Super Rugby

New Zealand Rugby awarded the franchise a conditional licence in April to join a revamped competition, alongside five teams from New Zealand, five from Australia and the Fijian Drua.

Confirmation was expected last month but complications over finance, the competition format and getting buy-in from Rugby Australia led to extended delays.

RNZ Pacific has been told an announcement will be made today confirming Moana Pasifika's licence to compete next season.

It might not be the full Super Rugby competition but for a team labelled consistent under achievers for the past decade, beating the Highlanders at Eden Park on Saturday night to lift the trans-Tasman trophy would mean just as much.

The Blues beat the Crusaders in 2003 to claim their third and last Super Rugby title, with former All Black number 8 Xavier Rush as captain.

Needing only to win to secure their spot after the Crusaders failed to rack up enough points against the Rebels in Saturday's earlier match, the Blues completed their mission reasonably comfortably against the Perth-based Australians.

Four unanswered tries in the first half, including two for loose forward Hoskins Sotutu, all but secured the Blues a first home Super Rugby final since they won their third title in the international competition in 2003.

The Highlanders' bonus-point win at Canberra Stadium put them top of the table on 23 points, two points ahead of the second-placed Hurricanes, but both teams need results to go their way on Saturday.

The third-placed Blues (19 points) can claim the top spot and the right to host the final with victory at home to the Western Force but the equation is tougher for the fourth-placed Crusaders (18).

Usually, however, the off-contract players tend to stay put – such is the commitment that they have to the culture in Crusaders country.

Bulldozing outside back Leicester Fainga’anuku has become the latest to extend his time with the Super Rugby Aotearoa champions, agreeing to a new deal that will keep him in Christchurch until 2023.

Vunivalu hobbled off the field in Queensland’s 31-24 Super Rugby Trans-Tasman loss to the Blues last weekend and Wallabies coach Dave Rennie says the injury is significant enough to rule him out of the three-Test series against the French next month.

“Obviously a reasonably serious hamstring injury,” Rennie told AAP.

“That’s going to see him miss the French series and we’ll know a little bit more detail beyond that but he certainly won’t be available for France.”

The Hurricanes needed to score a bonus point win in Canberra on Saturday night to remain on track for the tournament final, but the Brumbies clinched their first 2021 series victory over a Kiwi team with a 12-10 win.

Squandered opportunities – including two late Jordie Barrett penalty attempts – left the stunned Hurricanes to contemplate a tough final round return to Wellington to meet the Reds.

Holland said the tournament format rewarded consistency, and the Hurricanes had come up short.

The win moves the Chiefs onto 14 points from their first four matches but, after missing out on a bonus point, their already slim hopes of a place in the final on 16 June diminished further.

Leichhardt Oval hosted the game after Covid-19 restrictions in Melbourne led to uncertainty over travel between Victoria and New Zealand which saw organisers shift the game from Hamilton to Sydney.

Crusaders boss Colin Mansbridge on Sunday confirmed the match against the Melbourne-based Rebels would be played at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday (4.35pm NZT).

Victoria's latest Covid-19 enforced lockdown had already forced Sanzaar to relocate two matches – Highlanders v Rebels and Chiefs v Rebels – to Leichhardt Oval in Sydney’s west.

Unlike the first two relocated games, Saturday’s match was scheduled as a home game for the Rebels.

The Crusaders will depart Christchurch on Thursday, and will know exactly what they need to do to crack the final come kickoff.

The Crusaders earlier beat the Western Force 29-21 in the opening match of the round but were left ruing a try after the hooter from the visitors that also cost them a bonus point.

The Blues top the standings by a point from the Crusaders with the Hurricanes, who play the ACT Brumbies on Saturday, a further three points back in third. The top two after next week's final round will play off for the title.