The race for the top eight in the United Rugby Championship is reaching boiling point with four teams still able to move into the top eight. However, at the top Leinster is cruising at the top while the other three teams are still set to change a lot.
The Cell C Sharks has played 2 matches fewer than most and could storm into the top 4 if they win the two outstanding game. The Vodacom Bulls on the other hand could slip to 6th if all teams played the same number of matches. DHL Stormers and Ulster have a substantial buffer between themselves at the rest and should occupy the 2nd and 3rd spots.
The Cell C Sharks were the only South African side to register a victory in a disappointing round of matches for the domestic Vodacom United Rugby Championship teams, but despite this, three of the four teams remain in the top four on the standings.
The KwaZulu-Natalians leapt into the top eight thanks to a hard-fought 22-19 victory clash against Edinburgh, but the other teams all faltered on the road, with the Vodacom Bulls going down 37-28 against the Scarlets, the DHL Stormers suffering a 35-5 defeat against Ulster and the Emirates Lions losing 43-24 against Connacht.
The Cell C Sharks’ win saw them overtake Edinburgh as they moved from ninth to eighth place on the log, while the DHL Stormers held onto second place, and the Vodacom Bulls finished the round in fourth place.
The Emirates Lions, meanwhile, find themselves in 13th position on the table with five rounds of matches remaining before the playoffs.
Elsewhere:
Ospreys 28-24 Zebre Parma
Ospreys staged a dramatic final-quarter recovery to beat Zebre Parma 28-24 at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi.
Zebre led 24-14 after 63 minutes but quickfire tries from Morgan Morris and Reuben Morgan-Williams ended their hopes of a first BKT United Rugby Championship win since last April.
Ospreys were buoyed by their excellent European form having reached the knockout stage of the Champions Cup for the first time since 2010.
Leinster 38-13 Cardiff
Luke McGrath scored two of Leinster's six tries as they made it 13 wins out of 13 United Rugby Championship games with a 38-14 win over Cardiff at the RDS.
McGrath scored two tries in a 10-minute spell, adding to Max Deegan’s opener, as Leo Cullen’s much-changed side led 19-0 at half-time.
Cardiff struggled to get going in greasy conditions, a Jason Harries yellow card being swiftly followed by Brian Deeny’s 49th-minute bonus-point score.
Cardiff had two late scores from replacements Rory Thornton and Kristian Dacey, in response to a Max O’Reilly effort, but the hosts had the final say when Liam Turner capitalised on a loose pass from Ellis Bevan.
Glasgow Warriors 42-28 Dragons RFC
Fraser Brown scored a brace of tries to help Glasgow Warriors to a 42-28 United Rugby Championship victory over Dragons at Rodney Parade.
Munster 40-30 Benetton
Munster ran in six tries to leapfrog Benetton and climb into fifth place in the United Rugby Championship table with a 40-30 win over Benetton.
