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Deputy Editor, espn.com.au- Sam was brought up on long drives and the dusty fields of north-west New South Wales, where he developed his love of rugby from an early age. He joined ESPN after a five-year stint heading up Fox Sports Australia's digital rugby coverage.
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Special to ESPN- John Goliath is a long-suffering Tottenham Hotspur fan, who likes to watch running rugby on sunny days at Newlands. He also wishes he could hit low stingers off the tee like Tiger Woods.
Steve Hansen may have already named his 33-man All Blacks squad, and run them through their paces in Auckland this week, Wallabies coach Michael Cheika still has one more weekend to make his final squad decisions, and while some spots will already be earmarked, Australia's hookers will have their final chance to secure their place.
While, the Hurricanes have been given the perfect opportunity to slide their way into top spot of the New Zealand conference when they take on an injury hit Crusaders in Christchurch.
Read on for some the key storylines for Round 15.
Australian Conference
Hookers have final chance to catch Cheika's eye
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen may have named his 33-man squad for the June Test series and then put them to work for a couple of days earlier this week, but Australian players have one final opportunity to impress Wallabies coach Michael Cheika in Round 15 of Super Rugby.
The nuts and bolts of Cheika's squad, names like Hooper, Folau, Pocock, Beale, Foley et al take care of themselves while youngsters Taniela Tupou, Jack Maddocks and Caleb Timu are simply playing too well for the Wallabies coach to ignore.
But there is one position where the chips are yet to fall and with all four Australian teams in action this weekend, hookers Damian Fitzpatrick, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Folau Fainga'a, Anaru Rangi and last year's Wallabies debutant, Jordan Uelese, have one final chance to impress.
GREG GROWDEN'S WALLABIES STARTING XV
With veteran Tatafu Polota-Nau given a well-deserved break after virtually an 18-month season, Cheika may look to start a variety of hookers against Ireland. But with the World Cup now just 16 months away and the former Waratahs and Force rake a lock to make the squad barring injury, only two of the five players mentioned above can join Polota-Nau in the squad.
Fortunately for Cheika, the five hookers on his radar are each enjoying strong seasons. It's a stark contrast to the 2014 Test season when the Wallabies endured a wretched run with injury forcing them down to the absolute reserves of the country's No.2 stocks.
Uelese was thought to be the frontrunner this year after he graduated from the Australia Under 20s to the Wallabies in 2017, making a couple of appearances off the bench in the Rugby Championship. But injury and the impressive form of late-bloomer Anaru Rangi may have Uelese slightly down the pecking order. Rangi, on the other hand, has made every post a winner after moving over from the Force.
The Brumbies' Fainga'a and Reds hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa both began their journeys to Super Rugby via Sydney's Shute Shield, graduated through the NRC before heading off to the Brumbies and Reds respectively.
Fainga'a caught the eye of Cheika while playing for the Canberra Vikings last year and was later invited to train with the Wallabies, all before debuting for the Brumbies. But Paenga-Amosa has probably only entered the equation on the back of several excellent recent performances for the Reds, topped off with a strong game alongside Tupou in Wellington last week.
And then there's Fitzpatrick, the Waratahs hooker who is enjoying somewhat of a second coming at Moore Park. The St Josephs College Hunters Hill product, whose socks he wore in last week's win over the Highlanders, battled injury and form in his first Super Rugby stint before taking off for French club Lyon.
There is little doubt that overseas move did him some good, Fitzpatrick seems a far more content character at age 28 and one who understands the hooker role far better. Crucially, the Waratahs have built the best lineout of any Australian side on his throw this season and equal second in Super Rugby overall.
Fitzpatrick has one last chance to show his prowess in that department this weekend up against one of the world best's lineout jumpers, and the game's premier lock, the Chiefs' Brodie Retallick. Come through that contest and Fitzpatrick's set-piece expertise might just put him in the box seat to wear the gold No.2 jersey come June 9.
Match Centre: Rebels vs. Sunwolves
Match Centre: Reds vs. Highlanders
New Zealand Conference
Canes to sting injury-hit Crusaders, sneak into top spot
It may well prove to be a preview of this year's final but Friday's clash between the Crusaders and Hurricanes has unfortunately been hit by injury and suspension, not to mention the All Blacks' camp earlier this week.
The two franchises had a combined 18 players involved in Hansen's hit-out in Auckland, leaving coaches Scott Robertson and Chris Boyd just 48 hours to ready their sides for the Christchurch encounter.
"The boys have worked through their individual preparation well this week and our All Blacks joined us again this morning and brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm, so there is no shortage of motivation for this match and it's going to be a great spectacle for fans on Friday night," Crusaders coach Robertson said.
Was Robertson saying that through gritted teeth? There's every possibility given the lack of preparation for the clash, a fact amplified by the absence of skipper Sam Whitelock and vice-captain Ryan Crotty. The loss of the All Blacks duo cannot be overstated, they are the heart of their respective forward and backline units.
And then there's the absence of props Joe Moody and Owen Franks, both of whom are serving suspensions for foul-play, while another front-rower, Tim Perry, is out with a hamstring injury.
The Hurricanes, meanwhile, continue to flaunt their embarrassment of backline riches which this week sees Jordie Barrett move to outside centre for the first time in Super Rugby. The youngest of the Barrett All Blacks, Jordie will team up with Ngani Laumape in a midfield pairing that we may one day see at Test level.
Elsewhere, soon-to-be England cap Brad Shields returns to the starting lineup at No.6 while the promising Michael Faitialofa forms a daunting lock pairing alongside the in-form Sam Lousi.
While the Crusaders are playing at home, where they are unbeaten in their last six New Zealand derbies, the Hurricanes have the perfect opportunity to strike and put one hand on the all-important No.1 seeding for the finals.
With just one point separating them at the top of the ladder, nine points clear of the Africa-leading Lions, Friday's game may well prove to be the key regular-season moment for the winner. The winner of the last two Super Rugby titles doing battle with All Blacks talent all over the paddock, it is a game not to be missed.
But it's hard to see the Hurricanes missing out on a new franchise record of 11 straight Super Rugby wins.
Match Centre: Crusaders vs. Hurricanes
Match Centre: Chiefs vs. Waratahs
African Conference
Playoff race adds spice to final regular season clashes
The next two matches between the Jaguares and the Sharks could prove to be the most important fixtures of the remaining Super Rugby fixtures as far as the battle for a wild card spot is concerned.
The fight to finish in the top eight has heated up over the last few weeks, with the Chiefs, Highlanders, Jaguares, Sharks, Rebels, Bulls and possibly even the Stormers still in the hunt.
The in-form Jaguares are currently seventh on 29 points after winning their last five matches. But they are still three points behind the Chiefs and Highlanders, who have also played one less fixture than the Argentine team. The Sharks are eighth on 28 points and, like the Jaguares, have also played 12 matches.
With the Chiefs and the Highlanders likely to qualify for the playoffs, the other five teams are essentially playing for the remaining two spots. At the moment the Jaguares and the Sharks are in pole positions to claim them, but have to play each other twice in the run-in to the knockout stage.
The first clash is on Friday in Buenos Aires, while the second one in Durban is the very last match of the regular season.
You would think that the team who can come out on top in both matches will make it to the playoffs and possibly dent the other team's ambitions. So, this will certainly add spice to what is expected to be physically demanding encounters.
Friday's match, though, will also give the winner some peace of mind heading into the international break, knowing that they have some room to manoeuvre in case of injuries to key players on country duty in June.
With both teams playing some great rugby, it's bound to be a cracking game in Buenos Aires on Friday too.
Match Centre: Jaguares vs. Sharks