Thursday, April 27 2006 12:31 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Wellington: The on-fire New South Wales Waratahs will have to overcome rain as well as the notorious 'House of Pain' if they are to beat the Otago Highlanders and hit the front of the Super 14 rugby competition on Friday (Apr 28, 2006).

But it is the Western Stormers in South Africa who hold the key to how the 11th round will pan out when they play the table-topping Canterbury Crusaders in the final match of the weekend.

The second-placed Waratahs and the Highlanders, who are eighth, take the field refreshed from a two-week break and driven by different motives.

The Waratahs want the psychological edge of overtaking the Crusaders and under normal circumstances should be too strong for the Highlanders, while Otago know that with three rounds remaining another loss would end their chances of making the top four semi-final spots.

Playing Highlanders on their home Carisbrook ground

Unfortunately for the Waratahs, who trail the Crusaders by four points, nothing is normal playing the Highlanders on their home Carisbrook ground, which is known as the 'House of Pain' because the visiting team rarely wins there.

The weather will certainly favour the Highlanders, with a tough forward pack that revels in the mud and the potential to deny ball to the Waratahs playmaker Mat Rogers.

Further unsettling for the Waratahs was their nerve-wracking arrival in New Zealand on Wednesday when the atrocioius weather that has lashed Highlanders territory all week forced their plane to be diverted to Christchurch 360 kilometres away.

A loss for the Hurricanes would most likely see them slip behind the ACT Brumbies who have the easier game against the Queensland Reds.

Pretoria offers the clash of the fifth-placed Northern Bulls against the sixth-placed Coastal Sharks with both sides knocking at the door to the semi-finals should any of the Brumbies or Hurricanes slip up in the final three weeks.