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The Super 14 will open in February with the tournament’s first two matches pitting Australian teams against New Zealand rivals.
The 14th edition of the Super Rugby competition kicks off on Friday, 13 February, with the Highlanders hosting the Brumbies in Dunedin. Later the same night the Western Force – the only Australian team at home in week one – will take on the Blues in Perth. Queensland Reds have their first two matches of the Investec Super 14 in South Africa, with the heavyweight Bulls in Pretoria set down as their first assignment. NSW Waratahs begin their campaign in Wellington against the Hurricanes – both teams were semi-finalists last season. The Waratahs then return home for three successive matches in Sydney against the Chiefs, the Highlanders and on 6 March an interstate showdown with the Reds. The first of the all-Australian matches falls on 28 February when the Brumbies play host to the Western Force in Canberra. A week earlier the Brumbies take on defending champions the Crusaders in Canberra. The Crusaders open their title defence against the Chiefs in Christchurch on Saturday, 14 February. The 94-match Investec Super 14 will move into its regular four-team semi-finals mode on the weekend of 22-23 May with the final to be played on Saturday, 30 May. PREVIOUS SUPER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR WINNERS RUNNERS UP 1996 BLUES SHARKS 1997 BLUES BRUMBIES 1998 CRUSADERS BLUES 1999 CRUSADERS HIGHLANDERS 2000 CRUSADERS BRUMBIES 2001 BRUMBIES SHARKS 2002 CRUSADERS BRUMBIES 2003 BLUES CRUSADERS 2004 BRUMBIES CRUSADERS 2005 CRUSADERS WARATAHS 2006 CRUSADERS HURRICANES 2007 BULLS SHARKS 2008 CRUSADERS WARATAHS |