The 2014 Super Rugby season kicks-off in South Africa on the weekend of 15th/16th February

by Paul Cook –

The 2014 Super Rugby fixture list was released by SANZAR overnight and it sees the NSW Waratahs kicking-off their title challenge with a Sunday afternoon match against the Western Force at Allianz Stadium on February 23rd in Sydney, followed by a titanic clash against arch-rivals Queensland a week later at ANZ Stadium, Homebush.

They then have a bye before they complete their first round of matches against their Australian compatriots with a visit to Canberra and the ACT Brumbies on Saturday 15th March and a Friday night game back at Allianz Stadium against the Melbourne Rebels on March 21st, before embarking on a two week visit of South Africa where they take on the might of the Sharks and the Stormers.

The Waratahs also have home games against the Bulls, Hurricanes, Highlanders and the returning Lions before a second game at ANZ Stadium against the ACT Brumbies in the penultimate round.

Coach Michael Cheika is looking forward to the opening rounds that will pitch mate against mate and state against state. “I enjoy the season kicking off with the derby games, mate against mate gets their minds on the job early and it’s essential we do because we must win these matches to control our conference” he said.

“For us to achieve our target of a top two finish, we obviously need to win our conference. Playing three of our first four at home will give us the chance to show our fans we are building on our base from 2013, our style, our game and our passion for playing for NSW.”

Due to the vagaries of the competition structure, the Tahs will not play either the Crusaders or the Cheetahs in the round robin part of the season.

Allianz Stadium will host six Waratahs home matches in 2014 – Photo: seiserphotography.com

The Waratahs fixture list in full (AEST dates shown; Home games in BOLD):

Sun 23rd February H v FORCE
Sat 1st March H v REDS (ANZ Stadium)
Sat 15th March A v BRUMBIES
Fri 21st March H v REBELS
Sun 30th March A v SHARKS
Sun 6th April A v STORMERS
Sat 12th April A v FORCE
Sat 19th April H v BULLS
Fri 25th April A v BLUES
Sat 3rd May H v HURRICANES
Sun 18th May H v LIONS
Fri 23rd May A v REBELS
Sat 31st May A v CHIEFS
Sat 28th June H v BRUMBIES (ANZ Stadium)
Sun 6th July H v HIGHLANDERS
Sat 12th July A v REDS

For a complete fixture list, download this PDF: