bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Australia's ACT Brumbies' Super Rugby title push gained momentum with their win over champions the Waikato Chiefs coupled with the shock loss of competition leaders the Coastal Sharks at home.
The Brumbies sliced the Sharks' lead to just one point after mastering the back-to-back champions Waikato 41-23 in Canberra.
Jake White's Sharks, who are about to embark on a seasondefining four-match Australasian tour, were smashed 34-18 by New Zealand's Otago Highlanders in one of the shock results of the season in Durban.
The Chiefs paid for their loss to the Brumbies with the Wellington Hurricanes displacing them at the top of the New Zealand conference after a 35-21 home win over the Queensland Reds.

	I think in the last few weeks our forwards have muscled up against some fairly good packs and they make it very easy for us in the backs

	Hurricanes captain Conrad Smith
Season surprises Western Force held on to their fourth-place overall with a gritty 15-9 win over the Northern Bulls in Perth to send the South African triple Super Rugby champions home without a win on their away tour.
The New South Wales Waratahs continued to be thwarted at Eden Park where they lost 21-13 to the lower-ranked Auckland Blues to slip to sixth overall.
In the weekend's other match, the Central Cheetahs kept the Western Stormers at the bottom of the standings with a 35-22 win in a South African derby in Bloemfontein.
The Sharks, who have played seven of their opening nine games at home this season, lost for just the second time this year to the Highlanders.
The Highlanders combined strong, creative running and impressive field kicking to deadly effect, scoring four tries for a bonus-point triumph at Kings Park after building a 24-12 half-time lead.
In Canberra, the Brumbies ran in five tries in an impressive bonus-point win over the Chiefs in a rematch of last year's Super Rugby final.
The Brumbies dominated the Chiefs to lead 36-9 after 63 minutes with 18 straight points while Chiefs replacement James Lowe was given a yellow card for tripping. The Chiefs hit back with two late converted tries to reduce the final margin.
A month after being written off as Super 15 pushovers, the Hurricanes capped a stunning revival by going top of the New Zealand conference with victory over the Reds.
Cory Jane scored a hat-trick of tries as the 'Canes dotted down five times to claim a bonus point.
"I think in the last few weeks our forwards have muscled up against some fairly good packs and they make it very easy for us in the backs," said Hurricanes captain Conrad Smith. "They're creating a lot of space so, if teams are concerned about defending our backs, there's a lot of space up the middle and they're taking it."
The Force have never reached the finals, but moved one step closer when they notched their sixth win from nine matches this season on the back of the boot of South African fly half Sias Ebersohn and another strong defensive effort.
"It was a big win for us," said Force captain Matt Hodgson. "They [the Bulls] came out firing. I think they wanted a win before heading home so we had to nullify that ... we had a lot of discipline in the second half and played a good kick and territory game.
"Kudos to our back three, kicking it back, but also to our kick-chase for the whole 80 minutes. We didn't give them many options running it back."
The Blues maintained their unbeaten home record at Eden Park with their win over the Waratahs.
Despite the loss of form, firebrand Waratahs coach Michael Cheika said his side still harboured ambitions of reining in the Brumbies and the Sharks to secure a guaranteed semi-final on home soil.
"That's got to be our goal," Cheika said. "The Brumbies now are a bit clear of us, but we've still got to play them, which is a plus for us, and they've still got to go to South Africa. And without getting too much into predictions, the Sharks have got six games on the road now."
Additional reporting by Associated Press, Reuters


‘The dog mauled my passport’: family pooch mars newcomer’s All Blacks call-up

Who is Ben Volavola, Shailene Woodley’s ex-boyfriend – and why did the rugby international player and Big Little Lies star break up?

Breakaway threat by players’ union looms as New Zealand Rugby votes on competing proposals about leadership structure

Could Japan join Rugby Championship? Michael Leitch talks tier 1, Asia and Eddie Jones

Super Rugby

Brumbies’ Super 15 title push gathers pace

The Western Force's Kyle Goodwin is brought down in a tackle during the match against the Bulls in Perth. Photo: AFP

Highlanders score four to stun table-topping Sharks

Highlanders fly-half Lima Sopoaga, shown here slipping the Bulls defence during a recent game in Dunedin, didn’t miss a shot at goal against the Sharks in Durban. Photo: AFP

Springboks and Coastal Sharks hooker Bismarck Du Plessis withdrew injured shortly before kick-off on Friday. Photo: Reuters

Sport

Rugby

Canberra side close gap to just one point behind competition leaders Sharks


Australia's ACT Brumbies' Super Rugby title push gained momentum with their win over champions the Waikato Chiefs coupled with the shock loss of competition leaders the Coastal Sharks at home.


Brumbies’ Super 15 title push gathers pace

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Canberra side close gap to just one point behind competition leaders Sharks

Canberra side close gap to just one point behind competition leaders Sharks