Premiership clubs cannot get bored of Champions Cup failures, it’s the pinnacle
Looking across the results from the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup at the weekend with a focus on the seven English teams, there were six results that went the way many expected and one that didn’t.
Gloucester’s victory in France against Montpellier was a real surprise, but wins for Northampton Saints and Bath, and losses for Sale, Leicester Tigers, Saracens and Harlequins were expected.
What might have come as a surprise, however, was the manner in which the two London teams lost on the biggest stage in club rugby.
Harlequins had one of the toughest ties in Europe, going to Croke Park to take on a Leinster side who only had room for their All Black Beauden Barrett on the bench. They lost 62-0.
For Saracens, who admitted they were forced to rest a couple of players due to mandatory England Rugby stand-down periods, shipping more than 70 points was borderline embarrassing – albeit they scored 42 of their own.
Budgets make a difference, and Leinster and Toulon’s playing resources dwarf those of Saracens and Harlequins, regardless of the perceived quality of the English challengers.
Stick with it
And some have questioned whether Premiership Rugby could do more to ensure English clubs are able to challenge on the European stage, such as relaxing domestic schedules and altering salary caps.
That said, there is no salary cap in Europe and nothing, in theory, stopping a billionaire owner hiring galacticos to only play in continental competition. Some argue that’s what RC Toulon were trying to achieve when they won three on the bounce in the 2010s.
But English clubs cannot turn their backs on Europe; it remains the pinnacle of club rugby.
Bath, Northampton Saints, Leicester Tigers, Wasps, Saracens and Exeter have all won the Champions Cup at least once. Harlequins, Sale, Wasps, Gloucester, Bath, Northampton and Bristol, meanwhile, have all lifted the Challenge Cup.
The European stage goes beyond the domestic one, it harnesses the great and good of France, Ireland, and now South Africa.
There has been an apparent shift recently from English clubs to ignore Europe, but it remains the beautiful madness that international club rugby provides.
Fans get a buzz when Toulouse, Munster or Clermont come to town. But that buzz fades when less than full-strength English teams take to the field.
Saracens were guilty of that at the weekend down on the southern French coast. Harlequins were just blown away by the de facto Ireland international side.
Champions Cup pinnacle
It is difficult to compete with the big spenders across the continent but the magic of Europe harbours memories for all; whether it is those trips away to France or the welcoming of a giant at home.
Despite England’s recent poor performances in the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup, the Premiership clubs must stick with it, and commit to it.
To not do so is to neglect a financial cash cow – relatively speaking for rugby – and to turn their backs on the traditions of cross-border matchplay.
Gloucester and Bath play each other in the quarter-finals of the EPCR Challenge Cup on Sunday, meaning there will be English representation in the semi-finals.
Northampton should be beating Castres at home on Saturday in the Champions Cup, too.
So across the two competitions, two out of eight wouldn’t be so bad. But that’s nothing new. It’s reaching the final and then winning that remains an anomaly for Premiership clubs in recent years. Therein lies the challenge.