BRISBANE – The Super Rugby champion Queensland Reds grasped an unlikely opportunity to retain the Australian conference title with a bonus-point 32-16 victory over the New South Wales Waratahs Saturday. After the ACT Brumbies had been upset by the Auckland Blues in Canberra, the Reds needed to score four tries and win to secure third place in the final standings and a playoff fixture back at their Lang Park home next weekend. They duly delivered in an entertaining match against their oldest rivals with Scott Higginbotham, Liam Gill, James Slipper and Dom Shipperley grabbing the key scores before Will Genia added a flourish with a fifth try. “We spoke all week about trusting the process rather than focusing on the result,” skipper Genia said in a televised interview. “Things fell our way, I guess, but we worked hard all week for that result.” Having been granted their chance, the Reds made it clear from the start they were not about to pass it up and number eight Higginbotham charged over the line from close range after three minutes. The Waratahs have had a hugely disappointing season. In Christchurch, seven-time champion Canterbury Crusaders clinched fourth place and a home quarterfinal with a lucky 38-24 win over the Western Force in the final round of the regular season. All Blacks fullback Israel Dagg scored the Crusaders' first try after only 43 seconds, setting up a four tries to three win that assured Canterbury took top place among the wild card teams and earned a home clash with the fifth-place team in next weekend's first playoff round. The Crusaders finished with 11 wins from their 16 regular-season matches and with 61 points, three fewer than the Waikato Chiefs who won the New Zealand conference. In Canberra, the lowly Auckland Blues provided one of their best performances of the season in their last match, beating ACT 30-16 to jeopardize the Brumbies' playoff chances and prevent them from clinching first place in the Australian conference. The Blues, with the third-worst tournament record coming into the match, dominated the Brumbies from the outset in often slippery and rainy conditions in Australia's capital. The Brumbies could have clinched first place with a bonus-point loss, but now must await the results of other final-round matches to see if they qualify for the six-team playoffs. It opened the door for the defending champion Queensland Reds to finish first in Australia. In Cape Town, two tries from center Juan de Jongh helped the Stormers beat the Melbourne Rebels 26-21 and finish the season at the top. In Durban, the Sharks booked a place in the playoffs as they ran in four second-half tries to beat South African rivals the Cheetahs 34-15. The Sharks went into the match needing to win by at least five points to advance. In Pretoria, the Bulls clinched the last berth in the playoffs with a 37-20 win over the Lions in the final game of the regular season. — Agencies
