Who’s hot and who’s not: Premiership finalists and top dogs celebrate while Crusaders and Edinburgh reflect

Adam Kyriacou
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Northampton Saints while the Crusaders miss out on the top eight spots in Super Rugby Pacific.

A Premiership final beckons for Northampton Saints while the Crusaders miss out on the top eight spots in Super Rugby Pacific.

It’s time for our Monday wrap of who has their name in lights and who is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons after the weekend.

THEY’RE ON FIRE!

Premiership finalists: And then there were two. Northampton Saints and Bath will square off in the Premiership final many wanted this weekend as these box office teams look to get their hands on the coveted trophy. Saints edged reigning champions Saracens 22-20 on Friday night thanks to 17 points from the boot of Fin Smith before Bath got the better of Sale Sharks 31-23 on Saturday. Luther Burrell predicted on Planet Rugby it would be a weekend decided by the number 10s and so it proved as all four fly-halves impressed. Owen Farrell and George Ford bow out with their sides despite their best efforts as Smith and Finn Russell march on for what will be an epic match at Twickenham.

Munster finish top dogs: To have their fate in their own hands going into the final regular-season weekend was an achievement in itself. Munster were 11th in the United Rugby Championship standings on January 2 and since then they have accumulated nine straight wins and 44 from a possible 45 points. It’s a quite staggering run of form as the holders now have a home route to another potential final. Ulster didn’t make life easy mind you at Thomond Park on Saturday as they led Munster by 10 points on two separate occasions before Munster’s bench had the desired impact to propel them back to top spot after Leinster, Glasgow and the Bulls had won their games. Bring on the quarters.

Salesi Rayasi and ‘Canes: Speaking of table toppers and it’s the Hurricanes who finish at the Super Rugby Pacific summit, thanks in part to a late Chiefs try against the Blues that denied the latter a try bonus point. Wing Salesi Rayasi was the hero for the Hurricanes against the Highlanders on Saturday with his hat-trick while the underrated Du’Plessis Kirifi grabbed a brace. It’s a deserved achievement for the ‘Canes as they head into their quarter-final with the Melbourne Rebels full of confidence and congratulations must also go to the other seven teams making the knockout mix, with Fijian Drua heading to the Blues set to be a gripping fixture, as will the Chiefs against the Reds in Hamilton.

Ospreys defy the odds: Given a 5% chance of making the play-offs ahead of the final round of URC games, somehow the Ospreys did the unthinkable over the weekend. Thanks to Edinburgh and Connacht having nothing to show for their efforts on Saturday and also the Lions claiming just one point at the Stormers, Toby Booth’s outfit went into their fixture against Cardiff knowing that a bonus-point victory would secure them a top eight spot. A 33-29 triumph over their Welsh rivals did the job as the Ospreys celebrate a season where they have more than punched above their weight. They head to Munster full of confidence despite it being 1 v 8 in the rankings, looking to cause an upset.

Tom Curry back in action: Incredible. The England international was not expected to be back on the field so soon after he underwent major hip surgery to address arthritic change and tears to the labrum and cartilage. The surgery came after his previous game during the Rugby World Cup in the Bronze Final against Argentina. Seeing his name on the Sale bench was a massive fillip for the club and he more than made an impact when he came on, folding Bath replacement Josh Bayliss and others in the tackle while offering plenty in the carry. Rugby will hope he’s well managed and possibly not risked by England in the summer in order to ease his return to action so he stays fit.

England: 11 hopefuls who impressed in the Premiership semi-finals, including a back-rower in a ‘different league’

SVNS Grand Final winners: After the completion of World Rugby’s 2023/24 SVNS series, the participating teams headed to the Grand Final in Madrid and that event came to a thrilling conclusion on Sunday with France and Australia claiming title victories in the men’s and women’s competitions respectively. Les Bleus showed that their win in the Los Angeles leg of the series was no fluke as they sealed a 19-5 triumph over eventual series winners Argentina in an entertaining final. Meanwhile, Australia’s women were deserved winners in their final against France as they claimed the gold medal courtesy of a 26-7 win. Congratulations to both sides as the focus now turns to the Olympics.

COLD AS ICE!

Crusaders miss the cut: From seven title wins on the spin to missing the top eight places is a staggering fall from grace for the Crusaders. Since Scott Robertson left and several stars with him, the Crusaders have looked a shadow of their recent selves. Injuries haven’t helped too to the likes of Fergus Burke, Will Jordan, Scott Barrett and others, but to lose 10 matches from 14 is hard to hide from for head coach Rob Penney. It is now a nervous wait to find out if he survives the axe and he will hope that their recent wins over the Blues and Moana Pasifika have saved his skin but one can’t help but feel the writing is on the wall. Performances and results just have not been up to their standards.

Jonny Hill fan fracas: There were unsightly scenes at full-time in the Premiership semi-final at the Recreation Ground on Saturday when England international and Sale Sharks second-row Hill allegedly grabbed a man around the throat and left him with a cut above his eye after an incident in the crowd. Hill, who is currently recovering from a long-term knee injury, watched the match with Sale’s coaching team in the main grandstand but at full-time it has been reported he had an altercation with the supporter. Sale are investigating what took place after many of the media reported the story on Saturday night, with their narrow defeat to Bath unfortunately compounded by this alleged event.

Rugby Australia cut Rebels: It was bad news for the Melbourne Rebels last week after they were axed by Rugby Australia (RA) after the governing body refused to accept a bid from a private consortium to rescue the franchise. The Rebels have been in voluntary administration since January with debts owed to creditors exceeding AUS$23m, including AUS$11.5m in tax. RA took over the running of the team for the 2024 season, covering the costs of the players and staff for this campaign, and there was hope when a potential buyer proposed a rescue plan. However, the governing body rejected that bid and have instead chosen to cut the Rebels from Super Rugby Pacific at the end of the season. The news came before their clash with Fijian Drua as players no doubt look for new clubs as they prepare for a play-off tie against the ‘Canes.

Edinburgh fall flat: That was an unexpectedly dismal performance from the Scottish side albeit against a Benetton team that has shown they are a threat this season. To lose 31-6 in Italy in such a crucial match will no doubt disappoint their fans and with results elsewhere they dropped from seventh to tenth to ultimately miss the play-offs. Head coach Sean Everitt will no doubt rue not having the likes of Wes Goosen and long-term injury victim Darcy Graham, but it was still a strong team named for what was dubbed a “Cup final for us”. Ultimately 11 wins from 18 is a decent season but Edinburgh came up short due to a lack of bonus points and this final defeat leaves the squad and fans deflated.

Luke Jacobson decision: The All Black’s clearout in the Chiefs’ 31-17 loss to the Blues has caused plenty of discussion as he was penalised but avoided any card from referee Ben O’Keeffe, despite Jacobson making head on head contact with Blues scrum-half Finlay Christie. The flanker was seeking to counter-ruck but he led with his head and ended up flying through the breakdown. He brushed against hooker Ricky Riccitelli’s shoulder before connecting with Christie and it was surprising to see just a penalty given by the officials. “That’s six week ban in the northern hemisphere,” one person wrote on X. While we might not go that far it would surely have been a card north of the equator as, not for the first time this season, it seems that the officials in the southern hemisphere appear to differ in their approach to head contact.

New Zealand ‘civil war’: New Zealand’s provincial unions overwhelmingly rejected a governance change proposal from New Zealand Rugby (NZR) at a special general meeting in Wellington last week as fears of a ‘civil war’ intensify. After the findings of an independent review conducted by governance expert David Pilkington stated that NZR is ‘not fit for purpose’, some provincial unions put forward a different recommendation known as Proposal 2, which led to the New Zealand Rugby Players Association threatening to break from the governing body should the counter proposal be voted in. That proposal was indeed voted in on Thursday so things may now become ugly.

READ MORE: URC Team of the Week: Springbok hopeful’s ‘demolishing’ shift while Benetton’s ‘great conductor’ seals top eight

Australia Jonny Hill Tom Curry

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