The Sharks, Brumbies, Chiefs, Blues, Lions and Stormers posted wins in round two of Super Rugby.
Here is a wrap of all the action.
SHARKS 42 HIGHLANDERS 20
Winger Makazole Mapimpi had two tries in the first half and fullback Aphelele Fassi scored a double in the second as the Sharks overran the Highlanders 42-20 in a Super Rugby round opener on Friday.
Mapimpi scored his tries within four minutes of each other and during an eight minute spell in the first half in which the Sharks scored three tries to lead 27-3 at halftime in Dunedin.
The Highlanders rallied with tries by Dillon Hunt and Jona Nareki to close the gap to 30-15 after 60 minutes.
But Fassi added both of his tries within the last 10 minutes to ensure the Sharks took a bonus point from the first match of their four-match tour to New Zealand and Australia.
The Highlanders, playing their first match of the season after a bye in the first round, were rusty and made too many errors to be competitive at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
"It was a great win and a great effort from the boys," Sharks captain Lukhanyo Am said.
"We went from last week (a 23-15 win over the Bulls) with a little bit of confidence and coming here and getting the first win of the tour was really great."
The Sharks took 31 minutes to score their first try, through flanker James Venter, but then scored two more through Mapimpi to take control.
BRUMBIES 39 REBELS 26
Brumbies coach Dan McKellar says his side needs to keep adding to their early season momentum after a 39-26 win over the Rebels on Friday night.
The victory was their first over the Rebels since 2017, withe a four-try-to-one first half setting up a comfortable win.
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Melbourne clawed their way back in the second half, narrowing a 24-point hole just before half-time to a 10-point gap in the final 15 minutes.
Friday's result also meant the Brumbies clinched their first two matches for the first time since 2016 after patchy starts to recent seasons.
CHIEFS 25 CRUSADERS 15
British and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland continued to make a bold impression in Super Rugby on Saturday as he guided the Chiefs to a 25-15 win over three-time defending champions, the Crusaders.
The match pitted Gatland against Crusaders coach Scott Robertson, an applicant for the All Blacks head coaching role last year and a man many New Zealanders believed should have been given the job.
The Crusaders made an explosive beginning with two tries inside the first 15 minutes to All Blacks winger Sevu Reece, and looked set to dominate the game.
Playing with little possession, the unbeaten Chiefs managed to score a try of their own and to go to halftime only four points down at 12-8.
They seized the lead with another try only three minutes into the second spell which gave them the lead for the first time.
The Crusaders levelled the scores with a penalty but the Chiefs pulled away again with a try to winger Sean Wainui, and bravely held out waves of Crusaders attacks.
A penalty to flyhalf Aaron Cruden in the 78th minute meant the Crusaders had to score twice to win and they weren't up to the task.
The Crusaders have only lost two of their last 16 derby matches against New Zealand teams and both of those were to the Chiefs, following a loss in Suva last year.
"The thing you notice about these derbies and these matches that have a bit riding on them is that they're personal," said Chiefs captain Sam Cane after a willing second round encounter.
"They're physical, they're brutal and there were some key moments in that game that could have gone either way. But there were some big defensive efforts tonight and we just stuck at it."
One of the biggest defensive efforts came from Cane himself who made many crucial tackles and forced turnovers.
Cruden was again a steadying influence on the Chiefs, as was All Blacks fullback Damian McKenzie who played his first match of the season and acted as a second playmaker.
BLUES 32 WARATAHS 12
Mark Nawaqanitawase escaped a serious neck injury after an awkward try-scoring fall but that’s where the good news finished for NSW on a foul night in Newcastle.
Hoping to avoid the unwanted record of dropping the opening two games for the first in the team’s Super Rugby history, the Waratahs were thumped by an efficient Blues outfit, who adapted far better to the wet and windy conditions and pocketed a bonus point win.
The Waratahs only trailed the Blues 8-7 at halftime but with a crumbling scrum, soft moments in defence and endless turnovers, the hosts conceded four tries in the second half and ended up losing 32-12.
Blues winger Winger Mark Telea bagged a hat-trick.
LIONS 27 REDS 20
Reds coach Brad Thorn says his side needs to stop the "self-inflicted" wounds that are preventing them from turning strong moments into winning matches.
The Reds defended ferociously to overcome a 13-man stint early in the second half and held the lead inside the final 20 minutes but fell to the Lions 27-20 in Johannesburg.
While they did not concede a point when undermanned, their courageous effort could not mitigate the frustration that it was their own errors that put them in that situation.
STORMERS 13 BULLS 0
Speedster Seabelo Senatla scored a superb try for the Stormers as they ground out a 13-0 win over the Bulls Saturday to top the Super Rugby table.
Slick handling set up the winger to race clear for a 50th-minute score that proved the last of a dour South African showdown at Newlands stadium in Cape Town.
Victory lifted the Stormers to nine points, one more than the Chiefs of New Zealand and the ACT Brumbies of Australia after two rounds.
The Stormers succeeded despite the absence of World Cup-winning Springbok skipper Siya Kolisi and Bongi Mbonambi, who was also part of the team that beat England in the final.
Kolisi will be sidelined for up to 12 weeks and Mbonambi could miss the rest of the season after both were injured in a triumph over the Wellington Hurricanes last weekend.
The Bulls spent long periods of the second half deep in the Stormers' territory, but their predictability and heroic defending by the home side kept them scoreless.
"South African derbies are always going to be physical affairs and there was not much between the teams tonight," said acting Stormers skipper and prop Steven Kitshoff.
"Seabelo scored a beautiful try to give us some breathing space and then we had to defend brilliantly to keep the Bulls out."
Fly-half Damian Willemse kicked a penalty to give the Stormers an early lead that widened before half-time via a pushover try claimed by hooker Scarra Ntubeni and centre Jamie Roberts.
HURRICANES 26 JAGUARES 23
The Hurricanes have bounced back from being held scoreless last week to cross for two tries in the final 10 minutes to snatch a 26-23 Super Rugby win over the Jaguares on Saturday.
The Argentines led 10-9 at halftime courtesy of a Domingo Miotti penalty goal and a converted Marcos Kremer try on 23 minutes.
Last year's beaten finalists appeared set for their second home win in succession after a converted try from Agustin Creevy (63rd) gave them a 23-12 lead late in the second half.
However, the visitors maintained their composure to rally late and were rewarded with two converted tries to pull off the comeback win.
Substitute Alex Fidow touched down in the 70th before centre Ngani Leaumape created the match-winning try for replacement scrum-half Jamie Booth in the 77th, with both converted by Jordie Barrett.
There was drama when the Argentine television official attempted to intervene and call a forward pass but South African referee Rasta Rasivhenge refused to change his call.
All Blacks star Barrett also kicked four penalty goals as the Wellington-based franchise got over last week's disappointment of failing to score a point for the first time in 20 years.
