A late penalty goal to Kurtley Beale has enabled the Melbourne Rebels to escape with a nail-biting 32-31 victory over the Western Force at NIB Stadium on Sunday.

The Stormers climbed to the top of the Super Rugby standings after seeing off the Waratahs in a hard-fought clash at Newlands on Sunday morning.

The Sharks continued their good recent run with a bonus-point 34-20 victory over South African rivals the Cheetahs at Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein on Sunday morning.

Reeling from a shock loss to the Rebels, the Crusaders took out their fury on the hapless Blues in a record 59-12 thumping at AMI Stadium on Saturday night.

The Queensland Reds' hopes of sneaking into the Super Rugby finals have received a major boost, with the reigning champions defeating the Lions 34-20 on Saturday.

Courageous forwards and Mike Delany's accurate kicking were the game-breakers as the Highlanders celebrated a hard-earned 16-11 win over the Bulls at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday.

The Brumbies have taken a firm grip of the Australian conference with a hard-fought 37-25 victory over the Hurricanes in Wellington.

The Melbourne Rebels are confident they have offset the losses of two key back-rowers after signing Wallabies flanker Scott Higginbotham from the Queensland Reds.

The Western Force have suffered an injury scare in the lead-up to Sunday's Super Rugby match against the Melbourne Rebels with Nathan Sharpe hurting an ankle at training on Thursday.

For the second time in less than 24 hours one of the New Zealand contenders will square off against an offshore conference leader and this match, just like the one in Wellington, will have major consequences for both teams.