Top 14 comes up trumps again in as Investec Champions Cup kicks off
Anyone hoping for an end to the dominance of French clubs in the Investec Champions Cup, look away now.
Holders Toulouse and Bordeaux-Begles both won their opening pool games on Sunday, making it six wins out of a possible eight from representatives of the Top 14 over round one of the competition.
The league that has provided the last four winners of this trophy looks well positioned to make it five in a row.
It wasn’t just the sheer weight of points. On a weekend that saw just three teams win away from home, two were from France.
Given the format of the Champions Cup pool stage, in which teams play just four times, away wins are a precious commodity. La Rochelle and Toulon, then, will already have one eye on the round of 16. By the same token, the two Top 14 sides to be beaten, Stade Francais and Castres, are by no means out of it.
By contrast, the eight English clubs managed just two wins from their opening skirmishes.
The Premiership’s current top three all lost and in four head-to-head clashes between teams from either side of the Channel, Les Rosbifs were cooked 3-1. Northampton Saints’ thrashing of Castres was the exception to wins for La Rochelle at Bath, Racing 92 at home to Harlequins, and Bordeaux against Leicester Tigers.
South African outfits were little better, winning one from three. Scotland were the only nation to take maximum points, thanks to Glasgow Warriors’ terrific win over Sale on Saturday.
Irish clubs, at least, showed they might provide another challenge to the Champions Cup hegemony of the Top 14, winning two out of three.
Leinster, the losing finalists for the last three years, added to the pain for English teams by overrunning Bristol in the West Country on Sunday.
One of only two defeats suffered by French teams across the first round was inflicted by Munster, against Stade Francais on Saturday. Toulouse levelled it up against Ulster 24 hours later.
Leinster were made to work for their 35-12 win in torrid conditions at Bristol. Having lost two men to the sin bin they conceded the first try, scored by Max Lahiff, but Jordan Larmour responded immediately and it was level at half time.
Thereafter, the province’s squad depth told; Sam Prendergast, twice, Jordie Barrett and Josh van der Flier all scored in a 13-minute barrage that banked a bonus point, despite Gabriel Ibitoye’s late consolation.
Bordeaux’s 42-28 bonus-point win over Leicester on Sunday came despite trailing the Tigers by seven points at half time at Stade Chaban-Delmas.
Young France wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Australian forward Pete Samu finished with two tries apiece as the hosts, who currently sit second in the Top 14, crossed the whitewash six times against the Premiership’s third-placed team.
Leicester had made a positive start. Harry Wells, Josh Bassett and Come Joussain’s tries outweighed two for Bordeaux from Samu and Guido Petti, meaning the visitors went in 21-14 ahead at the break.
But four unanswered tries from Bielle-Biarrey, twice, Samu and Nicolas Depoortere turned the contest on its head. Tigers at least escaped with a point thanks to Izaia Perese bundling over late on.
Toulouse laid down a marker by thrashing Ulster 61-21 to join Bordeaux at the head of Pool 1.
France lock Emmanuel Meafou and Italy back Ange Capuozzo bagged two tries each, while half-back duo Romain Ntamack and Antoine Dupont, Matthis Lebel and Santiago Chocobares also got on the scoresheet in a match that looked over by half time.
James McCormick, Stewart Moore and Iain Henderson crossed for Ulster but it wasn’t enough for a bonus point.