URC | Everything on the line for three SA sides in blockbuster final round

The Stormers have already locked in home-ground advantage for the quarter-finals, but the Bulls and Lions will go flat out in their final United Rugby Championship pool matches this weekend to ensure they are also playing their top-eight encounters at home.

On Friday night, the second-placed Stormers – currently on 59 points, one behind log leaders Glasgow Warriors – will line up against the seventh-placed Cardiff in the Welsh capital, where the Capetonians have never won.

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Three matches will be played on Saturday. The fourth-placed Bulls (54 points) take on the 13th-placed Benetton in Pretoria, and the fifth-placed Lions (53 points) cross paths with the sixth-placed Munster in Ireland in matches that will be decisive in their final log positions going into the quarter-finals.

In the other match, the 10th-placed Sharks will meet the last-placed Zebre Parma in their closing match of the competition, after both sides dropped out of the playoff race earlier in the preceding rounds.

While the Stormers are assured of a home quarter-final regardless of their result this weekend, securing the highest log positions possible with an eye on the first playoff round will be a strong driving force for the Gauteng sides, in a round which will see heartbreak for one of the sides between fifth and ninth place on the standings, who are separated by only four log points.

Getting ready for round 18.@Vodacom #URC | @URCOfficial_RSA pic.twitter.com/AOfqsU7r7B

The Stormers will give everything they have at Cardiff Arms Park, especially given the high stakes, with Cardiff playing for survival in the competition to hold off the strong challenge posed by the Lions, Ulster, and Connacht.

On paper, the Capetonians will enter the match as favourites with a superior attack and defence, while they will also draw inspiration from their dramatic draw against Ulster away last week.

But the Stormers will certainly not underestimate the threat posed by Cardiff, who have suffered only one defeat at home in the tournament to date and who will have a passionate home crowd behind them. The Welsh team’s desperation will be fuelled by the fact that a defeat could see their quarter-final hopes squashed, which sets the scene for a captivating encounter.

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In Durban, the Sharks will be determined to build on their resounding victory against Benetton when they take on Zebre Parma at Kings Park to put up one last big show for their passionate supporters as the curtain draws down on their campaign.

With a far more effective attack and defence, and the KwaZulu-Natalians having the luxury of home-ground advantage, they will have all the motivation they need to deliver another strong performance to finish the league stages with a big victory.

The Bulls, meanwhile, will have everything to play for with a home quarter-final at stake in their match against Benetton at Loftus Versfeld, and even a possible top-two finish if the Stormers and Leinster slip up and they register a bonus-point victory.

There is no doubt the Sharks’ dismantling of the Italians last week will give the men from Pretoria extra confidence going into the match.

The Bulls – nine log positions above their visitors and having scored an impressive 521 points to Benetton’s 308, while they also boast a better defensive record – will be determined to finish the pool stages with an impressive six wins in a row and build the momentum and confidence they need going into the playoffs.

#ForOurCity | #LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/5XbQLCOafp

The Lions, in turn, will have the luxury of knowing exactly what they need to do to secure a home quarter-final for the first time in the cross-hemisphere series when they line up against Munster at Thomond Park in the closing match of the round on Saturday night in Limerick.

The Johannesburgers may be in pole position between the fifth and ninth-placed teams to finish in the top eight, as they hold a valuable two-point lead on the table over Munster, but depending on the other results this weekend, they may find themselves having to secure at least two log points to finish in the top eight.

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They will also be determined to put their frustrating defeat against Leinster last week behind them, which brought their six-match winning run to an end, and regain their winning momentum, especially with a likely quarter-final coming up.

The Lions will enter the final round with the second-best attack in the competition, which has seen them score 143 points more than Munster, but they will be mindful of the fact that the Irishmen have conceded 90 points fewer and have a favourable home-win record.

The hosts will also want to make amends for their disappointing defeat against Connacht last week, paving the way for an epic encounter.

Cardiff v StormersDate: Friday, 15 MayVenue: Cardiff Arms Park, CardiffSA Time: 20:45Referee: Andrew BraceTV: SuperSport

Sharks v Zebre ParmaDate: Saturday, 16 MayVenue: Kings Park, DurbanSA Time: 13:45Referee: Adam JonesTV: SuperSport