Super battlers make an effort

So, some of the also-rans had a dig.

Rubbish more weeks than not, Super Rugby’s slighted ones such as the Rebels, Kings and Cheetahs found sufficient motivation to win or come close. They probably feel they proved some point or silenced some section of the populace in doing so.

It’s just a shame it took news of a three-team cull to cause this sudden onset of competitiveness.

The Rebels beat the Brumbies 19-17, the Kings lost 47-34 to fellow battlers the Reds, while the Cheetahs got up 24-0 against the Chiefs before going down 41-27. More interesting was the way the Lions beat the Stormers 29-16 and the Bulls fought off the Jaguares 26-13, not to mention Sonny Bill Williams’ unhappy night as the Blues lost 28-24 to the Hurricanes in an ordinary game of rugby.

At the sharp end of things, the Crusaders maintained their competition lead thanks to a 50-3 win over the Sunwolves. There’s no point dwelling on that, because it proved nothing.

The table says the Lions, Stormers and Brumbies are the next-best teams after the Crusaders but we all know that’s nonsense, given none have more points than the fifth-placed Chiefs.

You only have to look at the standings to see why people have become so exasperated with contrivances required accommodate 18 teams.

The Rebels-Brumbies game offered an unvarnished look at the state of Australian rugby. Willing, but rarely pretty, the match featured a raft of cards and ended with a late Reece Hodge penalty that handed the Rebels their first win of the season.

The Brumbies only have three themselves, but that’s still good enough to lead the conference by seven points from the Reds.

In New Zealand, the Blues remain rooted to the bottom after failing to accept the untold opportunities offered up by the Hurricanes at Eden Park. Secure set pieces and miserly defence are things the Hurricanes have looked to build their game upon, but were in short supply against the Blues.

The Hurricanes made far too many errors to launch much at all and were staring down the barrel of an embarrassing defeat until some late magic from first five-eighth Beauden Barrett.

The Blues were given chance after chance to put the Hurricanes away and couldn’t. Williams’ performance probably typified the team’s, overplaying his hand and committing errors as a result.

The second five-eighth’s pedigree suggests he’ll be play plenty of blinders in the future but - after a big week off the paddock - he wasn’t able to shine this time. the to

Crusaders Lions Stormers Brumbies Chiefs Hurricanes Sharks Highlanders Jaguares Blues Bulls Reds Force Cheetahs Waratahs Kings Sunwolves Rebels