The final round of games in the pool phase of the European Rugby Champions Cup take place this weekend with Europe’s elite fighting for the last opportunity to reach the knockout stages, live on BT Sport and Sky Sports.
Both broadcasters will split the 10 deciding pool phase matches as the inaugural Champions Cup campaign reaches this crucial stage, in a competition which so far is proving itself to be ultra-competitive.
After five rounds of bruising matches across the continent, only one club so far, title holders Toulon, have booked a place in the quarter-finals going into what is promising to be a rollercoaster in the six and decisive round of pool fixtures.
At this stage last season, as many as six clubs had secured their passage into the last eight while in 2012/13, four clubs had made it through, and if more proof was needed that a lifeline can exist right up until the conclusion of round 6, both Bath and Wasps could make history this weekend by becoming the first clubs to reach the knockout stage after losing their opening two pool games.
Round 5 proved to be hugely positive for the Aviva Premiership representatives with Bath and Wasps in particular catapulting themselves back into contention.
Bath produced a scintillating performance to get the better of Toulouse by 35-18 at Stade Ernest Wallon where Jonathan Joseph and Francois Louw scored magnificent tries in a bonus-point victory, while Wasps stunned Harlequins at The Stoop with a James Haskell-inspired defensive display which will live long in the memory.
Saracens convincingly doused Munster Rugby’s fire in Pool 1, Leicester Tigers saw off the challenge of the Scarlets to keep themselves in the qualification race, and Northampton Saints defeated the Ospreys at the Liberty Stadium.
Meanwhile, Racing Metro moved to the top of Pool 5 with a big 53-7 win over Benetton Treviso which featured a hat-trick by skipper, Dimitri Szarzweski, and at Stade Mayol, there was another hat-trick by Steffon Armitage as Toulon stormed into the quarter-finals with a runaway 60-22 win over Ulster Rugby.
Clermont Auvergne stayed on track with a battling 22-13 success over Sale Sharks, and Leinster Rugby and Glasgow Warriors kept the Guinness PRO12 flag flying with wins over Castres Olympique and Montpellier respectively.
So, with the five pool winners and the three best runners-up securing quarter-final spots, those intriguing results from last weekend have set up a whole host of winner-take-all clashes in Round 6. In Pool 1, leaders Clermont host second-placed Saracens on Sunday, and in Pool 2, table-toppers Leinster have to go to in-form Wasps on Saturday.
Pool 4 is full of permutations as Bath take on Glasgow Warriors at the Rec on Sunday with leaders Toulouse travelling to Montpellier, while in Pool 5, Northampton and Racing go head-to-head at Franklin’s Gardens.
Leicester Tigers, who are away at Ulster in Pool 3, and Harlequins who visit Castres in Pool 2 are also in the qualification mix as games in the same pools are scheduled to kick off at the same time.
It’s never been tighter heading into round six with those prized knockout places as well as the bonus of a home quarter-final on the line.
Full details of the weekend’s live European rugby action can be found below, as well as details of how BT Sport and Sky Sports will be covering this season’s competition, as both broadcaster’s go directly head-to-head on the rugby field for the first time.
.
BT Sport covers live European rugby for the first time this season and will screen some of the competitions biggest matches featuring sides from the Aviva Premiership.
In the European Champions Cup, BT Sport will show at least five matches exclusively live from each of the opening rounds of the tournament, plus two quarter-finals and one semi-final exclusively live, as well as the final, which will shared with Sky Sports.
As part of the shared deal with Sky, BT has the choice in the Champions Cup fixtures of first pick matches involving clubs from the Aviva Premiership, meaning many of the European ties involving English sides will screened on its channels.
BT Sport’s European Champions Cup coverage will be anchored live from the grounds around Europe for key matches, with further games broadcast live from the BT Sport studio in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London.
Craig Doyle leads the channel’s presentation team alongside its regular rugby union experts, including Lawrence Dallaglio, Ben Kay, Matt Dawson and Austin Healey, plus BT Sport’s new signing, former Ireland and Leinster centre Brian O’Driscoll.
Match commentary will be led by Nick Mullins and Alastair Eykyn, with Andrew Cotter also part of the roster, while reporting and additional presenting duties fall to Sarra Elgan and Martin Bayfield.
BT Sport’s rugby magazine show Rugby Tonight moves to a new slot of Monday nights and will recap on all the action from the new European tournaments every week during the seasno.
It will continue to be hosted by Martin Bayfield, Matt Dawson, Craig Doyle plus Sarra Elgan and will offer a mixture of rugby analysis, debate and lively entertainment around the tournaments, as well as the wider world of rugby.
Alongside live high-definition TV coverage, all the action will be available to watch online and on the go via the BT Sport website and app.
For more information about BT Sport’s rugby union coverage, visit btsport.com.
.
Sky Sports will continue to broadcast some of the biggest head-to-heads from European rugby’s biggest competition this season in the inaugural European Champions Cup.
All the top sides from the French Top 14 and Guinness Pro12 will feature extensively on Sky Sports during the competition, with the channel possessing top picks for Champions Cup matches featuring Scottish, Welsh and Irish sides as part of its new shared deal with BT.
Subscribers can enjoy at least five live matches per weekend and there are many fascinating clashes to feast on from this week’s line-up in the fourth round.
Sky Sports’ on-air line-up of commentators and analysts includes some of the biggest names in rugby union with over 650 caps between them.
Expert analysis is provided by Will Greenwood, Dewi Morris, Ieuan Evans, Scott Quinnell, Sean Fitzpatrick, Michael Lynagh, Stuart Barnes, Shane Horgan and Paul Wallace, with additional faces also appearing in the Sky Sports studios throughout the season.
England’s 2003 World Cup-winning hero Jonny Wilkinson has also been signed by Sky Sports as a regular pundit on its rugby union coverage ahead of the start of the new European competitions.
Sky’s live European rugby coverage will be presented by Alex Payne and James Gemmell from pitchside at key games or in the studio, with match commentary coming from Miles Harrison, Mark Robson, Martin Gillingham and Johnnie Hammond.
The European Rugby Champions Cup forms part of Sky Sports’ biggest ever rugby union season, offering viewers more than 360 live matches from the international, European and domestic game.
All of Sky Sports’ live matches will be available to watch in HD, on demand and on the go through Sky Go, the leading sports mobile TV service in the UK, while to support the live match experience, Sky Sports customers can also benefit from the innovative Sky Sports smartphone and iPad apps, which offer additional viewing options and analysis.
For more information about Sky Sports’ rugby union coverage, visit skysports.com.
.
Welsh language channel S4C will be the only place to watch free-to-air highlights from the new European Rugby Champions Cup and European Rugby Challenge Cup this season.
In a last-minute deal ahead of the start of the new competitions, S4C will screen a one-hour highlights show either on Saturday or Sunday night during the competition, with a further round-up show to follow on Mondays.
The S4C highlights show, presented by Gareth Roberts alongside former Wales captain Gwyn Jones, will feature action from key matches in both competitions featuring the Welsh regions, plus the pick of the other top European ties, from the opening round to next May’s final at Twickenham.
Every programme will be available to watch on-demand via the S4C website for up to 30 days after transmission.
.
.
Saturday 24th January WASPS v LEINSTER – Pool 2 Kick-off: 13:00 LIVE: 12.00pm-3.00pm BT Sport 1 CASTRES v HARLEQUINS – Pool 2 Kick-off: 13:00 LIVE: 12.00pm-3.15pm BT Sport 2 NORTHAMPTON SAINTS v RACING METRO – Pool 5 Kick-off: 15:15 LIVE: 3.00pm-5.15pm BT Sport 1 TREVISO v OSPREYS – Pool 5 Kick-off: 15:15 LIVE: 3.00pm-5.15pm Sky Sports 1 ULSTER v LEICESTER TIGERS – Pool 3 Kick-off: 17:30 LIVE: 5.15pm-7.45pm Sky Sports 1 SCARLETS v TOULON – Pool 3 Kick-off: 19:45 LIVE: 7.00pm-10.00pm Sky Sports 1 Red Button Match Highlights Rygbi: Cwpan Pencampwyr Ewrop 10.00pm-11.00pm S4C
Sunday 25th December BATH v GLASGOW WARRIORS – Pool 4 Kick-off: 13:00 LIVE: 12.00pm-3.00pm BT Sport 2 MONTPELLIER v TOULOUSE – Pool 4 Kick-off: 13:00 LIVE: 12.30pm-3.00pm Sky Sports 1 CLERMONT AUVERGNE v SARACENS – Pool 1 Kick-off: 15:15 LIVE: 3.00pm-6.00pm BT Sport 2 MUNSTER v SALE SHARKS – Pool 1 Kick-off: 15:15 LIVE: 3.00pm-5.30pm Sky Sports 1 Match Highlights European Rugby Special 8.00pm-9.30pm Sky Sports 3
.
.