – much to the dismay of Perenara and his team.

While much has been made in New Zealand circles of the manner in which the contest came to a close, there’s no doubt that what Whitelock did was illegal. However, morals aside, the endgame was that the play did send his side through to the final. With so much being made of the Kiwis’ knowledge and implementation of the dark arts down the years, the fact of the matter is that, occasionally, it can work in your favour.