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Kia ora, good evening and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the Highlanders v Western Force Super Rugby Pacific clash at Dunedin's Forsyth Barr Stadium.
After the Crusaders' morale-boosting win over Melbourne Rebels boosted them off the foot of the competition ladder, this encounter will pit the two bottom teams, with a chance to promote their own remote playoff aspirations.
The winners will leapfrog both the Crusaders and NSW Waratahs, and the Highlanders would also pass Moana Pasifika for a spot in the top eight.
The southerners are riding a five-game losing slide and went scoreless against Queensland Reds last week, while the Force are coming off a good win at home over the defending champion Crusaders.
Join us at 7pm for kickoff.
TAB Odds: Highlandrers $1.37, Force $3.20, Draw $18
Watch: Veteran prop Franks scores first try in 14 years, as Crusaders savour morale-boosting win
While the desperate Crusaders earned a crucial win over Melbourne Rebels to keep their Super Rugby Pacific title defence alive, veteran prop Owen Franks stole the show at Apollo Projects Stadium.
The All Blacks centurion crossed the chalk after a textbook lineout drive to claim his first Super Rugby try in 14 years, one of six on the night for the Crusaders in a 39-0 drubbing of the Australian side.
To be more precise, Franks, 36, scored for the first time in 4943 days, dating back to a May 2010 win over ACT Brumbies at Christchurch. Joining Franks on the tryscoring sheet that night were the likes of Richie McCaw, Kieran Read and Zac Guildford.
The try was Franks' third for the Crusaders in his 166 appearances, after rejoining the franchise this season from stints with Northampton Saints, the Hurricanes and Toulouse.
The two-time World Cup winner never registered a try for the All Blacks through his 108 tests, with his only other try at professional level coming for Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship.
"As it got close to the line, I was, like, 'I'm holding this, for sure'," Franks told Sky Sports.
His effort off the bench capped a dominant evening for the Crusaders pack. Rebels coach Kevin Foote replaced his entire front row just 30 minutes into the contest, such was the hosts' superiority.
While far from perfect, the performance was hugely encouraging for the Crusaders, who had been mired at the bottom of the competition standings.
They now sit just a single point outside the playoff seedings in ninth place, with the rest of the round yet to be played.
Franks credits underfire coach Rob Penney for remaining steadfast in the face of so much external pressure to help get the team back on track.
"There's just been a lot of hard work go in behind the scenes, and it was just great to see the discipline to exit really well and stack good moments on top of each other," he said.
"Just really happy for [Penney] actually. The way he turns up every week, his positivity with everything going on has been outstanding."
The Crusaders wil try to keep their momentum going against Queensland Reds at Christchurch next Saturday.
