2006 Super 14 season

Infobox Super 14
year = 2006
format = Super 14
country = Crusaders


imagesize = 185px
caption = Official logo
winners = Crusaders
count = 6th
matches = 94
tries = 447
top point scorer = flagicon|NZL Daniel Carter
221 points
top try scorer = flagicon|Western Samoa Lome Fa'atau
10 Tries The 2006 Super 14 season started on Friday February 10 2006. The Grand Final was held on Saturday May 27 2006. Super 14 is a provincial rugby union competition with 14 teams from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. This season was the first of the expansion, which saw two new teams, the Western Force and the Central Cheetahs, join the Super 12/14. The addition of two new teams led to the name change from the Super 12. It was also the first year for a new Super 14 trophy.

At the start of round one, the Crusaders were the favourite to win this year's title [http://www.tabsportsbetnsw.com.au/Sports/Betting/PlaceFixedOddsBet.aspx?MeetingType=5&LocationCode=0&Competition=1&ContestCode=63132&ContestDate=2006-05-27T00:00:00&BetOption=97 1] with a return of A$3.25 for every $1 bet. The Blues were second favourite with a return of A$4.75 for every $1 bet and the Waratahs were third with a return of A$5.00 for every $1 bet. The Cats were favourites for the wooden spoon. These figures are the final odds.

The season saw the first joint commercial by the three SANZAR unions since 1996. The commercial was filmed in Ukraine and is set in a laundrymart. The ad was attempting to draw interest, with the motto "More teams, more games and more excitement" at the end of the commercial. One player from each of the 14 teams was present, except for the Waratahs. A local extra named "Ouri" filled the role of Mat Rogers who injured his back in a test match for the Wallabies against nrut|Wales.

By the end of round twelve, critics began speculating that the pre-season favourites, the Crusaders, were losing their form after a draw against the winless Western Force and then a shock loss to the Stormers. [http://www.sportal.com.au/union.asp?i=news&id=82042] However they bounced back against the Bulls with a 4 try bonus point victory. After a few results fell in their favour they were able to comfortably beat the Brumbies, and finished for the second consecutive season on top of the ladder. The Crusaders won the Super 14 after defeating the Hurricanes in Christchurch in the final, 19-12 in misty conditions. There was 94 matches held over three and a half months, with each team playing one full round robin against the 13 other teams and the playoffs involving two semi-finals and a final. Every team got one bye over the 14 rounds.

Final Standings

:

Leading point scorers

Fixtures & Results

All kick off times are local.

"Note: BP stands for Bonus Point, which are awarded for getting 4 tries or more in a match and/or a loss within 7 points of the winning score - e.g. Team A 14-20 Team B. Team A would get a BP for a loss within 7 points (6).

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

Week 13

Week 14

The final round saw the last semi-final berth change hands three times over the weekend. The Brumbies started the weekend on 38 points with the Sharks and the Bulls both behind on 33. This meant the Brumbies did not even need to defeat the Crusaders to secure their semi-final berth; they only needed to collect a bonus point by scoring four tries or staying within 7 points of the Crusaders.

However, the Brumbies lost 33-3 and failed to secure any competition points at all, leaving the door open for the two South African teams. The Sharks played first, needing to win with a bonus point for four tries scored and a points differential of more than ten in their game against the Force. The Sharks duly achieved both and moved into fourth position on the table.

The Sharks were overtaken by the Bulls after the Bulls' 43-10 win over the Stormers. The Bulls needed to score four or more tries and win by at least 32 points and won by 33, securing the final spot after having the longest odds of the three teams that could have earned 4th.

emi-Finals

The first semi final saw the Hurricanes defeat the Waratahs in Wellington. This was the first ever semi final victory for the Hurricanes and the Waratahs second loss - the first being the Brumbies 51-10 victory in 2002. The Crusaders made it two semi final defeats in a row for the Bulls, after a crushing 35-15 win. This sets up the Crusaders fifth straight appearance in the final and their 8th final appearance in the last 9 seasons. As the Crusaders were higher on the ladder than the Hurricanes the final was played at Jade Stadium, Christchurch on May 27.

Final

On the night of the final, Christchurch was shrouded in very thick fog, meaning visibility was very poor, the game has thus been dubbed "gorillas in the mist" (after the ). The opposite side of the field was barely visible, and the advertisements were unreadable. The players thus had a very tough time, especially the penalty kickers on each side, who both misjudged the distance to the goalposts and fell short. Players of international calibre made unusual mistakes due to the eerie fog that engulfed the stadium. The Sky Sports announcers were forced to split commentary on the game, as they could not make out anything from the commentary box, so the sideline commentator had to fill in what they could not see.

No tries were scored in the first half; all points came from penalties, leading to a half-time score of 6-3 to the Crusaders. In the second half, more penalties were awarded leading to a score of 9-all, before the Crusaders scored a converted try through Casey Laulala. Daniel Carter kicked another penalty bringing it to 19-9. Jimmy Gopperth then kicked another penalty with 10 minutes remaining, bringing the final score to 19-12.

ee also

*Super 14
*Super 12 Champions

References

External links

* [http://www.sarugby.co.za/scorers.asp?id=407 Leading points scorers table]
* [http://www.sarugby.co.za/scorers.asp?id=407&job=1&cl=yes Leading try scorers table]