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After 17 weeks of the world’s toughest provincial Rugby competition the final home and away round of Super Rugby in 2011 shapes as the make or break round for several teams with finals hopes. While the Reds have secured top spot in the Australian Conference and the Stormers all but wrapping up the South African Conference it won’t be until the final whistle goes in Wellington on Saturday afternoon that the New Zealand Conference winner will be known.

The final make-up of the top six is also still up in the air with the Waratahs, Bulls, Sharks and Blues still in the hunt for one of the final three Super Rugby Finals Series places, with the Blues also in the mix to snatch top spot in the New Zealand conference from the Crusaders should they slip up in their match against the Hurricanes.

In Australian franchise games this weekend there are two mouth-watering local derbies to wrap up the 2011 home and away season with the first on Friday night between the Force and the Melbourne Rebels.

The Force will be travelling to the stockade with the hope of reversing the result from their round 7 clash when the Rebels upset the Perth based side 26-25 at home.

The Rebels will be focussed on giving their passionate fans one last win in their inaugural season, however their job won’t be made easy by a Force outfit keen for revenge and the opportunity to end their 2011 campaign on a winning note.

While the game will have no effect on the final make-up of the top six there will be plenty of pride on the line in the first of the two local derbies for round 18.

Early on Saturday afternoon the Reds will take on the Chiefs in Hamilton and while the Queenslanders have secured first place in the Australian Conference they will have their sights set on tying up top spot on the overall Super Rugby ladder with a win in the land of the long white cloud.

A loss for the Reds would not only be a speed bump in their preparation for finals but could also see them finish second should the Stormers account for the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein early Sunday morning Australian time, however the Reds will be leaving nothing to chance and will throw everything they have at a Chiefs outfit that is out of finals contention.

On Saturday night ANZ Stadium in Sydney is set to come alive when the Waratahs go toe-to-toe with a rejuvenated Brumbies outfit keen to end the finals hopes of their NSW rivals.

When the two sides met in round 6 the Waratahs triumphed 29-22 in the nation’s capital and they will be out to make it two from two against the Canberrans who have been in good form of late following wins over the Rebels and the Reds in the last two weeks.

A win for the Tahs will secure them a finals appearance and keep their hopes of a Super Rugby title in 2011 alive, while a loss will see them bow out of the race leaving just the Reds holding the hopes of Australia.

Don’t forget to check out the fourth episode of The Code, which this week follows the Waratahs the day after their round six win over the Brumbies and follows them team through the next two matches against the Chiefs and Western Force. It also joins the side on their visit to the Cerebral Palsy Alliance ahead of their charity match and meets up with one of the team’s most enthusiastic supporters.

You can catch all the round 18 Super Rugby action on:

Thursday 16 June:

The Rugby Club:

Ø  LIVE on FOX Sports 1HD & 1, 20:30 AET.

The Code:

Ø  LIVE on FOX Sports 1HD & 1, 21:30 AET.

Friday 17 June:

Game 1 –  Blues vs Highlanders, Kick-off 17:35 AET, Eden Park, Auckland:

Ø  LIVE on  FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 17:30 AET.

Game 2 – Rebels vs Force, Kick-off 19:40 AET, AAMI Park, Melbourne:

Ø  LIVE on  FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 19:30 AET.

Saturday 18 June:

Game 3 – Chiefs vs Reds, Kick-off 15:30 AET, Waikato Stadium, Hamilton:

Ø  LIVE on  FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 15:30 AET.

Ø  LIVE on ABC 612 Brisbane and across Queensland on ABC Regional Stations from 15:30 AET.

Ø  LIVE on ABC Grandstand Digital Sydney and Brisbane and streamed online via www.abc.net.au from 15:30 AET.

Game 4 – Crusaders vs Hurricanes, Kick-off 17:35 AET, Westpac Stadium, Wellington:

Ø  LIVE on FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 17:30 AET.

Game 5 –  Waratahs vs Brumbies, Kick-off 19:40 AET, ANZ Stadium, Sydney:

Ø  LIVE on FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 19:30 AET.

Ø  LIVE on ABC 702 Sydney and across NSW on ABC Regional Stations from 19:30 AET.

Ø  LIVE on ABC 666 Canberra and on ABC Grandstand Digital Radio Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth and streamed online via www.abc.net.au from 19:30 AET.

Sunday 19 June:

Game 6 – Bulls vs Sharks, Kick-off 01:05 AET, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria:

Ø  LIVE on  FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 01:00 AET.

Game 7 – Cheetahs vs Stormers, Kick-off 03:10 AET, Free State Rugby Stadium, Bloemfontein:

Ø  LIVE on  FOX Sports 3HD & 3 from 03:00 AET.

The Ruck - Triple-M’s One Hour dedicated Rugby show:

Ø  LIVE Triple-M Sydney 104.9, Triple-M Brisbane 104.5 & MIX Canberra, 09:00 AET.

Ø  Podcasts available for Triple-M Melbourne and Mix Perth via www.triplem.com.au later in the day.

Monday 20 June:

Super Rugby Extra Time: FOX Sports 1HD & 1, 18:30 AET.

Tuesday 21 June:

Super Rugby Extra Time: Channel 9, 00:00 AET