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Blues, Reds tussle over No 1

Wellington - The first-place Blues and second-place Reds will tussle over top spot in Vodacom Super Rugby in a 13th round which may shorten the list of play-off candidates.

The Reds and Blues meet in Brisbane on Friday the 13th in the biggest match of the season, each trying to consolidate its place at the top of its national conference and to clinch a guaranteed playoff spot.

Below them, an increasingly tight battle for playoffs spots is unfolding. The Cape Town-based Stormers remain atop the South African conference but only four points ahead of the Sharks, who will receive four points for a bye this weekend.

The Stormers must beat the improving Chiefs in Hamilton to keep the Sharks at bay.

The Blues, Reds and Stormers hold the top three spots in the tournament after 12 of 18 regular-season rounds. The Crusaders, Sharks and Waratahs are next, with the Sharks and Waratahs both enjoying weekend byes.

The fourth-place Crusaders will be strengthened by the return from injury of All Blacks captain Richie McCaw when they play the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

Of the other play-off candidates, the seventh-place Highlanders play the Hurricanes on Friday, the eighth-place Bulls play the Melbourne Rebels at Pretoria and the Chiefs play the Stormers in matches critical to their play-offs chances.

The battle over first place remains the most compelling contest of the round. The Blues are unbeaten in seven games, although they have struggled in their last two matches, grinding out a five-point win over the Highlanders and a seven-point win over the Hurricanes.

Both matches were played in wet conditions and they hope to resume try-scoring in dry conditions in Brisbane.

"First thing I always do the day after (a) game is get the forecast for the week ahead and I just track it religiously every day, seeing where it is," Blues coach Pat Lam said. "There is sun both days (in Brisbane) and it is looking good ... so we know we will have the chance to play the game we like to play, rather than the game we have to play."

The Blues are likely to target Reds and Wallabies flyhalf Quade Cooper as a defensive weakness, as the Hurricanes did when they snapped the Reds' record seven-match winning streak two weeks ago.

"We can't go and play as individuals. We have to go with our team pattern and team culture in a cauldron where they haven't lost for a long time," Lam said. "The emphasis has to be on our team ethos."

All Blacks centre Luke McAlister and lock Anthony Boric return to the Blues lineup for Friday's match while the Reds have made one change, naming Ben Tapuai in place of injured center Mike Harris.

Reds coach Ewen McKenzie said the Blues were probably the current benchmark for the competition.

"They're pretty close to it," he said. "They're sitting on top of the table. They've got all the facets of the game covered. They've got x-factor. They've got All Blacks all through their forward pack. They've got everything you need to do well."

Ace goalkicker Peter Grant will return to the Stormers line-up on Saturday for their match against the Chiefs. Grant was the leading pointscorer in the competition, the first player to reach 100 points this season, before he suffered a knee injury in training.

He returns just in time for a critical match for the Stormers, a must-win if they are to remain atop the South African conference.

Springboks winger Bryan Habana also returns from injury while scrumhalf Ricky Januarie will start as coach Allister Coetzee continues his squad rotation. In total, Coetzee has made four changes to the squad that was beaten at home by the Crusaders last weekend.

Stormers forwards coach Matt Proudfoot said the Chiefs would pose a similar challenge to the Crusaders.

"We know what we have to do technically. They'll try and take us out of our comfort zone and put pressure on us it will be a complete challenge," he said.

The Chiefs, who have four wins from 11 games, remain outside contenders for the playoffs and will have to win on Saturday to keep their challenge alive.

The Highlanders must also regain winning form, after losing their last two matches to the Blues and Chiefs. A spate of injuries has forced the Highlanders to make five changes to their lineup for the match at Invercargill, while the Hurricanes are strengthened by the return of All Blacks Ma'a Nonu and Piri Weepu.

All Blacks scrumhalf Weepu, named on the bench, will play his first match since breaking his ankle last October.

Springboks scrumhalf Fourie du Preez will captain the Bulls against the Rebels, who make their first visit to Pretoria's Loftus Versfeld stadium.

Du Preez takes over the captaincy from lock Victor Matfield, who starts on the bench.

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