Five Things We Learned From the Weekend's European Champions Cup

As the dust settles on the third round of Europe’s premier club rugby competition, James Harrington examines the talking points.

The first half of the European Champions Cup traditional December double-header had everything: tension, drama, and its fair share of comedy moments. Here, in no particular order, are five things you could discuss for hours in the pub before next week’s return fixtures. And, other than this, there’s not a single mention of Toulon.

You need to see Clermont v Ulster II
The headline in respected French rugby newspaper Midi Olympique on Monday said it all: Thank you for a great day. They weren’t wrong – it was a great rugby day in Belfast. Both Ulster and Clermont picked up try-scoring bonuses in a nine-try 39-32 thriller in which the lead changed hands seven times. The scoring started in the second minute and did not let up until the 74th. And the result leaves Ulster level on points with Bordeaux, and three behind Clermont, with the return leg amid the sleeping volcanoes of the Auvergne to come in a matter of days. If you’re a rugby fan, the return fixture this weekend can’t come quickly enough.

Hartley, you’re a moron
The England captain can be a bit of an idiot. This much is not news. You’ve probably already seen the incident during Northampton’s game against Leinster – it’s been everywhere, after all. But, in case you have mysteriously avoided the internet, TV, newspapers over the past few days, six minutes after coming on to the Franklin’s Gardens pitch as a second-half replacement, and with England coach Eddie Jones watching in the stands, he did this.

Jones, it is safe to say, was far from impressed.

Referee Jerome Garces had no choice but to give the England captain his marching orders. A lengthy ban will surely follow, adding to the 54 weeks he has already served for offences including eye-gouging, biting, head-butting and swearing at a referee. A 10-week ban – the top end of the range of sanctions available to the disciplinary committee – will leave him sidelined for the start of the Six Nations. Even a six-week punishment would mean he will play no more meaningful rugby before a key international training camp. Given his record, such leniency is hardly an option.

Scant consolation it may be, but his Northampton side were already well beaten the time he walked on the pitch. So, it didn’t really matter that he walked off again so soon afterwards.

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Write off the Irish at your peril
No Pro12 side made it to the knockout phase of last season’s European Champions Cup. And, given the huge sums of money sloshing around both the English Premiership and the French Top 14, few predicted much would change this season – especially as the tournament is now weighted much more in favour of the big two leagues. The Irish clearly have other ideas. Munster nilled Leicester at Thomond Park to pick up their second bonus-point win; Leinster’s brilliance would have been the talk of their win over against Northampton were it not for Hartley’s moment of madness; and Ulster won that thriller against Clermont. These three Irish provinces notched up 39, 38, and 37 points apiece this week. Munster and Leinster top their respective pools, Ulster are three points behind Clermont – and though Connacht lost at Wasps, they are still in with a shout of qualification. It is very possible that half the teams in this season’s quarter-finals could be Irish. 

It was a bad weekend for the Premiership
While the Irish and Glasgow were doing the Pro12 proud, just two English sides won in the European Champions Cup this weekend – and one of those games was an all-Premiership affair in which defending champions Saracens stomped all over a poor Sale. But while the London side and erstwhile capital counterparts Wasps proudly carried the flag for English rugby in Europe, all around them were the fallen and broken remnants of their competition comrades Northampton, Leicester, Exeter, and Sale. For them, Europe is about pride now.

Brute force and teamwork are a winning combination
Here’s a tip for future opponents of Montpellier: do not get their pack angry. You won’t like it when they’re angry. To be fair to opponents Castres, it wasn’t their fault that the Herault side’s forwards were upset. It was the referee, who sent off prop Davit Kubriachvili for a shoulder at a ruck in the 18th minute. But, despite their relative innocence, the visitors bore the brunt of their opponents’ ire. Three tries from brutal driving lineouts and a monster scrum that got stronger despite a lack of numbers meant that 14-man Montpellier picked up a bonus-point win. You have to give it to Jake White’s men. The rugby they play is not always pretty, but it is damned effective.