Coin toss tie-breaker
SUPER RUGBY UNLOCKED: There is a desperate scramble for the Bulls and the Pumas to play their crucial Round Seven match – including moving it to Saturday.
The Round Six match between the Lions and Pumas – scheduled for Ellis Park this past Saturday – was “postponed” in line with COVID-19 protocols.
The Pumas’ critical encounter with the Bulls this coming Friday is now also at risk, as a result of the same National Institute for Communicable Diseases ‘prescribed precautions’.
“Contact tracing protocols were followed, which identified that all the infected players were engaged in a scrumming session,” SA Rugby said in a media briefing last Friday – explaining the decision to postpone the Lions versus Pumas encounter.
As a result, seven Pumas players were placed in quarantine.
They can start training again on Thursday – if no new positive tests emerge this week.
The Pumas have stated that they are keen to play, even if it means shifting the match to Saturday or even Sunday.
The Bulls would welcome that approach, seeing as they top the log with 19 points – just two ahead of the Stormers and Sharks, who face each other in Durban on Saturday.
If the Bulls-Pumas match is declared a draw, each team will receive two points, which will move Jake White’s side up to 21.
The Pretoria outfit does have a favourable plus-70 points differential.
The winners of the Kings Park clash will claim the title if they win with a bonus point, as such a result would take their log tally to 22.
However, if either side in Durban wins without a bonus point and the Bulls versus Pumas match is declared a draw, it will leave two teams tied on 21 points.
(Article continues below standings … )
Tie-breaking rules for Super Rugby Unlocked are slightly different from other competitions and includes a ‘coin toss’ as the ultimate tie-breaker.
Below is the tie-breaker rules
Winner
The Super Rugby Unlocked champion will be the team with the most log points at the end of the competition (a single round of seven matches per team) concluding on November 21.
Log position tie-breaker
In the event of two or more teams being equal on log points for any position on the standings, either during or at the end of the season, such position will be decided upon using the following steps until the tie is broken:
a) Most wins from all matches;
b) Highest aggregate points difference from all matches;
c) Most tries from all matches;
d) Highest aggregate difference of total tries for versus tries scored against from all matches;
e) Coin toss.
Log points
Win: Four points
Draw: Two points
Loss: Zero points for a loss by more than 7 points
Bonus: One point for a loss by seven points or fewer
Bonus: One point for scoring three tries or more than opponent
