Sharks, Bulls in danger of slipping out of elite European Cup competition

South Africa will almost certainly have three teams in the quarter-finals of this season's United Rugby Championship (URC), but this weekend's final round of fixtures is about much more than that. 

While the top eight sides on the log will progress to the URC knockouts, the final standings will also determine the qualifiers for next season's lucrative European Champions Cup. 

The winners of each of the four Shields - Irish, Scottish/Italian, South African and Welsh - secure automatic qualification to next season's Champions Cup while the winners of each of the URC, European Champions Cup and European Challenge Cup this season will also be included. 

However many spots remain to get the total number of URC sides in the Champions Cup to eight will then be determined by final log position in the URC. 

The complication for South Africa is that Cardiff - currently in 11th - are the highest-placed Welsh side in the URC. 

Regardless of what happens this weekend, Cardiff or Ospreys (13th) cannot climb into the top eight, meaning that only the top seven finishers - and one of Cardiff, Ospreys or Scarlets (14th) - will qualify for the Champions Cup. 

That window will then shrink to being only the top six URC teams if one of Benetton or Scarlets win the European Challenge Cup, with both contesting the semi-finals (Benetton play Toulon, Scarlets play Glasgow). 

It makes this weekend particularly ominous for the Bulls and Sharks, who are both in danger of slipping down to the second tier of European Cup competition next season - the Challenge Cup - if results don't go their way. 

The Bulls do at least have the upper hand. 

Jake White's men are already seventh on the URC standings on 48 points, two points clear of the Sharks in eighth on 46.