Lions will rue loss to lowly Jaguares
A SECOND-STRING Lions team failed to gain a point against the Jaguares in Argentina on Saturday, meaning they finished as second seeds on the overall Super Rugby standings.
New Zealand’s Hurricanes go into the quarterfinals as top seeds after winning the NZ conference, while the Lions won Africa 2 and the Stormers won Africa 1 to end as second and third seeds, respectively.
The Brumbies topped the Australia conference and are the overall fourth seeds.
The Highlanders‚ Chiefs and Crusaders from NZ and the Sharks from South Africa complete the quarterfinal picture as wild cards on the controversial conference system.
In next Saturday’s quarterfinals, the Hurricanes will host the Sharks‚ the Lions will play the Crusaders at Ellis Park and the Stormers will host the Chiefs at Newlands.
On Friday, the Brumbies are up against the Highlanders.
Lions coach Johan Ackermann might also rue his decision to leave 20 of his first-choice players behind for the assignment in Buenos Aires.
Predictably, they came up short losing 34-22.
Had the Lions gained a point they would have finished top seeds‚ meaning a possible home final if they progressed that far.
It would also have meant a last eight against the Sharks and not the dangerous Crusaders‚ who beat the Lions 43-37 at Ellis Park earlier in the year.
The Stormers are on new ground having not played against a side from NZ this season due to the tournament structure that saw them come up against Australian sides in crossconference matches.
Super Rugby quarterfinal draw