All teams have played two games, where the Crusaders, Blues, Hurricanes and Chiefs were victorious in the quarter finals, putting themselves through to Tuesday night's semi-finals.
Super Rugby pre-season on both sides of the Tasman was in full swing over the weekend with Australian and New Zealand teams playing a handful of derbies.
Pre season is all about gaining momentum ahead of the new season, trying new combinations and hopefully avoiding any major injuries.
Former Queensland Reds and Wallabies playmaker James O’Connor joins multiple All Blacks in the Crusaders’ side to take on the Blues.
England flew out of South Africa last Saturday evening to Heathrow as the rightful champions, the consistency of their potent scrum and manipulative defence helping them to a deserved first title since 2016.
Dylan Pledger made such an impression at King’s High School in Dunedin that former Otago outside back and Sports Director Glenn Dickson declared Pledger, “the most impressive” athlete from the school he’s seen.
The Baby Blacks had defeated France in a pool match in Stellenbosch 10 days earlier, Rico Simpson kicking an 80th-minute penalty to dramatically win that classic 27-26. However, the exchanges were very different at Cape Town Stadium on Sunday.
The Baby Blacks place-kicker had his frustrations during his team’s ding-dong match with France, the defending champions.
In 2023 Rico Simpson was a dominant figure in the New Zealand Secondary Schools 34-3 and 57-36 successes over Australia. Across the two matches in Canberra, he kicked ten conversations and three penalties.
Gloucester scrum-half Joe Simpson scored two tries against his former club as Wasps continued their poor start to the new Gallagher Premiership season.