GUINNESS PRO14: Round 21 Preview
The final round of the GUINNESS PRO14’s regular season approaches with plenty still to play for. While the final series qualifiers appear to be sorted in Conference A, just five Championship points separate the teams in second to fourth place in Conference B so it may not be until the final whistle blows on Saturday before we have the confirmed participants for the PRO14 final series.
After Saturday’s action, just six teams will be left in the mix in the battle to reach the GUINNESS PRO14 final at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, May 26 (see www.ticketmaster.ie or www.pro14rugby.org/final).
GUINNESS PRO14 FINAL SERIES – AS THINGS STAND:
Semi-Final Qualifier 1: MUNSTER (A2)* v Edinburgh (B3)
Semi-Final Qualifier 2: Scarlets (B2) v Toyota Cheetahs (A3)
Semi-Final 1: LEINSTER (B1)* v Munster* or Edinburgh
Semi-Final 2: Glasgow Warriors (A1)* v Scarlets or Toyota Cheetahs
* Qualified for final series
The final round opens in South Africa when the Southern Kings face the Toyota Cheetahs in Port Elizabeth. One point will guarantee the Cheetahs third spot in Conference A, less if Cardiff Blues do not gain a maximum point win.
Former champions Connacht and Leinster meet at the Sportsground in Connacht captain John Muldoon’s final game as a professional player. Leinster have a home semi-final in their grasp as even if the Scarlets join them on 14 victories and 70 league points, Leo Cullen’s men have a far superior scoring difference (+264 points compared the Welsh side’s +138).
The Scarlets are in action at the same time, playing the Dragons in the first of the ‘Judgment Day’ double header fixtures at Principality Stadium. They will be looking for a bonus-point win to at least secure home advantage in the qualifiers, it could be less depending on Edinburgh and Ulster’s results.
Cardiff face the Ospreys in the second ‘Judgement Day’ clash, with the Blues have already qualified for next season’s Champions Cup, while the Ospreys are in the Champions Cup play-off. However, it may still be mathematically possible for Cardiff to overtake the Cheetahs in third place.
Pride is at stake when Benetton Rugby host Zebre in Treviso, the Italian teams enjoying their best ever season in the Championship.
Ulster need a bonus point victory over Munster and other results to go their way in order to edge out Edinburgh for a qualifier place in Conference B. The Munstermen, who have already secured a home qualifier in Conference A, are looking to bounce back from their Champions Cup semi-final exit last Sunday.
The final round wraps up in Scotland when Edinburgh host Glasgow Warriors at BT Murrayfield in what will also be the deciding leg of the 1872 Cup. The Warriors have already qualified for a home semi-final as Conference A table toppers, while Edinburgh are still in mix alongside the Scarlets and Ulster as qualifiers from Conference B.
GUINNESS PRO14 – ROUND 21 FIXTURES:
Saturday, April 28 –
Southern Kings (7th, Con B) v Toyota Cheetahs (3rd, Con A), Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, 3pm local time (live SuperSport 1)
CONNACHT (6th, Con A) v LEINSTER (1st, Con B), the Sportsground, 3.05pm (live TG4)
Dragons (6th, Con B) v Scarlets (2nd, Con B), Principality Stadium, 3.05pm (live BBC 2 Wales/Sky Sports Action)
Benetton Rugby (5th, Con B) v Zebre (7th, Con A), Stadio di Monigo, 6pm local time (live Eurosport Italia)
MUNSTER (2nd, Con A) v ULSTER (4th, Con B), Thomond Park, 5.35pm (live TG4/BBC 2 Northern Ireland/Sky Sports Action)
Cardiff Blues (4th, Con A) v Ospreys (5th, Con A), Principality Stadium, 5.35pm (live S4C)
Edinburgh (3rd, Con B) v Glasgow Warriors (1st, Con A), BT Murrayfield, 7.45pm (live Sky Sports Action/Sky Sports Main Event)
TOP PERFORMERS IN GUINNESS PRO14 AFTER ROUND 20 (Powered by Opta Statistics):
TOP POINTS SCORERS –
John Cooney (Ulster) 160
Jarrod Evans (Cardiff Blues) 127
Carlo Canna (Zebre) 127
Jack Carty (Connacht) 123
Ross Byrne (Leinster) 110
TOP TRY SCORERS –
Barry Daly (Leinster) 11
Makazole Mapimpi (Toyota Cheetahs) 10
George Horne (Glasgow Warriors) 9
Mattia Bellini (Zebre) 8
Craig Gilroy (Ulster) 8
Monty Ioane (Benetton Rugby) 8
Alex Wootton (Munster) 8
TOP TRY ASSISTS –
John Cooney (Ulster) 10
Luke McGrath (Leinster) 9
Ross Byrne (Leinster) 9
Tomos Williams (Cardiff Blues) 9
Shaun Venter (Toyota Cheetahs) 9
Marty Banks (Benetton Rugby) 9
METRES GAINED –
Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh) 1327
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 1173
Tiernan O’Halloran (Connacht) 1162
Jeff Hassler (Ospreys) 1020
Clayton Blommetjies (Toyota Cheetahs) 1014
MOST CARRIES –
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 228
Stuart McCloskey (Ulster) 219
Tom Farrell (Connacht) 217
Olly Cracknell (Ospreys) 198
Dan Evans (Ospreys) 188
CLEAN BREAKS –
John Cooney (Ulster) 24
Mattia Bellini (Zebre) 23
Jeff Hassler (Ospreys) 23
Makazole Mapimpi (Toyota Cheetahs) 22
Matt Healy (Connacht) 21
DEFENDERS BEATEN –
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 64
Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh) 58
Willis Halaholo (Cardiff Blues) 56
Tom Farrell (Connacht) 55
Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh) 54
MOST PASSES –
John Cooney (Ulster) 1410
Tom Habberfield (Ospreys) 1185
Marcello Violi (Zebre) 1057
Kieran Marmion (Connacht) 968
Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues) 757
MOST OFFLOADS –
Tom Farrell (Connacht) 43
Charles Piutau (Ulster) 30
Rey Lee-Lo (Cardiff Blues) 22
Francois Venter (Toyota Cheetahs) 22
Alberto Sgarbi (Benetton Rugby) 21
Alex Wootton (Munster) 21
Berton Klaasen (Southern Kings) 21
KICKS FROM HAND –
Carlo Canna (Zebre) 130
Jack Carty (Connacht) 120
Sam Hidalgo-Clyne (Edinburgh) 114
Ian Keatley (Munster) 111
Sam Davies (Ospreys) 102
MOST TACKLES –
Bobby de Wee (Southern Kings) 250
Paul Schoeman (Toyota Cheetahs) 225
Andisa Ntsila (Southern Kings) 222
Olly Robinson (Cardiff Blues) 213
Josh Turnbull (Cardiff Blues) 206
LINEOUTS WON –
Reniel Hugo (Toyota Cheetahs) 85
Josh Turnbull (Cardiff Blues) 63
Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors) 60
Alan O’Connor (Ulster) 58
David Bulbring (Scarlets) 57
TURNOVERS WON –
Tadhg Beirne (Scarlets) 37
Nick Williams (Cardiff Blues) 22
Michael Willemse (Southern Kings) 21
Jean Deysel (Ulster) 18
Robin Copeland (Munster) 17
For more statistics, please visit www.pro14rugby.org/powered-by-opta.