The Super 14 enters its penultimate round this weekend and the play-off race is hotting up even more.

None of the teams currently in the play-off bubble can afford a slip-up this weekend and the top four would most certainly want to strengthen their positions at the front-end of the table.

Up to nine teams still have an opportunity to make the semi's which suggests that Week 13 will also be able to deliver a number of "finals", as teams make a last-gasp attempt for the semis.

This weekend's action kicks off on Friday when the Crusaders host the Reds in Christchurch while in Johannesburg, the Lions will face the Highlanders.

The blockbuster encounter between the Hurricanes and Chiefs taking place in Hamilton kicks off Saturday's action before the Brumbies and Blues battle it out in Canberra.

iafrica.com previews the action...

Friday, May 8

Crusaders v Reds
(Christchurch - 19.35, 07.35 GMT)

The Crusaders are still very much Super 14 title contenders and they will be hoping to make a successful return to Christchurch after their South African tour, which saw them losing to the lowly Cheetahs.

Their shock defeat may well come back to haunt them but they still have two relatively 'easy' fixtures in the Reds and Blues over the next fortnight.

The match is of the greatest importance to the defending champions. They are a vastly superior side than the Reds, but have not really impressed this season other than showing great patience on attack and good organisation on defence. They seem to miss a playmaker in the absence of Daniel Carter.

A win will see Crusaders keep in touch with the log leaders, and with a number of tight matches in the last two rounds, ten points could see them sneak in.

They shouldn't have too many problems with a Reds side that had their moments during the season and also played some exciting rugby. However, with the chips down and the Reds, unmotivated after a tough season, becoming more unpredictable in every match, this should be one for Crusaders to take at a canter.

The Reds have been ravaged by injuries leading up to this encounter and they also come into this match off a heavy defeat by the Brumbies.

Therefore, Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder is wary of a Reds team which will come to Christchurch with little to lose.

"They are a very dangerous team no matter the weather, as we saw in their big win over the Blues in the wet in North Harbour recently," Blackadder said.

"They showed they are a very good counter-attacking team so we'll have to be on top of our game again.

"We are feeling excited about Friday?s match in front of a home crowd after three weeks away in South Africa and we hope to put in a very good performance as a reward for our supporters."

Recent results:

2008: Crusaders v Reds 27-21, Brisbane
2007: Crusaders v Reds 33-22, Christchurch
2006: Crusaders v Reds 47-21, Brisbane
2005: Crusaders v Reds 59-24, Nelson
2004: Crusaders v Reds 20-17, Brisbane

iafrica.com Prediction: The Reds have been ravaged by injury ahead of this game while the Crusaders will be desperate to win to keep their play-off hopes alive. The Crusaders will therefore get a comfortable victory by at least 12 points.

Teams:

Crusaders: 15 Leon MacDonald, 14 Jared Payne, 13 Tim Bateman, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Adam Whitelock, 10 Stephen Brett/Hamish Gard, 9 Andy Ellis/Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Thomas Waldrom, 7 Richie McCaw/Jonathan Poff, 6 Kieran Read, 5 Isaac Ross, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Jason Macdonald, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements: 16 Daniel Perrin, 17 Bronson Murray, 18 Michael Paterson, 19 Jonathan Poff/Ross Filipo, 20 Kahn Fotuali'i/Tyson Keats 21 Sean Maitland, 22 Hamish Gard/Blair Cook.

Reds: 15 Quade Cooper, 14 Brando Va'aulu, 13 Charlie Fetoai, 12 Anthony Faingaa, 11 Rodney Davies, 10 Ben Lucas, 9 Brendan McKibbin, 8 Leroy Houston, 7 TBC, 6 Ezra Taylor, 5 Adam Byrnes, 4 Van Humphries, 3 Laurie Weeks, 2 Sean Hardman (captain), 1 Ben Daley.
Replacements: 16 Saia Faingaa, 17 Greg Holmes, 18 Robert Simmons, 19 Scott Higginbotham/Andrew Shaw, 20 Richard Kingi, 21 Ben Tapuai, 22 Anthony Sauer.

Referee:Chris Pollock (NZ)
Touch judges: Keith Brown (NZ), Kane McBride (NZ)
TMO: James McPhail (NZ)

Lions v Highlanders
(Johannesburg - 19.10, 17.10 GMT)

This is the only game this weekend where neither team will be playing for a play-off spot, so there's not much beside pride and perhaps, win-bonuses, at stake in this one.

The Lions have maintained their average form throughout the season, while the Highlanders were unable to maintain their brilliant mid-season run which put them into contention for the play-offs a few weeks ago.

The Lions, who have now lost 27 of their last 37 matches for a 27 percent winning record over the last three seasons, will have to take a serious look at how they play the game.

No side, good or bad, can play the unstructured run-at-all-costs rugby that they have been, and still are, dishing up.

Exciting it may be, but there must be less of the loose passing, more patience in the build-up and better execution and decision making if they hope to end the season on a high.

Important from a national perspective would be the performance of Jaque Fourie after injury. He didn't look quite at his best last weekend. Jano Vermaak, certainly the second best scrumhalf in the country, could also impress the selectors, although on-the-bench Ricky Januarie will probably get the Springbok selectors' vote as national number two after Fourie du Preez.

And there is, of course, also Lions fullback Louis Ludik, who has had a super season at fullback - a position which has become a troublesome one for Bok coach Peter de Villiers.

The Lions were very competitive against the defending champions, Crusaders last weekend while the Highlanders were uninspiring against the Sharks, despite being in with a chance to win the game

Hopefully, it will be an entertaining match as both teams do not have much at stake.

Lions coach Eugene Eloff is hoping his team will be able to put on a good performance and at least finish the season on a positive note.

"If there are a few key aspects we need to work on it will be consistency, to perform well for 80 minutes, game after game, and just individual responsibilities, missing vital first time tackles, decision making in vital times of the match, when we have the ball in hand we are very dangerous," Eloff said.

"We need to do that for longer periods, get more possession and keep it! We cannot keep up tackling 150 tackles per match, bodies are human and will break down."

He also said that finishing lastis simply not an option and it is definitely a motivating factor for his team.

"One thing I will take may hat off for the boys - they play with passion, hearts and guts. But that is simply not enough now. We have to win matches when we have teams against the ropes.

"Now we play for pride, our supporters and moving up the log, the wooden spoon is not negotiable. I do believe that if we play to our true potential we can win both these matches.

Recent results:

2008: Lions v Highlanders 20-29, Dunedin
2007: Lions v Highlanders 11-6, Johannesburg
2006: Lions v Highlanders 14-16, Invercargill
2005: Lions v Highlanders 12-16, Johannesburg
2004: Lions v Highlanders 17-29, Dunedin

iafrica.com Prediction: The Highlanders had mid-season success but they have fallen off the pace lately while the Lions are looking to salvage something from their sorry campaign. Both teams will be desperate to keep their pride in tact but the Lions may just have the edge by at least five points.

Teams:

Lions: 15 Earl Rose, 14 Louis Ludik, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Doppies La Grange, 11 Deon van Rensburg, 10 Andre Pretorius, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Willem Alberts, 7 Robert Kruger, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar/Johan van Deventer, 5 Anton van Zyl, 4 Jannes Labuschagne, 3 Lawrence Sephaka, 2 Willie Wepener, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Replacements: 16 Hans van Dyk, 17 Gert Muller, 18 Franco van der Merwe, 19 Todd Clever, 20 Chris Jonck, 21 Walter Venter, 22 Michael Killian.

Highlanders: tba

Referee: Jaco Peyper (SA)
Touch judges: Craig Joubert (SA), Cobus Wessels (SA)
TMO: Shaun Veldsman (SA)

Saturday, May 9

Chiefs v Hurricanes
(Hamilton - 19.35, 07.35 GMT)

This should be a blockbuster! This is being billed as the 'match of the season' and the clash is also on course to be a sellout.

The Hurricanes are on an upward curve having recorded four back-to-back victories. If they beat the Chiefs they will almost certainly secure a home semifinal and they will also emerge as the favourites to win the title.

The Chiefs will have home advantage and they also come into this game off a successful South African campaign.

There will be plenty of individual battles, particularly in them midfield where Richard Kahui will be up against Conrad Smith, while the battle among the loose-trios should also be very interesting.

Chiefs coach Ian Foster is excited about the prospect of returning to Hamilton for such a big New Zealand derby on home turf.

"I think it's going to be good to watch. [The Hurricanes] have obviously hit their straps in the last few weeks and played great rugby," he said.

"They've certainly gone into this campaign as probably the favourite team along with the Sharks and I think they're hitting their straps at the right time, but the nice thing is... we're pretty happy with our form too.

"It's going to be a nice little local derby."

The Hurricanes (335 points) and the Chiefs (312) boast the best two attacks in the competition and Hurricanes coach Colin Cooper was impressed by the way they had rounded their game.

"They're playing well, their set piece has really improved and then when you add Leonard and the two wingers back in, it'll be a tough game," he said.

He also played down the fact that jetlag would have an impact after arriving home on Monday and having a short week to prepare while the Hurricanes are well rested from their 45-27 rout of the Blues last Friday.

But Cooper played down the effect jetlag would have on the Chiefs. "The excitement of winning over there and playing without their star players ... the travel will still be an issue but probably not a major issue when you're in a good space like they are."

Recent results:

2008: Chiefs v Hurricanes 19-39, Wellington
2007: Chiefs v Hurricanes 32-39, Hamilton
2006: Chiefs v Hurricanes 10-35, Wellington
2005: Chiefs v Hurricanes 16-28, Wellington
2004: Chiefs v Hurricanes 19-7, Hamilton

iafrica.com Prediction: This game is shaping up to be a blockbuster encounter between two of the form teams in the tournament. The Chiefs have the travel factor to deal with and it could affect them during this encounter. The 'Canes should come out on top by at least eight points.

Teams: tba

Brumbies v Blues
(Canberra Satdium -19.40, 09.40 GMT)

The Brumbies will be in a confident mood heading into this match after thrashing the Reds by 39 points last weekend.

But they will have to repeat their performance in order to boost their chances of making the play-offs. The Blues are still in the running for a place among the top four but they come into this game off two losses over the past two weekends.

Brumbies coach Andy Friend says Saturday?s match is a critical encounter for both the Brumbies and Blues as they vie for a finals berth.

"Last weekend?s performance against the Reds was unquestionably an improved one from the week before but we haven?t dwelled too much on it," he said.

"We've been quick to move our focus onto the Blues, who, like us, will be playing to keep their season alive.

"Both sides have shown a desire to play an open brand of rugby but given that they've scored seven bonus-point wins, we'll also need to ensure that our defence is in check as it was against the Reds."

Fullback Adam Ashley-Cooper says the mission of beating the Blues and Chiefs in the last two rounds was very achievable.

''Everyone's really excited about our semi-final prospects and hopefully a final,'' Ashley-Cooper said.

''We've always played well against the Blues at home and we're looking forward to playing in front of our crowd and then hopefully going over to New Zealand to chase another win.

''It's not quite true that the Brumbies have always done well at home against the Blues. The record at Canberra Stadium stands at three wins apiece."

Recent results:

2008: Brumbies v Blues 16-11 Auckland
2007: Brumbies v Blues 15-17 Canberra
2006: Brumbies v Blues 15-26 Auckland
2005: Brumbies v Blues 0-17 Auckland
2004: Brumbies v Blues 44-27 Canberra

iafrica.com Prediction: The Blues have been the most erratic outfit during this year's tournament and the Brumbies shouldn't struggle too much for tries against a poor Blues defence to win by at least 11 points.

Teams:

Brumbies: 15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Francis Fainifo, 13 Tyrone Smith, 12 Gene Fairbanks, 11 Stirling Mortlock, 10 Matt Toomua, 9 Patrick Phibbs, 8 Stephen Hoiles (captain), 7 George Smith, 6 Mitchell Chapman, 5 Peter Kimlin, 4 Ben Hand, 3 Guy Shepherdson, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Ben Alexander.
Replacements: tba

Blues: tba

Referee: Bryce Lawrence (NZ)
Touch judges: Vinny Munro (NZ), Glenn Newman (NZ)
TMO: Shane McDermott (NZ)

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