Infront Sports & Media, exclusive media and marketing partner to the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), has realised an official dedicated YouTube channel that will feature all 64 games of the upcoming 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship running from 4 to 20 May in Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden. The dedicated channel at www.youtube.com/icehockey presented by main sponsor Škoda will provide fans throughout the world with high-quality video stream both live and on demand of each game as well as daily highlights, such as best action, goals and saves. The service is free of charge.

Infront handles all forms of electronic media rights for the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship including TV and digital media on a worldwide basis. The collaboration with YouTube guarantees full tournament coverage to ice hockey fans far and wide — no matter where they are in the world on any platform and anytime. Access is only geo-blocked in a few countries where exclusive media license agreements are in place*.

The Highlanders' last victory over The Sharks saw the KwaZulu-Natalians firing their coach. That happened in 2005, when the team from Otago crushed the Durbanites by 43-7 at Mr Price Kings Park, following which Kevin Putt lost his job. It feels like an eternity ago, but that was the last time the Highlanders have managed to beat The Sharks. Only one member of their squad from that day remains – Springbok wing Odwa Ndungane got a few minutes off the bench against the Highlanders on 19 March 2005, but by then the game was over as a contest.

Since then, The Sharks have beaten the Highlanders in five successive games and in that time, the Kiwis have not scored more than 17 points against the team from Durban. They didn't play each other last year.

It's been 12 years since Pukekohe, south of Auckland and home venue of New Zealand provincial side Counties Manukau, has seen Vodacom Super Rugby, but for the MTN Lions it can almost be viewed as half a return. See, back in 1999 the Cats franchise, which consisted of players predominantly from the Golden Lions and the Free State Cheetahs, played the Chiefs in Pukekohe. They lost by 42-44 on that day, but it's still the closest this team from South Arfrica (albeit in the guise of the Cats) ever came to beating the team from Waikato in New Zealand.

Saturday's task will not be any easier. The Chiefs have won their last eight matches – the best winning streak of 2012 – and occupy top position on the Vodacom Super Rugby log. On the other side of the standings, the MTN Lions are in 14th position, following one win and seven straight defeats.

The Vodacom Bulls will play their first-ever Vodacom Super Rugby match in Melbourne against the Rebels on Friday morning. They are only the fourth South African team to visit AAMI Park and would like to build on the victories achieved there by The Sharks and DHL Stormers (both last year) and the Toyota Cheetahs (earlier this season).

Vodacom Super Rugby's newest kids on the block, the Rebels, have only won four of their 12 home matches since joining the competition in 2011. Those victories were against the Brumbies, Hurricanes, Force and Blues.