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KEY POINTS:
You know it's a bad weekend for New Zealand's Super 14 rugby teams when a hotch-potch Hurricanes' win is the highlight.
The other four sides all tasted defeat in a second round where the home advantage proved all-important in every match.
That will be of little solace to the four beaten New Zealand teams, nor the Hurricanes, with South African and Australian teams monopolising the top four placings.
Visually, the rugby was just as depressing, with rusty displays resulting in mainly low-scoring fixtures.
The exception was in Pretoria, where 85 points were run up.
Unfortunately just 26 went to the Blues, with Pat Lam's young and injury-plagued side conceding 59 points, the most in the team's 14-year history.
A second bonus point win sends 2007 champion Bulls into the competition lead from the three other unbeaten sides, the New South Wales Waratahs, ACT Brumbies and Sharks.
Next are the Blues, Crusaders and Hurricanes, who Lam wondered might all be starting to feel the pressure of the overseas player exodus of recent seasons, exacerbated by a rash of early-season injuries to leading players.
"It's the same across all the New Zealand teams," he told NZPA.
"Over here (South Africa) a lot of the media are saying they don't know a lot of names in our teams.
"There's no question we have the talent but it's the experience factor that you do lose.
"A lot of my guys haven't been to altitude before, some haven't been to South Africa."
Lam also agreed the Bulls and Sharks were at the head of an ominous South African Super 14 challenge this year after the Sharks squeezed the Lions 25-10 in Durban today.
"They're the World Cup champions and they're getting used to this competition."
His side were gored by seven tries, with Bulls halfback Fourie Du Preez dictating play superbly while No 8 Pierre Spies was a constant menace with ball in hand.
The Bulls were up 26-0 inside 24 minutes, leaving Lam pleased with his team's fightback to earn a bonus point.
However, there were more injury headaches, with impressive winger Rene Ranger suffering a suspected eye socket fracture while fullback Isaia Toeava, lock Kurtis Haiu and prop Tony Woodcock all in doubt for next week against the Stormers.
Balancing that is news that winger Joe Rokocoko, flanker Jerome Kaino and halfback Taniela have all welcomed their first children into the world and will be available this week.
They will add some starch to a side rocked by conceding the fourth-most points by any New Zealand team in Super rugby.
The third-most came when the Hurricanes thrashed the Highlanders 60-34 in Wellington in 1997.
Those two teams played out a game of stark contrast on Friday, with the Hurricanes finding their mojo in the final 10 minutes to win a wet, dour affair 22-17.
For the second time in two weeks the Highlanders surged from behind to secure the lead before blowing it late.
Tries to Hurricanes lock Jason Eaton and centre Conrad Smith proved decisive, with Smith and All Blacks midfield partner Ma'a Nonu both making an impact off the bench in the second spell.
The ACT Brumbies repeated their last-minute heroics of last week with an 18-16 defeat of the Crusaders in Canberra last night.
Wallabies skipper Stirling Mortlock and his teammates were in raptures after his fulltime conversion of a try to fullback Mark Gerrard.
The Crusaders, robbed of injured All Blacks Richie McCaw, Brad Thorn and Leon MacDonald, were up 11-8 at halftime after playing into the wind.
They scrummaged strongly and defended stoutly for 79 minutes but the weight of possession ultimately proved too much for the defending champions, who host the Hurricanes next week.
Not so impressive at scrum time were the Chiefs 24 hours earlier in Sydney, where they lost an ugly fixture 11-7 to the New South Wales Waratahs.
They were shunted around and bungled their lineouts yet nearly scraped victory against a blunt-looking Waratahs.
The round's other matches saw the Western Force beat the Cheetahs 16-10 in Perth while the Stormers held out the fast-finishing Queensland Reds 27-24 in Cape Town.
- NZPA
