The Chiefs have the bye next weekend, while the Crusaders have the chance to clamber back up the table when they travel to Sydney to play the New South Wales Waratahs.
But whether it’s in Hamilton or Christchurch, put your money on the final at the end of next month being a north-south clash. If it’s as remotely as dramatic as the round-robin games between the two, it’ll be compulsive viewing.
One man can make a difference
Success for the Chiefs on Saturday night came on the back of a terrific forward performance, and there’s talent in the side from Shaun Stevenson at fullback right through to a potent front row.
But the cutting edge for the Chiefs was provided, as always when he plays, by Damian McKenzie.
He exudes belief and has the range of skills to back up that confidence. He sparked the massive turn of fortune for the Chiefs in Christchurch.
Two minutes into injury time in the first half, he fired a huge pass to Stevenson that led to Emoni Narawa’s try.
Three minutes into the second spell, on the back of what looked like an orthodox rolling maul from a lineout, McKenzie sprinted to the blindside and was over for a try that closed the gap to 19-15 to the Crusaders. From that moment, the Chiefs were irrepressible.
One man can make a difference, part II
The most unsettling sight for the Crusaders wasn’t even the scoreboard at the end. It came in the 19th minute, when All Blacks fullback Will Jordan limped off the field with his right knee heavily strapped.
The apparent ligament damage will definitely keep him out of Saturday’s game against the Waratahs. What the Crusaders will be desperately hoping is that the injury won’t sideline him for the playoffs.
Jordan has been the outstanding player of this year’s competition and it doesn’t feel like a coincidence that 2025 has been an entirely different year for the Crusaders compared with the nightmare of 2024 when they were without him.
Another shining star
Chiefs No 8 Wallace Sititi was in the same sort of form on Saturday that brought him an All Blacks jersey last year. Sititi has greatness stamped all over him, combining startling speed and impressive skills with a work ethic that has touches of Ardie Savea’s perpetual motion approach.
Not pretty but effective
The Blues showed a lot of the old-school, risk-averse style that took them to the title last year in their 34-5 demolition of the Fijian Drua in Suva on Friday night.
It wasn’t pretty or especially entertaining but, as was the case in 2024, it was extremely effective.
And most importantly, it moved them into the top six, where they will need to stay to be involved when the knockout games start in four weeks.
You’d expect more of the same pressure to be applied at North Harbour Stadium on Saturday, when Ardie Savea and his Moana Pasifika team will face what looms as a massive test from the Blues.
Hard-nosed example
Epitomising the Blues’ attitude was openside flanker Dalton Papali’i, who was at his aggressive, hard-edged best in Suva.
Everyone in the Blues pack buckled down and Hoskins Sotutu had his most assertive and best game of the year. But Papali’i, even by his own relentless standards, was exceptional.
With the first test against France on July 5, the timing is perfect for Papali’i to be hitting top form.
Raging Ricky
Blues hooker Ricky Riccitelli can’t catch a break at All Blacks level but it certainly isn’t for lack of effort. He plays every minute like a kid who’s just eaten a bowl of white sugar.
What’s remarkable is that he can take a deep breath, control the frenzy of his general play and be an accurate thrower to the lineout. There’s nobody in Super Rugby who’s more engaging to watch.
A sad reality
One of the great beauties of sport is that usually it can be relied on to take you away from the grim realities in everyday life. But sometimes real life strips away the mental shelter sport can provide.
Sadly, it was revealed after the Blues-Drua game that Drua players were deeply affected by news of the death of former Fiji international Josaia Raisuqe, who was tragically killed when his car was hit by a train in France, where he played for the Castres club.
Drua coach Glen Jackson said the tragic loss of Raisuqe, which the players learned of only a couple of hours before kickoff, contributed to a modest performance from his team.
The grief felt by the Drua players, usually fired up by their home crowd, helped explain why their play had a distracted feel.
