Sky Network TV's share price has rallied sharply after the company produced a 22pc lift in its first-half net profit, appearing to shrug off any threat from Telecom.

Two on the Blues' skimpy best list will miss the Crusaders' match and probably the side's trip to Africa.

Midfielder Francis Saili, one of the Blues' best players in his team's mostly lacklustre performance against the Highlanders in Dunedin.

It is easy to write off the Crusaders' loss to the Chiefs on Friday as a bad night in front of the posts, writes Justin Marshall. But for me the Crusaders' concerns should run deeper than that.

The Chiefs had injury dramas before they played the Crusaders, now they have even more but frankly, I doubt whether it will slow them down much, writes Richard Loe.

This was a Mulligan for the Blues - a duff drive off the first tee that they can discard and start counting proper as of now.

Join us here for our live blog of the Super Rugby match between the Highlanders and the Blues from Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin.

Rugby nomad Hayden Triggs was looking for a new job away from the game when he received the SOS call from Blues coach Sir John Kirwan.

Every year there's at least one player in each Super rugby team who finds another level during pre-season and bursts into contention to make the starting lineup.

The latest information released by Super Rugby's governing body Sanzar about the competition's proposed new format is heavy on possibility but light on detail, writes Patrick McKendry.

The golden season and personal gilt for Brendon McCullum shut the lid on the commotion about captaincy of the New Zealand cricket side.

Herald columnist Justin Marshall breaks down the five franchises ahead of this weekend's NZ Super Rugby launch.

A punter's guide would suggest caution about the Blues. The form guide is not flash.

Benji Marshall has been happy with only one of his three pre-season matches since his switch from league.

The first round of Dream Team Fantasy Super Rugby has come and gone.

It's easy to say this is the year the Blues have to deliver. That anything outside the playoffs simply isn't acceptable for the team based in New Zealand's largest city.

It was no less an authority than Conrad Smith who remarked last year that Francis Saili reminded him of a young Ma'a Nonu.

Wallabies great Joe Roff believes the current crop of Brumbies backs are on the verge of eclipsing the star-studded 2004 backline that won the Super rugby championship.

Blues coach Sir John Kirwan was asked this week about the pressure on him this season, his second as head coach.

Blues hooker James Parsons, one of the team's early surprise packages last year, has been given a chance to replicate that form with a start against the Highlanders.