Biggest Winners and Losers in World Rugby for Weekend of April 22 to 24

The European rugby calendar is drawing to an intense finish, and the Champions Cup final was cemented this weekend as Saracens and Racing 92 bounded past Wasps and Leicester Tigers, respectively.

Dan Carter kicked the last remaining French outfit for a 19-16 win over Leicester on Sunday, while Sarries will fly the flag for England in Lyon, France, next month after beating Wasps 24-17 on Saturday.

Lyon will have another final to host in May, though, after Harlequins and Montpellier bulldozed their way past respective semi-final foes Grenoble and Newport Gwent Dragons to book spots in the Challenge Cup crescendo.

The southern hemisphere is heating up, too, as the Super Rugby season reached the halfway mark in Round 9, where the Chiefs tightened their grip on the table summit with a crucial win over the Hurricanes.

We also saw the Sunwolves seal a landmark maiden victory in Super Rugby, and we discuss all that and more in the biggest winners and losers from around the world of rugby this weekend.

Winner: Dan Carter

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As if picking up a World Cup and World Rugby Player of the Year gong in 2015 wasn't enough, Carter moved within reach of completing his premier trophy cabinet on Sunday after helping Racing book their spot in the final of this season's Champions Cup.

It's been only five months since the Kiwi icon made his debut for the Parisian giants, but Carter's second stint in France has been a whirlwind journey already and could end with a glittering haul to his name.

The fly-half slotted 11 points for Racing as they held out for a 19-16 triumph over the Tigers, and yet he was unsurprisingly humble in defeat after the result, taking to his official Twitter account in praise of the opposition.

The "Carter Effect" is in full swing, and after a period of uncertainty about whether the injury doubt would feature in Nottingham, England, the New Zealander went above and beyond in marshalling Racing to Lyon.

Loser: Grenoble

By and large, this weekend's European semi-finals all made for tense and tight affairs, with Saracens, Racing and Montpellier pushed hard by respective last-four opponents Wasps, Leicester and Newport.

Not Harlequins, however, as they demolished Grenoble 30-6 in a terribly one-sided affair that will have made more than a few Connacht players wince at the fact they exited in the quarters at the hands of this French outfit.

Away from home, Grenoble proved to be miles off the pace at The Stoop, Twickenham, England, on Friday, conceding tries to Jamie Roberts, Nick Evans and George Lowe while managing to muster just two penalties for their troubles.

Per ESPN Scrum, the Top 14 representatives lost a third of their scrums, conceded nine penalties and accounted for just 34 per cent of the territory, and they ended up as the least impressive of our eight European semi-finalists.

Winner: Chiefs

In a weekend where former All Blacks superstar Carter soared in his new northern-hemisphere digs, it seemed only fitting that Beauden Barrett and Aaron Cruden battled for the role as his successor on the other side of the equator.

And it was Cruden who had the last laugh in Wellington, New Zealand, despite Barrett's impressive showing, with the Super Rugby-leading Chiefs running out as 28-27 victors in their trip to Westpac Stadium.

Barrett was perhaps the more impressive individual after scoring a late try and ending with 10 points to his name, but the Chiefs won't care a jot after extending their cushion at the summit to 12 points.

Loser: Jason Emery

An unfortunate incident unfolded in Dunedin, New Zealand, on Friday evening after Willie le Roux was forced to temporarily withdraw from the Sharks' clash against the Highlanders due to a neck injury inflicted by Jason Emery.

It was only 12 minutes in that Highlanders centre Emery was shown a red card for his ill-timed rush on the airborne South African, who thankfully returned midway through the first period after the necessary concussion checks.

Emery's absence ultimately had a great influence on the defending Super Rugby champions' performance as the 14-man Highlanders succumbed to a 14-15 defeat, their first home defeat of the season.

It's fortunate Springboks full-back Le Roux came away from the match without any evident damage, but Emery's reckless run in served as a reminder of the responsibility defenders have in taking due care with their challenges.

Winner: Sunwolves

Round 9 of the 2016 Super Rugby season was a historic one for the Sunwolves, as they sealed their first victory since forming at the start of this year thanks to a 36-28 defeat of the Jaguares.

Argentina's franchise is also in its maiden campaign, making the win all the sweeter in a way, with the Japan and Singapore-based team claiming "first blood" against their fellow Super Rugby rookies.

Yasutaka Sasakura, Derek Carpenter and Harumichi Tatekawa each scored tries for the Sunwolves to outweigh the Jaguares' four tries, but it was Tusi Pisi's 18 points from the tee that really cemented their result.