Down to the wire
With one round left before the Super Rugby play-offs there are nine teams who have a chance of cracking the top six.
The top three teams in each conference – the Waratahs, Crusaders and Sharks – have all booked their spots in the knock-out phase of the competition already, but there are only two log points separating the next five teams on the standings.
The Waratahs have had an outstanding season under Michael Cheika and cannot be caught by any other team no matter what happens in their Aussie derby against the Reds in Brisbane. It will be interesting to see whether Cheika plays his full strength team in what is always a fiercely-fought match as resting too many players could have the effect of costing them momentum.
The Crusaders face the Highlanders in one of the key games of the final round which will effectively decide the winner of the New Zealand conference which has been wide open all season with five evenly-matched sides.
The Highlanders can overhaul the seven-time champions by claiming a bonus-point victory by more than seven points in Christchurch, but by the same token a defeat could mean the end of their season if other results do not go their way.
The Sharks will easily top the South African conference, but they will have their eye on second place and an automatic semifinal spot ahead of another gruelling derby against an on-form Stormers side at Newlands.
Jake White's team can earn themselves a bye if they outdo the Crusaders' efforts against the Highlanders on Friday, but it could be a tall order against a confident Stormers outfit in Cape Town.
The key match in the Australian conference this weekend will be between the Brumbies and the Force who will travel to Canberra looking to secure their first-ever play-off spot.
Both teams are locked on 40 points, and could conceivably both go through if results go their way, which should give the match an extra edge.
Incredibly, all five New Zealand sides could still qualify for the play-offs, with the Hurricanes effectively helpless as they have played all their games and get to watch the rest of the matches nervously on their bye weekend.
The eighth-placed defending champion Chiefs get things started on Friday when they travel to Eden Park to face the Blues who have not lost there this season. The Blues need to beat the Chiefs by at least 39 points including four tries to overhaul the Hurricanes on points difference and sneak in.
Any win will do for the Chiefs, whilst the Hurricanes will be hoping that they lose, but not by too much, to the Blues in Auckland.
There will also be a few 'dead rubbers' with the Lions v Cheetahs and Bulls v Rebels games having no impact on the play-off places at all, whilst it could be argued that the Reds v Waratahs game is also fairly meaningless as the Sydney side have already wrapped up top spot.
Fixtures and possible permutations:
Friday, July 11
Blues v Chiefs
Venue: Eden Park Auckland
Kick-off: 19.35 (07.35 GMT)
Blues: 36 points
Highest possible: sixth
Lowest possible: 11th
Chiefs: 40 points
Highest possible: fourth
Lowest possible: ninth
Brumbies v Force
Venue: Canberra Stadium, Canberra
Kick-off: 19.40 (09.40 GMT)
Brumbies: 40 points
Highest possible: Fourth
Lowest possible: Eighth
Force: 40 points
Highest possible: Fourth
Lowest possible: Eighth
Bulls v Rebels
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 19.10 (17.10 GMT)
Bulls: 33 points
Highest possible: Ninth
Lowest possible: 12th
Rebels: 21 points
Highest possible: 14th
Lowest possible: 15th
Saturday, July 12
Crusaders v Highlanders
Venue: AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Kick-off: 19.35 (07.35 GMT)
Crusaders: 46 points
Highest possible: Second
Lowest possible: Fourth
Highlanders: 42 points
Highest possible: Second
Lowest possible: Seventh
Reds v Waratahs
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Kick-off: 19.40 (09.40 GMT)
Reds: 28 points
Highest possible: 10th
Lowest possible: 14th
Waratahs: 53 points
Highest possible: 1st
Lowest possible: 1st
Lions v Cheetahs
Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 17.05 (15.05 GMT)
Lions: 26 points
Highest possible: 12th
Lowest possible: 14th
Cheetahs: 24 points
Highest possible: 12th
Lowest possible: 15th
Stormers v Sharks
Venue: Newlands, Cape Town
Kick-off: 19.10 (17.10 GMT)
Stormers: 32 points
Highest possible: Ninth
Lowest possible: 12th
Sharks: 46 points
Highest possible: Second
Lowest possible: Third
