OFFICIALLY, it is a round 13 Super 14 match. But for the Waratahs and Stormers, their match at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday night (3.10am Sunday, Sydney time) is a virtual quarter-final for both teams.
For, whoever wins will have paved the way to booking a home semi-final. A win by the Waratahs will secure them second spot on the ladder for at least another week.
It will also put them in a strong position to remain there, even though next week's derby against the Reds is as much of a danger as it has ever been, considering the long rivalry between the two states.
The Stormers could leapfrog the Waratahs should they win on Saturday. Even worse, and pending other results, the Waratahs run the risk of free-falling out of the top four altogether.
Waratahs hooker Adam Freier, one of four Wallabies on the Waratahs bench - and 12 in the 22-man NSW squad - was even willing to take the analogy of the game's quarter-final value further.
Asked about the finals feel of the Stormers clash in which a sell-out 49,000 crowd is expected at Newlands, Freier said: "Yeah. Definitely it is. And [the] Queensland [match] is a grand final. You could even call [the Stormers game] a semi-final.
"All these games are important. I believe 49,000 tickets [are already] sold. For any occasion, whether it's a first game of the season or not, [with that crowd] it is a big game to win."
Stormers coach Rassie Erasmus has been equally as open about the high stakes this week, passionately reiterating that while the Stormers like to play width-to-width rugby they will not be unleashing an attacking game to simply entertain fans. His aim is to win - at any cost.
"I will take a win with a penalty try or a dropped goal, anything. We just want to win the game," he said.
"The only way we can do that is to win the small little battles on the field. We would like to get the extra [bonus] points but we just want to win the game."
The Waratahs will be much in the same mindset. But with their team selection they have muscled up their back line - primarily by promoting Randwick flyer Matt Carraro into the starting side on the wing, and by moving Lote Tuqiri to fullback.
Carraro, who can also play in the centres, earned four Super 14 caps with the Brumbies before returning after last season to NSW where he was a Waratahs Academy player.
His selection this week is a prime opportunity to show what he can offer in attack."It is has been a pretty difficult season all round. I started with a few injuries," Carraro said. "It has been quite frustrating until my break [on the bench] with a couple of home games.
"I have always been pretty confident in defence … always enjoyed the physical side. But I haven't really showed much in attack. I have come off the bench. So I have got to do a bit of defensive work, which is good. But hopefully, by getting a start I will get a lot more ball."
One of the major challenges for Carraro - and all of his teammates despite their range of Super 14 experience - will be dealing with the ear-bursting noise of a fiery Newlands crowd.
This week, the Waratahs spoke of how the loyal 12,410 crowd at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria, where they lost 16-13 to the Bulls in rain, was unlike crowds of the same size in Australia.
"It is going to be pretty intimidating from what I have heard," Carraro said. "Even last weekend, there weren't many people in the rain. But geez … it was noisy. Times that by five [on Saturday], it is going to be a bit of an experience."
