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Week ending Monday 1st February 2010 In the LV= Cup (what a name!), it was Scarlets (+1 to 18th)and Cardiff (+1 to 15th) who came out tops in the Anglo-Welsh ties. In the all-Welsh game, Dragons hammered Ospreys and climb 3 places to 28th. Quins (+2 to 26th surprisingly won at London Irish (7th).
Across the Channel there was a full midweek programme in the French Top 14. Racing move into the top twenty after defeating Clermont who remain 6th. Meanwhile, Bayonne (+3 to 30th) produced a shock beating Biarritz (-2 to 10th).
In case anyone has been away, the Six Nations starts next week!
Week ending Monday 25th January 2010 Top-seeded Munster (+1 to 3rd) will face their weekend opponents Northampton (2nd) again in the q-finals. Leinster (1st) take on in-form Clermont (6th) after the champions drew with London Irish at Twickenham.
Meanwhile Toulouse's win (+3 to 4th)at Sale sees them get home advantage over Stade (-3 to 15th) in the all French clash. The Parisians lost in Edinburgh (+2 to 11th) but still won the pool. The third French side Biarritz (+1 to 8th) defeated Glasgow and will play the only Welsh representative Ospreys (+2 to 12th) who knocked out the Tigers (-2 to 5th).
Finally, there were notable away wins for 4 pool runners-up: Ulster, Scarlets, Cardiff and Gloucester. The latter three sides all qualify for the Amlin q-finals with the Irish side missing out.Week ending Monday 18th January 2010 Remarkably, Munster (+1 to 4th) was the only side (out of twelve) to win away in round 5 of the Heineken Cup.
There were however a couple of surprises with Gloucester (+4 to 26th) upsetting Biarritz (-3 to 9th) and Scarlets (+3 to 21st) beating London Irish (-1 to 5th).
Clermont (+3 to 6th) looked impressive in defeating Ospreys (-2 to 14th) as did Toulouse (+1 to 7th) who easily overcame Quins.
Last round of the Heineken Cup pool stages this weekend ...Week ending Monday 11th January 2010 The top French match saw Toulouse go down at home to Clermont and the two sides are now neck and neck in the rankings (8th and 9th) with exactly the same rating, to two decimal places!
Leicester dismantled Wasps in the only Guinness Premiership tie to survive the weather. The Tigers move up a spot to 3rd while the Londoners remain in 7th.
Edinburgh climb 2 places to 10th after a home win over Cardiff Blues.
There was a major upset in Italy with arguably the top side Benetton Treviso losing twice in the league in the space of 5 days. Week ending Monday 4th January 2010 Before all Ulster fans jump at once, there is a good reason why the team of the week dropped a place to 20th in spite of their weekend win. Ulster's rating actually rose from 65.40 to 68.65 but Castres won two games in the past week and thus overtake them in the ranking. Simple! Their opponents Munster slide 3 places to 6th.
It was also a good week for Glasgow (+4 to 13th) who completed a double over rivals Edinburgh that took them to the top of the Magners League. Ospreys easy win over Cardiff helps them shoot up 4 places to 11th.
Saints defeated London Irish and leapfrog (+2 to 2nd) their opponents while Leicester's win at leaders Saracens sees the Tigers also climb 2 places to 4th.
With each French club playing two games last week there was some big movement: Clermont's two thumping wins lifts them 7 places to 9th. Biarritz also won twice at home and climb 2 places to 5th. Meanwhile Perpignan's two defeats sees them crash 6 places to 14th.Week ending Monday 28th December 2009 Xmas is derby time in the Magners League: not surprisingly Leinster and Munster overcame Ulster and Connacht respectively. Lower-ranked Glasgow (+1 to 17th) defeated Edinburgh (-2 to 11th). In Wales, Cardiff (+2 to 14th) hammered the Dragons (-2 to 26th) while Ospreys (+2 to 15th) won at the Scarlets.
London Irish (+1 to 2nd) beat Saracens (-2 to 10th) in the Guinness Premiership but remain behind their London rivals in the league. Saints, Wasps and Leicester stay 4th, 5th and 6th in the rankings following victories. Meanwhile Leeds (+2 to 35th) got only their second league win of the season at Newcastle (-3 to 28th). Week ending Monday 21st December 2009 Written off again, Munster produced an extraordinary performance to win with a bonus point in Perpignan and shoot up 4 places to 2nd. Meanwhile the Catalans plummet 7 places to 10th.
A number of other sides also managed to do the 'double', notably Biarritz (+3 to 6th) over the Dragons, Leinster (1st) who looked very powerful against the Scarlets, London Irish (+1 to 3rd) who easily overcame Brive and Sale (+3 to 13th) who came from behind to defeat Quins.
Finally revenge (at home) was sweet for Gloucester (+3 to 27th) over Glasgow, Stade (+4 to 14th) over Ulster, Toulouse (11th) over Cardiff and Edinburgh (+1 to 9th) over Bath. Week ending Monday 14th December 2009 Leinster (1st) and London Irish (+4 to 4th) each won away in their pool in Wales and France respectively. It all points to a showdown at the Madejski Stadium in the last round.
The other notable away win in the Heineken Cup this weekend was Sale (+4 to 16th) who defeated Quins (-6 to 20th).
Elsewhere, home advantage again seemed to prevail though Ulster (+2 to 19th) and Cardiff (+1 to 14th) overcame favoured French opposition in Stade (-5 to 18th) and Toulouse (-1 to 11th).
Clermont (+4 to 12th) partly restored French pride in a remarkably high-scoring 40-30 win over Leicester (-3 to 8th).
Northampton's win over Treviso coupled with Perpignan's defeat at Munster sees the Saints climb to 2nd, the highest ever ranking for the former champions.Week ending Monday 7th December 2009 Plenty of upsets in the French Top 14. League leaders Castres (-4 to 18th) lost in Bourgoin (+2 to 30th), Clermont (-3 to 16th) went down in Montauban, Toulouse (-1 to 10th) were defeated in Brive and Biarritz (-3 to 11th) lost to last-placed Albi.
Following the Irish national side's impressive autumn series, the four provinces all lost at the weekend. Leinster (1st), Munster (-2 to 7th) and Connacht lost on the road in Wales while Ulster lost at home to Glasgow (+3 to 19th). Edinburgh's victory at the Scarlets gave the Scots a rare away double and helps them climb 4 places to 6th, their highest ever EuroTable ranking.
In the Guinness Premiership, Worcester (33rd) surprisingly drew at London Irish (-2 to 8th) while Wasps (+3 to 4th) won the big clash against the Tigers (-2 to 5th). Week ending Monday 30th November 2009 With players away on international duty, the French Championship again tested some clubs strength in depth. Castres (+5 to 14th) proved too much for Biarritz who slide 4 places to 8th. Stade (-2 to 15th) lost at home to Toulon although the Parisian's opponents were already in 12th position.
Northampton's resounding win at Newcastle sees the Saints move up 2 places to 4th, their highest position for five years. London Irish also climb 2 notches to 6th after winning 16-0 at Bath who slip 3 places to 29th. Finally, Quins win in an high-scoring affair with Gloucester helps the London-based side move up 4 places to 17th.Week ending Monday 23rd November 2009 With the French national side in action, there were upsets aplenty in the French Top 14. First up was bottom side Albi (+3 to 38th) beat Perpignan (2nd). Biarritz shoot up 4 places to 4th after winning away in Clermont who slip to 14th. Meanwhile, Stade (-1 to 13th) lost the Parisian derby to Racing (+2 to 27th) and Castres (+2 to 19th) hammered Toulouse (-2 to 9th).
In the Guinness Premiership, Gloucester (+4 to 29th) brought their dreadful run of 5 consecutive defeats to an end by beating Leicester! The Tigers remain 3rd. Northampton's win over Quins meant big changes in the ranking for both sides with the Saints moving up 3 places to 6th and the Londoners crashing 6 spots to 21st.Week ending Monday 16th November 2009 The only action last weekend was in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
London Irish's win in Cardiff sees them move up to 6th. Harlequins also climbed two places to 15th after their away win in Newcastle.
The Scarlets were the only one of the four Welsh sides to win, beating Worcester and jumping two places to 18th.Week ending Monday 9th November 2009 There were no real upsets in the 12th round of matches in the French Top 14 which was played last Thursday. Home wins for Perpignan and Toulouse sees them move up to 2nd and 6th respectively. Meanwhile Montpellier were the week's biggest climbers, with their comfortable win over Montauban helping them jump up 5 places to 25th.
In the Anglo-Welsh Cup first round, a much-weakend Leicester side went down to Leeds. Having now played ten games, the Yorkshire side come into the ranking for the first time this season in 35th position. Elsewhere, Cardiff won on the road pipping Gloucester by a point while Northampton also won away in another close encounter with Ospreys. Wasps win at London Irish sees them move up 2 places to 4th while their opponents slip 4 spots to 8th.
There was no Magners League nor Italian Super 10. Week ending Monday 2nd November 2009 Wasps home defeat to Leeds (who are not yet ranked as they haven't played 10 games as a top flight side) sees them slide 2 places to 6th. Meanwhile, Leicester remain 2nd after their victory over Northampton (9th) while London Irish climb to 4th after drawing at Quins (17th).
Leinster easily dispatched Cardiff to retain their top-ranked spot while rivals Munster (+3 to 5th) warmed up for their Heineken Cup double header with Perpignan by beating Ulster in Limerick. The French side's win over Castres helps them stay 3rd.
Newcomers Racing Metro 92 produced a big shock in France by beating Toulouse. The Parisians move up 2 places to 31st while the former European champions drop a place to 8th. Finally, Toulon shoot up 4 places to 14th after an away win in Bayonne.
Week ending Monday 26th October 2009 The two top-ranked sides, Leinster and Leicester both lost at the weekend but hang on to their placings. The chasing pack is however closing in with Perpignan (+1 to 3rd) beating Stade in Paris, Wasps (+2 to 4th) crushing Gloucester at Kingsholm and London Irish (+2 to 5th) defeating the Tigers.
Toulouse move up to 7th, one place behind their vanquished opponents Biarritz who slide 3 places. The two Scots-Irish ties were won by Edinburgh (+1 to 10th) and Glasgow (+2 to 23rd). Munster slip 3 places to 8th while Ulster's win over Leinster helps them climb 2 places to 17th.
Week ending Monday 19th October 2009 Round two of the Heineken Cup dished up four tasty Anglo-French ties all of which went the French clubs way. After last week's shock defeat in Italy, Perpignan (+4 to 4th) pushed aside Northampton's challenge (-2 to 9th) while Biarritz (+1 to 3rd) routed Gloucester 42-15. On top of that, Toulouse (+2 to 8th) at Harlequins and Stade (+2 to 13th) in the dying minutes at Bath each won on the road.
France's other clubs didn't fare so well with Brive crushed at home by Leinster who regain their number one spot and Clermont (-1 to 10th) losing out in a nailbiter with Ospreys (+2 to 12th) who seem to specialise in thrillers.
And finally, back to the team of the week Scarlets whose win over high-flying London Irish (-4 to 7th) sees the Welshmen move up 4 places to 21st.Week ending Monday 12th October 2009 Of the 12 Heineken Cup ties, only two sides won away with one draw. London Irish (+4 to 3rd) knocked Leinster (-1 to 2nd) off the top of the rankings while less surprisingly Biarritz (+2 to 4th) won in Glasgow. Leicester's fightback to draw against the Ospreys (+1 to 14th) sees them reclaim the top-ranked spot.
Treviso (34th) pulled off a major upset, albeit at home, by beating Perpignan (-4 to 8th). Northampton (+2 to 7th) won a thriller 31-27 against Munster (-2 to 5th) though the former champions snatched what could be a crucial bonus point.
Another former champion Toulouse easily dismissed the challenge of English side Sale and climb 2 places to 10th. Meanwhile Stade (+2 to 15th) crushed Edinburgh while Ulster (+3 to 17th) continue to impress beating Bath comfortably at home.Week ending Monday 5th October 2009 Leinster's incredible win over Munster lifts them to the top of the Magners League as well as to the top of the rankings. Meanwhile, Ulster who lie second in the league continued their good start defeating Scarlets in a high-scoring affair and move up 4 places to 20th.
In the top French game, Biarritz (+3 to 6th) easily overcame Perpignan who remain 4th. Clermont (+2 to 8th) recovered from last week's setback at the hands of the Catalans to crush Bayonne.
In the Guinness Premiership, Leicester (-1 to 2nd) won narrowly over Worcester while Wasps (5th) beat Northampton (-3 to 9th) and London Irish (+1 to 7th) won at Sale. League leaders Saracens are 11th (+2 after a win in Newcastle).
The biggest climber of the week was Glasgow who won in Cardiff and jump 6 places to 19th.Week ending Monday 28th September 2009 Leinster (+1 to 2nd) brought Edinburgh's (-1 to 7th) long winning home run to an end and set up next week's clash with 3rd placed Munster who easily overcame the Dragons.
Saracens made it 4 our of 4 with a narrow win over Gloucester and climb 2 places to 13th. London Irish also maintained their fine start by defeating Wasps and move up to 8th. Last season's Challenge Cup winners Northampton victory over newcomers Leeds helps them up to 6th place.
Perpignan's win over Clermont sees them cement their 4th place while the Auvergne side slide down 3 spots to 10th. The other big match in France ended in a draw between Toulouse (12th) and Stade (18th).Week ending Monday 21st September 2009 Welcome to another season of European club rugby rankings. French teams have already had 7 rounds in their Top 14 with Clermont (7th) leading the way followed by Perpignan (4th), Toulon (19th) and Toulouse (11th).
Three weeks into the Guinness Premiership and only Wasps (5th) and Saracens (15th) have a 100% record. Leicester have won two out of three which has been enough to keep their position at the top of the rankings.
Meanwhile in the Magners League, only Edinburgh (6th) have won all three games. After surprising opening day defeats, Munster (2nd) and Leinster (3rd) each bounced back with wins in Wales over Ospreys (18th) and Scarlets (26th).Week ending Monday 8th June 2009 Another European season ends with English champions (and Heineken Cup finalists) Leicester Tigers in pole position. They are followed by Magners League champions Munster and French champions Perpignan. In 4th place are Leinster who won the Heineken Cup for the first time in their history.
Enjoy the summer and hope to see you back in the autumn!Week ending Monday 25th May 2009 Leinster deservedly won the Heineken Cup 2009 after a narrow 19-16 win over Leicester. The Tigers missed out on the double but hold on to the number one ranking spot ahead of Munster and now Leinster who move up to 3rd.
Northampton's win over Bourgoin in the European Challenge Cup final helps them climb 3 places to 8th.
Next weekend sees the French semi-finals and the Italian Cup final ...Week ending Monday 18th May 2009 Leicester's win over London Irish stretches their lead at the top though Munster (2nd) finished their season in style defeating Ospreys [Note there was a mistake in last week's rankings as Munster's defeat in Cardiff shouldn't have counted against them as they were already champions - see Behind the Rankings].
The big four in France will contest the semi-final play-offs for the French title: Perpignan (4th) v Stade (16th) and Toulouse (3rd) v Clermont (8th).
Wins for Viadanan and Calvisano in the first legs of the Italian semi-final play-offs.Week ending Monday 11th May 2009 Munster's reign at the top of the EuroTable came to an end with a defeat at Cardiff coupled with Leicester's win over Bath. The reigning European champions slip to 3rd while the Tigers take over in pole position. Cardiff also defeated the Dragons in midweek to leave them in 2nd place.
London Irish crushed Harlequins in the other Guinness Premiership play-off semi-final and climb 4 places to 8th, one place behind Quins.
An important win for Biarritz against Stade Francais in Paris means they lie 5th in the French Top 14, and should thus secure a Heineken Cup spot next season. They move up one place to 13th in the ranking.Week ending Monday 4th May 2009 After two heavy defeats against Munster in the Magners League this season, Leinster took sweet revenge on Saturday by winning their Heineken Cup semi-final 25-6. As a result, they move up 3 places to 4th. Meanwhile, Munster hang on to number one spot but the chasing pack all gained ground of course.
Leicester (2nd) will contest the Heineken Cup final after winning a penalty shoot-out in the other semi against Cardiff (3rd).
Bourgoin (28th) and Northampton (11th) are the finalists in the Challenge Cup after beating Worcester and Saracens respectively.Week ending Monday 27th April 2009 There wasn't so much to play for but Edinburgh deserve credit for winning 32-30 at the Ospreys. The Scots climb 4 places to 15th while the Welsh side slide 3 places to 17th. Munster's win over Scarlets all but seals the Magners League title for the top-ranked side.
The only move in the top ten sees Wasps move up to 9th after a crushing victory over Gloucester who appear to be self-destructing (-6 to 18th after 2 defeats in 5 days). Northampton drop down to 11th after a defeat at Sale.
Biarritz and Stade each move up 2 places to 14th and 16th after notching victories at the weekend. Clermont remain 8th after defeat at 6th placed Perpignan.Week ending Monday 20th April 2009 One wonders about the strength of the Guinness Premiership when Gloucester suffer such a mauling at the hands of Cardiff Blues. The early stages of the EDF Energy Cup see sides rest key players but the final is full on. The English side slip to 12th while the Welsh outfit shoot up 4 places to 3rd, their highest ever ranking spot.
Toulouse's defeat at Toulon sees them slip 2 places to 4th while Brive's 50 point drubbing by Clermont means they crash 6 places to 20th.
In the Magners League, Edinburgh (+1 to 19th) beat a weakened Leinster side while Ulster (+2 to 25th) notched a rare win on the road, in Glasgow (-1 to 22nd).
Leicester's narrow victory at Saracens helps them move up to 2nd in the EuroTable and 1st in the Guinness Premiership. Wasps (+2 to 11th) and Bath (+2 to 10th) each recorded important away wins.Week ending Monday 13th April 2009 This season's Heineken Cup semi-finals will consists of an all-Ireland derby and an Anglo-Welsh tie. Munster (1st) will take on Leinster (6th) after the reigning champions demolished the Ospreys (15th) by 43-9 while their rivals edged out Harlequins (-1 to 4th) by 6-5.
Cardiff (7th) also won a tight encounter against Toulouse (2nd) at the Millenium Stadium while Leicester (+2 to 3rd) defeated Bath (-1 to 12th) in a thrilling finish.
In the Challenge Cup Bourgoin (+1 to 28th) will host Worcester (+2 to 26th) in the semis after upsetting London Irish (9th) away. The other tie sees Northampton (+1 to 11th) take on Saracens (16th). Week ending Monday 6th April 2009 The top two ranked sides each looked impressive in the run up to next weekend's Heineken Cup. Munster outgunned Leinster (-1 to 6th) while Toulouse hammered Brive (-2 to 13th) away.
Up to 3rd place move Harlequins who won two games in a week beating Worcester at home and Bath away. Leicester's win over Sale lifts them to 5th.
Clermont are the week's big climbers, going from 12th to 8th after a win in Paris against rapidly falling Stade. Northampton also move up the table from 15th to 12th after a resounding victory over Gloucester.Week ending Monday 30th March 2009 Despite resting nearly all their Grand Slam winners, Munster and Leinster each won comfortably. The Heineken Cup holders stay top of the EuroTable after a victory in Glasgow while Leinster move up to 5th after defeating Ulster.
Anglo-Welsh honours were even in the EDF Energy Cup semi-final with Gloucester (+4 to 8th) beating Ospreys (-2 to 16th) and Cardiff (+1 to 6th) beating Northampton (15th). Meanwhile in the Guinness Premiership Newcastle's win over Leicester sees them move into the top twenty (19th) while the Tigers fall 4 places to 7th.
Toulouse beat Stade 15-11 in the big French clash of the weekend which sees the Parisians slide to 17th. Perpignan's win at Dax was enough to lift them 2 places to 3rd, behind Toulouse.Week ending Monday 23rd March 2009 Leicester's crushing win over Saracens and Gloucester's defeat at Worcester means the Tigers head the Guinness Premiership. In the EuroTable the Tigers climb to 3rd while the Cherry and Whites slide to 12th.
Quins home win over Sale helps them climb 2 places to 4th.
Congratulations to Overmach Cariparma (+2 to 32nd) on winning the Italian Cup final.Week ending Monday 9th March 2009 With Toulouse crashing at Perpignan (+1 to 4th) and Munster winning at the Dragons, Europe's top-ranked sides once again swapped places at the top.
They are followed by Quins (3rd), one of five English sides in the top ten. Leicester move up 2 places to 6th after defeating Gloucester who slide to 10th, while Wasps victory over London Irish lifts them 4 places to 9th. Meanwhile Newcastle's 5th win on the trot sees them climb 3 places to 24th.
In France, Biarritz (+3 to 19th) had a good win over Clermont (-1 to 11th) while Stade posted 50 points on Bourgoin and now lie 13th, a place ahead of Brive who won narrowly at Dax.Week ending Monday 2nd March 2009 Plenty of movement in the top twenty this week with many players involved in the Six Nations.
Tigers climbed 6 places to 8th after winning at the Majedski Stadium with London Irish slipping to 11th. Gloucester also shot up the table (+5 to 7th) after beating Bath who dropped 3 places to 6th. Meanwhile Newcastle's win at the Saints sees them move up 4 places to 27th.
In France, the big guns all managed victories with the exception of a depleted Stade Francais side who went down at Brive. The Parisians drop 2 places to 15th, their lowest position this season, just one notch above Brive.Week ending Monday 16th February 2009 Full programme in England last weekend. Quins win at London Irish lifts them 4 places to 6th, one place behind their vanquished opponents.
Bath's win at Worcester sees them take advantage of London Irish's slip-up as they climb to 3rd.
Guinness Premiership leaders Gloucester move up 3 places in the EuroTable after a home win over Sale.Week ending Monday 2nd February 2009 Munster weren't in action this weekend but Toulouse's defeat at Biarritz (+5 to 21st) means the reigning European Champions regain the number one spot they lost earlier in the season.
Elsewhere in France, the big clash between Stade Francais and Perpignan ended in a draw. Dan Carter's side remain 5th but the Parisians slip 4 places to 13th.
A great second-half fightback sees Gloucester (+2 to 11th) return to the top of the Guinness Premiership at the expense of opponents London Irish (3rd). Sale's win at Worcester means they shoot up 3 places to 7th while Quins home victory over Northampton Saints helps them clib 2 spots to 10th.
The Six Nations begins next weekend giving many club players a hard-earned week off!Week ending Monday 26th January 2009 No major surprises during the final pool games of the Heineken Cup. Cardiff (+1 to 7th) finished as top seeds and will take on Toulouse (1st) in the quarter-finals after the French side drew 3-3 at Bath (4th). The West-country men will travel to Leicester (-4 to 11th) who managed to secure a home tie despite their defeat at the Ospreys (+1 to 14th).
The Welsh side will have to beat Munster (2nd) at Thomond Park to make the semi-finals after the reigning champions produced a bonus-point win in Montauban.
The final quarter-final sees Quins (+2 to 12th) take on Leinster (+1 to 8th). The Londoners won a high-scoring encounter against Scarlets while the Dublin-side defeated Edinburgh in a try-less match.Week ending Monday 19th January 2009 The penultimate round of the Heineken Cup produced a few unpredictable results. Toulouse retain their top spot in spite of their stunning home defeat to Glasgow who climb to 20th. The other upset away from home saw Cardiff snatch the spoils at Gloucester. The Welsh side move up 5 places to 8th while the English side slip to 10th.
There were also a couple of surprise home wins: Ulster (+2 to 23rd) defeated Quins (-2 to 14th) while Scarlets (+2 to 22nd) were convincing winners over Stade (-2 to 12th)despite already being out of the competition.
Munster blew away Sale to regain 2nd spot while Ospreys (15th) went down narrowly at Perpignan (5th) but can still qualify. Bath's three point win over the Dragons puts them in pole position in their pool. Wasps (+3 to 11th) beat Leinster (-2 to 9th) but the Irish side's bonus point keeps them at the top of the pool.
The final round of the H Cup next weekend throws up some interesting scenarios none more so than at the Rec where top-ranked Toulouse go to take on 4th-placed Bath. Week ending Monday 12th January 2009 The top two sides in the Guinness Premiership both lost away from home at the weekend. Leaders London Irish fell at Sale (+3 to 11th) but remain 2nd in the rankings while Gloucester's surprise defeat at Newcastle sees them slip 2 places to 6th.
After their shock losses to Connacht and Ulster, 3rd placed Munster proved their worth by winning away at the Ospreys (15th) in the Magners League. Leinster also move up a place to 7th after a last-gasp victory over Cardiff (13th).
Toulouse's win at Dax was their 15th straight victory in all competitions! Perpignan moved up 2 places to 5th after thumping Bourgoin while Clermont also climbed 2 spots to 8th after a facile win at Montpellier.
Week ending Monday 5th January 2009 Munster followed their surprise defeat in Connacht with an even more remarkable loss at home to Ulster. The reigning H Cup champions slip to 3rd while Ulster move up to 25th and closed the gap on several teams above them.
Up to 2nd in the rankings go London Irish after putting 40 points past troubled Newcastle who slip to 39th. Leicester (+1 to 6th) beat Bath (-1 to 5th) in an exciting finish while Quins defeat at Wasps sees them slip out of the top ten.
Cardiff crash 6 places to 12th after losing at home to the Ospreys who move up to 13th. All the teams just below them managed to win.
Top-ranked Toulouse started the year without conceding a point in their home win over Montpellier. Perpignan move up 3 places to 7th with a narrow win in Brive while Stade and Clermont each move back into the top ten after comfortable home victories.Week ending Monday 29th December 2008 Two in-form sides Munster (2nd) and London Irish (3rd) each lost at the weekend but retain their places behind Toulouse at the top of the rankings. Munster went down in Connacht (+4 to 28th) while Guinness Premiership leaders London Irish lost at Saracens (16th).
In the other all-Irish clash, Leinster (+1 to 9th) won at Ravenhill against Ulster (-1 to 26th).
Edinburgh crushed Glasgow in the Scottish derby while in Wales Cardiff won away at the Dragons and move up 2 places to 6th and the Ospreys (14th) defeated the Scarlets.
Gloucester's win at Bristol helps them climb one place to 5th while Quins draw at home (Twickenham) to Leicester sees them slip 3 places to 8th. There is indeed little to separate places 6th to 10th.
Happy New Year!
Week ending Monday 22nd December 2008 London Irish remain 3rd in the rankings but close the gap on second-placed Munster after hammering Gloucester in the Guinness Premiership. The Cherry and Whites slip to 6th. Meanwhile Bath move up 2 places to 4th after beating Sale. Wasps win over Saracens was their 4th on the trot and sees them climb 2 places to 13th.
In France, Clermont (11th) were the only side to win away from home, against lowly Dax (33rd).
In the two Magners all-Welsh ties, the underdogs won both, albeit with home advantage: the Dragons (+4 to 29th) beat the Ospreys (-2 to 14th) while Scarlets (+2 to 27th) defeated Cardiff (-1 to 8th).Week ending Monday 15th December 2008 Cardiff's win in Biarritz sees them climb 3 places to 7th while Ospreys facile win over Treviso means they move up one notch to 12th.
In the dying minutes, Quins managed the double over Stade and move up 2 places to 5th while the Parisians fall to 13th.
Perpignan with Dan Carter in their ranks were the week's biggest climbers (+6 to 9th) after defeating Leicester who slip to 8th.
They say that there are no easy away games but Leinster's defeat in Castres was a surprise. The Dublin-based side fall to 10th while the French outfit move up 3 places to 25th.Week ending Monday 8th December 2008 Quins win in Paris over Stade moves them up 3 places to 7th while the Parisians slide down to 11th. There are 4 other English clubs directly above Quins and they all won at the weekend, albeit against lower-ranked opponents.
The other big climber in the top 20 was Clermont (+3 places) who claimed the scalp of Munster and now lie 9th. Their rivals Sale (+2 to 12th) easily defeated Montauban to keep this H Cup pool alive.
Meanwhile Ulster continued their revival (+2 to 25th) with a fine win over the Scarlets and Wasps (+1 to 14th) kept their hopes alive with an away victory in Edinburgh.
Week ending Monday 1st December 2008 The big mover this week in France was Stade Francais who climb 4 places to 6th after a big win in Biarritz. Meanwhile Clermont dropped 4 places to 12th after losing at lowly Mont-de-Marsan.
London Irish's win at Bristol sees them go top of the Guinness Premiership and remain 3rd in the rankings, one place ahead of Gloucester who hammered Northampton.
Munster's last-gasp win at the Scarlets cements their second place behind Toulouse. Edinburgh and Glasgow each took advantage of weaker Ospreys and Cardiff sides and climb to 16th and 18th respectively.Week ending Monday 24th November 2008 While the Celts rest, the English and French clubs continue to slog it out. London Irish, Bath, Gloucester and Leicester are now ranked 3rd to 6th, reflecting their positions at the top of the Guinness Premiership. With the exception of Bath who drew at Northampton, the others all won at the weekend.
In the Top 14, Clermont got back to winning ways with a comfortable victory over Perpignan. They move up 2 places to 8th while the Catalans slip 3 places to 12th. Stade also ended a run of 3 defeats with a home win against Castres. As a result the Parisians move up one notch to 10th.
Week ending Monday 17th November 2008 Gloucester were the week's big climbers moving up 5 places to 6th after a win at Saracens. Quins win over Wasps lifts them 2 spots to 12th while Worcester's surprise win at Sale sees them move into the top 20.
Montpellier also moved into the top 20 after defeating Stade who drop 3 places to 11th. Meanwhile Perpignan now occupy the second highest ranking of a French club (9th) after a comfortable home victory over Biarritz.Week ending Monday 3rd November 2008 Clermont emerged victorious in the big match in France beating Stade and climbing above them in the rankings: 7th versus 8th. Meanwhile, Bayonne's win in Biarritz sees them move up 3 places to 18th.
The final round of the pool stage in the EDF Energy Cup saw London Irish continue their fine form as they climb to 3rd, a place above Bath who lost in Cardiff (up one place to 6th).
A shock in Italy with Overmach Cariparma hammering Treviso 27-9 away from home and mmove up to 36th.
Week ending Monday 27th October 2008 Munster with ten changes from their H Cup side were no match for Ulster who shoot up 8 places to 29th. The reigning H cup champions slip to 2nd in the rankings as a result. It was a good weekend for the Scottish sides with Edinburgh (+2 to 16th) winning in Connacht and Glasgow (+2 to 18th) defeating Leinster (-5 to 13th).
Toulouse emerged victorious in the big clash in Paris defeating Stade. The French champions move up to 1st while the Parisians slip to 5th. Clermont fall to 8th after losing at home to Montauban (+3 to 20th).
The Welsh sides again had the best of the EDF Anglo-Welsh Cup with all but the Dragons beating English opposition. Cardiff's win over Leicester lifts them 4 places to 7th while the Ospreys climb to 10th. Meanwhile, Bath's win at Sale and London Irish's victory at Quins sees them move up to 3rd and 4th respectively.Week ending Monday 20th October 2008 Round 2 of the Heineken Cup was a poor one for the English clubs. Former champions Wasps (-4 to 10th) were hammered in Dublin, Sale (-1 to 9th) lost at home and Gloucester (-3 to 13th) lost in Cardiff.
But there were indeed mixed fortunes for all the home nations. Munster (+1 to 1st) and Leinster (+5 to 8th) each defeated English opposition but Ulster (-2 to 37th)went down heavily at Quins (15th).
Ospreys (12th) beat Perpignan and Cardiff (+3 to 11th) won but Scarlets (27th) lost convincingly in Paris.
While Glasgow lost at home to Toulouse, Edinburgh (+2 to 18th) caused an upset by winning in Castres (-2 to 24th).
In the all-French clash Clermont (+2 to 7th)recovered from last week's shock home defeat to Sale by winning in Montauban.Week ending Monday 13th October 2008 The first round of Heineken Cup games saw one major upset with Sale (+4 to 8th) winning in Clermont (-5 to 9th) and almost saw another with a weakened Montauban (23rd) side nearly upsetting reigning champions Munster. The Irish side are replaced at the top by Toulouse who defeated Bath, albeit in the last minute. Stade Francais climb 2 places to 3rd after their first ever win in Ulster (35th).
Apart from Bath, the other English sides began the competition well - Gloucester (10th) and Wasps (6th) each beat French opposition while Leicester (4th) and Quins (15th) beat Welsh sides.
In contrast, no Scottish or Italian side managed to pick up a point.Week ending Monday 6th October 2008 There were wins for all the top sides in France - Toulouse remain 2nd while Clermont and Stade each climb 2 spots to 4th and 5th.
English clubs had midweek Guinness Premiership games followed by Anglo-Welsh Cup ties at the weekend. Fatigue clearly played its part with the 4 Welsh sides emerging victorious. Ospreys and Cardiff each move a place to 11th and 13th respectively. Meanwhile, Leicester (+3 to 6th) and Gloucester (+2 to 9th) were the only English clubs to win both games.
Connacht's win over Leinster sees them move up 2 places to 33rd, one place above Ulster who won their first match of the season, over Edinburgh. Incidentally, the Scots actually climbed a place due to their narrow away defeat while Castres fell below them following a heavy home defeat. That's how the rankings work!Week ending Monday 29th September 2008 After a short delay at the start of the season, we're back up and running for another year of rankings.
Out in front are Munster, unbeaten after 4 Magners League games, closely followed by French champions Toulouse. Wasps who ended last season as the top-ranked side fall to 3rd after a poor start to the season.
Bath, Sale, London Irish and Leicester make it 5 English sides in the top ten. Wales top-ranked team is the Ospreys (12th) who hammered Ulster at the weekend.
Week ending Saturday 28th June 2008 Another season ends with English Premiership play-off winners Wasps heading the rankings, thanks to a remarkable end to the season. They are followed by the top two French sides - Clermont led the way virtually the whole season only to be pipped in the final by Toulouse. As a result the star-studded side from Auvergne finish the season in 3rd.
European champions Munster lie 4th and would have been ranked higher had they not had a rather disappointing run in the Magners League. The winners of the title Leinster end the season in 9th.
Heineken Cup semi-finalists London Irish finish in 5th a place above Challenge Cup winners Bath.
Cardiff (11th) and Ospreys (14th) flattered to deceive and will be relatively disappointed with their seasons. Not as much though as Newcastle (28th), Ulster (31st), Scarlets (32nd) and Dragons (33rd)will be!!! Week ending Saturday 17th May 2008 After a dramatic final day of the regular Guinness Premiership season, Gloucester (7th) top the table and will play Leicester (13th) in the play-offs while second placed Wasps (1st) take on Bath (5th).
Cardiff (12th) secured second place in the Magners league with an away win in Ulster while champions Leinster lie 10th (their defeat at the Dragons doesn't affect them as they had already won the league).
Toulouse defeat at Montpellier sees them fall 3 places to 6th.Week ending Monday 5th May 2008 Castres shock win away in Clermont moves them up 3 places to 15th. Clermont however keep their 1st place as Wasps in 2nd slipped up at home to Gloucester (+2 to 10th).
Leinster (11th) secured the Magners league title with an emphatic win over the Dragons. Ulster (29th) secured Heineken Cup participation next season after beating an understrength Munster side in midweek.
It was a fine weekend for the 2 Scottish sides with Glasgow winning in Ulster and Edinburgh (+3 to 17th) upsetting the Ospreys in Wales. Week ending Monday 28th April 2008 As expected before the semis, the Heineken Cup final will see Munster take on Toulouse. The Irish side narrowly defeated Saracens and move up 2 places to 4th while Toulouse overcame London Irish and climb one place to 3rd.
The European Challenge Cup final will be between Bath (6th) and Worcester (21st) who beat Sale and Newcastle respectively.
In France Clermont lead the way racking up their 10th successive win over Auch which included one of the tries of the season by Fijian Delasau (check it out on youtube!).Week ending Monday 21st April 2008 Clermont cemented their place at the top of the EuroTable with a win on Toulouse but hot on their heels are Wasps who have won 8 league ties on the bounce. Sale and Saracens were their latest victims. Bath also won both games this week over Leicester and Worcester and now lie 9th (up 3 places)
Heineken Cup semi-finalists London Irish climb 4 places to 5th after a win over high-flying Quins while another side into the last 4 of the H Cup, Munster, move up 2 places to 6th after a narrow victory over Ospreys (-4 to 8th).
Week ending Monday 14th April 2008 Ospreys win over Leicester in the EDF Energy cup final lifts them to their highest ever ranking (4th). The Tigers slip 3 places to 10th.
Leinster all but guaranteed the Celtic League title after beating rivals Munster. As a result, Leinster (+2 to 7th) overtake the Heineken Cup semi-finalists (-3 to 8th). At the bottom end of the league, Ulster (29th) got a much needed victory over Connacht (41st).
Another H cup semi-finalist, London Irish continue to impress, winning at Newcastle and moving up one place to 9th.
No real surprises in the French Top 14. The weekend's top clash saw Perpignan (11th) edge out Castres (18th).
Week ending Monday 7th April 2008 All four quarter-final winners would be worthy winners of club of the week but Munster stand out as the only away winner. The Irish province climb 3 places to 5th after defeating Gloucester who slip to 14th.
Toulouse (3rd) were mightily impressive in defeating Cardiff 41-17 while London Irish (+4 to 10th) reached their first ever semi with a victory over Perpignan. Saracens caused probably the biggest upset, by winning against highly-fancied Ospreys. The London side move up 2 places to 13th.
In the Challenge Cup, the 3 Anglo-French sides all went the way of the English albeit with home advantage. Sale (8th), Newcastle (23rd) and Worcester (19th) all emerged victorious while Bath (11th) hammered Leeds in the all-English tie. Week ending Monday 31st March 2008 Wasps hold on to 2nd spot after their win at Leicester (-2 to 6th). Meanwhile Sale's win over Bath sees them leapfrogging their opponents: +4 to 7th while Bath drop 4 places to 12th. Gloucester also slide 4 places to 11th after a surprise defeat at Worcester.
Leinster's win in Llanelli should give them enough leeway to win the Magners League and sees them move to 9th.
Not much change in France with Perpignan's win at Bourgoin being the pick of the results. The Catalans climb 2 places to 10th.Week ending Monday 24th March 2008 Stade's crushing victory over Toulouse sees them move up to 5th, still two places behind their rivals.
The Anglo-Welsh EDF cup semi-finals saw Ospreys (+1 to 6th) hammer Saracens (15th) while Leicester (+1 to 4th) qualified for the final at the expense of Wasps (2nd).
Leinster (10th) defeated Glasgow which brings them a step closer to the Magners League title though Munster (9th) could still catch them after destroying Ulster 42-6.
Week ending Monday 17th March 2008 While Wales were clinching the Grand Slam, the English and French clubs were playing for important league points. There were thumping wins for Toulouse and Clermont but as the former beat lowly Dax and the latter defeated Stade, it is the Auvergne side who take over as Europe's top-ranked team.
There was more good news for Wasps/Welsh coach Shaun Edwards this weekend ! Wasps squeezed into 2nd with a fine away win at London Irish. Leicester (+3 to 5th) also moved up after beating Saracens while Bath slipped 3 places to 9th after a surprise defeat at Quins (+4 to 19th).
Congratulations to Overmach Cariparma (33rd) on winning the Italian Cup. Week ending Monday 3rd March 2008 Defeats for the top two ranked teams! Toulouse lost at Bourgoin but remain top while Stade slip to 3rd after going down in Biarritz. Clermont climb to 2nd after an easy win over Bayonne.
In the Guinness Premiership, a remarkable win for Worcester at Sale sees them move up 2 places to 25th. Quins are up to 20 after an exciting home win over Gloucester. The Cherry and Whites now lie 6th after 3 defeats in their last 4 games. London Irish's victory over Saracens sees them move into top ten.
Leinster (+1 to 12th) took a big step to the Magners League title with an away win in Connacht coupled with defeats for a number of their rivals. Cardiff (+2 to 10th)maintain the pressure with a last-minute victory over Munster (-3 to 11th).Week ending Monday 25th February 2008 Sale's away win at Leicester was undoubtedly the pick of the weekend and lifts them from 15th to 9th in the rankings. Hot on their heels are Bath (+2 to 10th) and London Irish (+3 to 11th) who each recorded away victories in the Guinness Premiership albeit over bottom club Leeds and Worcester who are near the drop-zone.
Thumping wins for top-ranked Toulouse at home to Brive and second-placed Stade, away at Castres. Stade have now reeled off 8 wins on the trot while Toulouse are undefeated in 6.Week ending Monday 18th February 2008 The top two sides in the Guinness Premiership, Gloucester and Leicester, both went down at the weekend. Gloucester (-2 to 6th) lost at Bristol (+2 to 18th) while the Tigers (-2 to 5th) were defeated at London Irish (+2 to 14th). With Wasps winning in a thriller at Bath, the Londoners are now the top-ranked English side in 4th place.
France has the top 3 ranked sides with Toulouse (comfortable winners over Perpignan) followed by Stade (in spite a of narrow win over lowly Auch) and in 3rd spot Clermont who won at Brive.
Leinster (11th) lead the Magners League after beating Cardiff (10th) but Munster are the top-ranked Irish side in 8th after winning in Edinburgh. Week ending Monday 21st January 2008 Clermont failed to emerge from the group of death but last week's win over Munster and the 41-0 drubbing of the Scarlets away from home sees them move into 1st place. Gloucester were less impressive in beating Ulster but their 5 wins plus their Guinness Premiership form see them climb to 2nd, a place ahead of Toulouse who won comfortably over Edinburgh.
Wasps defeat at Munster means the Londoners crash from 1st to 5th while the Irish side move up to 9th.
Two Welsh sides made it through to quarters - Ospreys (+1 to 7th) won in Bourgoin while Cardiff (+2 to 10th) were victorious at Bristol.
Saracens also qualified but a close win at lowly-ranked Glasgow plus big wins for the sides around them (Munster and Cardiff) mean they actually fall 2 places.
Perpignan (13th) and London Irish (16th) make up the quarter-finalists and will face each other again after coming through arguably the easiest group.Week ending Monday 14th January 2008 Home advantage proved decisive in 11 of the 12 Heineken Cup ties, the exception being Glasgow's narrow win in Viadana.
That said, there were still a few shocks: Edinburgh (+2 to 20th) gained revenge for an earlier hammering by Leicester (-1 to 6th) by beating the Tigers 17-12. The Ospreys climb to 8th after their decisive win over Gloucester who drop 3 places to 4th while Leinster (+2 to 10th) overcame Toulouse (-1 to 3rd) to keep their faint hopes alive.
Saracens may have been slight favourites against Biarritz but in the end they gave the French side a 45-16 hammering. As a result they move up 2 places to 9th. Clermont's victory over Munster sees them climb to 2nd but missing out on a bonus point looks like costing them dear. The Irish side may have fallen to 11th but could still qualify if they defeat Wasps and deprive them of a bonus point. Week ending Monday 7th January 2008 Gloucester hang on to top spot despite their defeat to Bath who jump 3 places to 7th. Saracens (11th) slip out of the top ten after going down at Bristol.
Edinburgh produced the shock of the day in the Magners League winning in Cardiff. The Scots move up to 22nd while the Welsh crash 6 places to 13th. Meanwhile the Dragons (+2 to 29th) had an excellent week beating the Scarlets and then winning in Glasgow.
In France, it was 7 home wins out of 7 with no real shocks.
Back to the Heineken Cup next weekend ...Week ending Monday 31st December 2007 Saracens home defeat against Newcastle sees them slip 3 places to 9th while the Falcons move up a place to 20th. Sale (+2 to 14th) and Quins (22nd) also won on the road at struggling Leeds and Worcester respectively.
The top three in England all won - Gloucester remain 1st, Wasps climb to 3rd and Leicester stay 5th.
Leinster (13th) added to Ulster's woes by hammering them 29-0 in the Magners League while Munster(+3 to 8th) easily defeated Connacht in the other all-Ireland clash.
Edinburgh won the Scottish derby with Glasgow, shooting up 4 places to 23rd in the process.
The Ospreys (11th) slipped out of the top ten after a defeat to Llanelli (19th) while Cardiff maintained their excellent season by moving up 3 places to 7th after beating the Dragons. Week ending Monday 24th December 2007 Gloucester's win away at Newcastle coupled with Toulouse's defeat at Clermont means the top two-ranked sides swap places yet again. Clermont meanwhile move up to 3rd above Wasps who drew at Bristol and Leicester who went down at Sale.
Saracens good run continues and their win at Quins lifts them 3 places to 6th, one place ahead of Bath who crushed Leeds.
Stade's defeat at Montauban means they fall 3 places to 9th while another of the top French sides Perpignan drop to 15th after a crushing defeat at Bayonne.
Merry Christmas to everyone!Week ending Monday 17th December 2007 The back-to-back round of the Heineken Cup provided sweet revenge for a number of teams from a week ago. Cardiff's impressive win over Stade lifts them 3 places to 10th while the Parisians slip to 6th. Toulouse regain the top ranking spot after defeating Leicester while Wasps (+3 to 3rd) edged out Clermont and Perpignan (+2 to 13th) beat London Irish. Edinburgh (+5 to 25th) also deserve mention for their surprise victory over Leinster.
A notable win too for Benetton Treviso (+4 to 32nd) away at the Dragons. This lifts the Italians above Ulster in the rankings who now lie 33rd after a home defeat to the Ospreys (+2 to 7th). The Welsh side were one of a handful of teams to do the double including Gloucester (2nd), Saracens (9th), Munster (11th) and Bristol (16th).Week ending Monday 10th December 2007 All change at the top with Gloucester's win in Bourgoin and Toulouse's defeat in Leicester (3rd) seeing the Cherry and Whites claim the top-ranked spot. Clermont move into 4th after they beat reigning champions Wasps (-2 to 6th) while Stade's narrow victory over Cardiff lifts them to 6th.
Fine away wins for Munster (+3 to 10th) at Llanelli who appear in freefall, slipping to 19th after being 9th earlier in the season, and for Bristol (+4 to 17th) at Quins.
Glasgow's win over Biarritz moves them up one spot to 14th, their highest ever ranking, while Ospreys impressive hammering of Ulster sees them climb into the top ten.Week ending Monday 3rd December 2007 Leinster's win over Munster at Musgrave Park helps them move up one place to 12th while Munster slip 4 places to 13th. Edinburgh's win in Ulster sees them climb 4 places to 28th.
Victories for the top five-ranked French sides with Clermont (5th), Biarritz (+1 to 9th) and Perpignan (+1 to 14th) all winning on the road.
Leicester (3rd), Wasps (4th), Saracens (7th) and Ospreys (11th) will contest the EDF semi-finals. Saracens lost at the Scarlets but their bonus points ensured qualification so their loss didn't count against them.
Week ending Monday 26th November 2007 Wins for 8 of the top ten this week. Biarritz (-2 to 10th) lost at home to Toulouse (1st) and a weakened Ospreys (-1 to 11th) also went down against visiting Leinster (+1 to 13th). Munster also climbed 3 places to 9th after a comfortable win over the Dragons while Ulster completed a good weekend for the Irish provinces by (finally) winning in Connacht. Glasgow and Edinburgh also took advantage of understrength Welsh outfits to notch a rare Scottish double. Glasgow move up one place to 14th.
As expected, Leicester (3rd) and Sale (+2 to 19th) each won their away games at Leeds and Worcester respectively. Quins gave Gloucester a close fight but the high-flying Cherry and Whites won and remain second in the rankings.Week ending Monday 19th November 2007 While Toulouse cemented their position as Europe's top-ranked side with a convincing bonus point win over Leinster, there was much chopping and changing in the positions below them.
Gloucester overcame a strong challenge from the Ospreys and move up to 2nd while Wasps' stunning victory over the Scarlets in Wales sees them climb to 4th.
Munster, inspired as ever by the Heineken Cup, dismissed the challenge of Clermont and now lie in 12th. Bristol's remarkable win over Stade helps them move into the top twenty. Also of note was London Irish's hammering of the Dragons in Wales. The Irish remain in 19th while the Welsh side slip to 30th.Week ending Monday 12th November 2007 Leicester's defeat at Leinster (+5 to 12th) in the Heineken Cup has opened up the rankings. To begin with, the Tigers have finally been knocked off top spot by Toulouse after the French side won in Edinburgh.
On top of that, there are now 3 other teams with at least a 97% rating: Clermont who hammered the Scarlets, followed by Gloucester who demolished Ulster and Stade who brushed aside Quins.
Meanwhile, Cardiff move into the top ten after defeating Bristol.
Week ending Monday 5th November 2007 Toulouse move up to 2nd after an emphatic win over Stade Francais who slip three places to 5th. Indeed the Parisians are now the third-ranked French side with Clermont-Auvergne climbing to 3rd after defeating Montpellier.
The Anglo-Welsh Cup continues to produce a few surprises and big scores. Worcester shoot up 5 places to 24th after winning at Quins. Wasps (+1 to 6th) came back to snatch a win over Gloucester (-1 to 4th). Both the Ospreys (+1 to 9th) and Scarlets (+2 to 11th) put 50 points on London Irish and Leeds respectively.
In the Magners League, Ulster (31st) lost again at Glasgow who remain in 16th. Munster got back to winning ways over Edinburgh and move up to 13th. Week ending Monday 29th October 2007 After the World Cup, the French league season finally started. The biggest upset saw lowly Albi (31st) draw at Biarritz who drop two places to 12th. Montpellier (+3 to 27th) too surprised one of the big guns Perpignan (-2 to 15th) albeit at home.
After all 4 Irish provinces had lost their previous two matches in the Celtic League, something had to to give this week. Remarkably all 4 ended up drawing with Ulster (30th) and Leinster (17th) sharing the spoils in the all-Irish clash.
The Welsh enjoyed the best of the Anglo-Welsh Cup with 2 wins, a draw and a loss. The pick of the wins was the Ospreys seven-try demolition of Worcester away from home. The Welsh side climb 4 places to 10th, one behind Cardiff who overcame Sale at home.Week ending Monday 22nd October 2007 A full weekend in England and Italy ...
London Irish's win over Gloucester sees them climb 2 places to 18th while the west country side remain 2nd after 5 wins out of 6.
Bath's win at Newcastle helps them move above Wasps to 6th position. Meanwhile, Saracens, another side which has started the season strongly, went down in a high-scoring affair at Sale. The Londoners slip to 8th while the Manchester side move up 4 places to 23rd.
The French season starts this weekend.
Week ending Monday 15th October 2007 While everything seems rosy in the English rugby garden, it gets worse and worse for Irish rugby. For the second week in a row, all 4 Irish provinces lost their Magners League games. Ulster (-2 to 28th), Munster (-4 to 12th) and, to a lesser extent Connacht (-2 to 38th) were outpplayed in Wales, while Leinster (16th) lost in Glasgow.
In contrast, the Welsh sides continue to climb: the Scarlets up to 9th, Cardiff Blues to 11th and the Ospreys to 14th.
In the Guinness Premiership, the six matches were won by the home side. Wasps (6th) got their first win of the season while top-ranked Leicester went down at Saracens (7th). Gloucester (2nd) continue to impress and their convincing win over Sale sees them close the gap on the Tigers.Week ending Monday 8th October 2007 Welcome to a new season with the EuroTable rankings - our 8th season on the trot !!!
While the World Cup is on, the French and Italian clubs have been having an extended rest but the Guinness Premiership and Magners League are well under way.
Reigning European Champions Wasps have had a poor start, drawing one and losing three. They have slipped from 2nd to 6th in the rankings. Meanwhile Gloucester are the only club with a 100% record and have moved the other way from 6th to 2nd. Saracens too have started well, climbing up to 7th after 3 wins out of 4.
In the Magners League, Cardiff lead the way with 4 wins out of 5 and find themselves in 13th place in the EuroTable. After 3 defeats out of 5 the Ospreys have slipped from 7th to 14th.Week ending Monday 11th June 2007 The season ends with Leicester Tigers as Europe's top ranked side and by some distance! The team that denied them a unique treble are Wasps whose Heineken Cup triumph helps them finish in 2nd.
Three French sides occupy places 3-5: Challenge Cup winners Clermont, Toulouse and French champions Stade Francais.
The Welsh teams are showing signs of improvement with 2 in the top ten: Ospreys in 7th and the Scarlets in 10th.
The Irish provinces have faltered badly after Munster's Heineken Cup win in 2006. Munster finish in 8th with Leinster in 13th and Ulster down in 24th.
See you again in September all being well !
Week ending Monday 4th June 2007 Only the French clubs are still in action at this time of the year!
Next week's French Championship final will see Clermont-Ferrand (3rd) take on Stade Francais (6th) at the Stade de France.
Clermont defeated Toulouse while the Parisians accounted for Biarritz.Week ending Monday 21st May 2007 Wasps denied the Tigers a unique treble by defeating them in the Heineken Cup final. Leicester remain in pole position but the London side move up to 2nd.
The Challenge Cup final saw French side Clermont-Auvergne (+1 to 4th) overcome Bath (14th).
One more title was won at the weekend - Benetton Treviso beat Arix Viadana to become Italian Champions.Week ending Monday 14th May 2007 Ospreys two wins to clinch the Magners league crown lifts them up to 6th place, one ahead of Munster who finished their season with 4 straight wins. Cardiff who finished 2nd in the Magners league move up 3 places to 15th after an emphatic defeat of Leinster.
Leicester (1st) completed an English league and cup double by hammering Gloucester (-2 to 4th) in the Premiership final on Saturday. Their hopes of an unprecedented treble rest on them beating Wasps in the Heineken Cup final.
In France, Montpellier recorded a surprising win over Biarritz while Toulouse (2nd) and Clermont (5th) each had crushing wins. In the big clash, Stade (+1 to 8th) narrowly defeated Perpignan (-2 to 12th)
In Italy, no surprises as Treviso and Viadana will contest the Italian Championship final.Week ending Monday 7th May 2007 Leicester (1st) and Gloucester (+4 to 2nd) will contest the Guinness Premiership final after the Tigers beat Bristol and the Cherry and Whites hammered Saracens (-3 to 13th) in the semis.
The Magners league is gearing up for an exciting finish with Leinster (11th) travelling to Cardiff (18th) and both teams capable of winning the title. The Ospreys (-2 to 7th) also still have a chance despite a defeat to high-flying Glasgow (+2 to 15th after 4 wins on the bounce).
Just two rounds to go in France and the semi-finalists are still not sure. Biarritz (+2 to 6th) beat Stade (-2 to 9th) in the weekend's big clash. Brive (+3 to 22nd) produced an upset by defeating Clermont (-3 to 5th) and move out of the relegation zone.Week ending Monday 30th April 2007 The Ospreys win over Leinster puts them in pole position in the Magners league and lifts them to 5th in the rankings. Meanwhile, Leinster slip to 11th.
Leicester actually lost a game (!) in midweek to Bristol but bounced back to defeat Wasps and remain 1st in the rankings by some distance. At the other end of the GP, Northampton (25th) were relegated despite winning their last game as their rivals for the drop (Worcester) also won.
Biarritz (+3 to 8th) recorded the result of Clermont and Toulouse also notched up big wins that see them move up to 2nd and 3rd in the EuroTable.Week ending Monday 23rd April 2007 This year's Heineken Cup final will be an all-English affair between the two top-ranked sides in the EuroTable. Leicester (1st) overcame the challenge of Llanelli (-1 to 13th) while Wasps (2nd) disposed of Northampton (28th).
Bath (+5 to 15th) and Clermont (+1 to 3rd) will contest the European Challenge Cup final. The English side beat Saracens (-2 to 8th) by a point while the French side defeated the Dragons (25th). Week ending Monday 9th April 2007 Two sides in the top ten moved up the rankings this week. First, with a win in the Magners League over Munster, Ospreys climbed up to 4th, their highest ever position. Wasps shot up 3 places to 5th after a narrow win over Saracens in the Guinness Premiership.
Two others moved into the top ten, namely Toulouse (7th) and Stade Francais (8th) after wins over Castres and Brive.
Finally, Leinster and Munster slip out of the top ten for the first time in a long time.Week ending Monday 2nd April 2007 Plenty of movement in the ranking this week following the Heineken Cup quarter-finals! Such has been the strength of Irish rugby that home wins for Llanelli over Munster and Wasps over Leinster were regarded in some quarters as upsets. The Welsh side shoot up 7 places to 4th while the reigning champs slide to 9th. Wasps move up 4 places to 8th just one place behind the Celtic League leaders Leinster.
But the shock of the week has to be Northampton (+5 to 26th) who beat the highly-fancied Biarritz (-5 to 10th) in France. Meanwhile at the top, Leicester (1st) continue in pursuit of a unique treble after narrowly defeating Stade.Week ending Monday 26th March 2007 Munster move up to 6th after their surprise win in Ulster (-3 to 20th). Next week in the Heineken Cup q-finals, they meet Llanelli (11th) who had a comfortable win over the Dragons.
In the EDF Energy Cup s-finals, Leicester beat Sale while the Ospreys (+2 to 7th)defeated Cardiff.
After a poor recent run, Bristol recorded an important win over Northampton and climb 3 places to 15th.
In France, there were 2 draws: Bourgoin at home to Stade and Perpignan on their trip to Brive.Week ending Monday 19th March 2007 Gloucester's win over Quins was their 4th on the trot in the Premiership and lifts them to 2nd in the EuroTable. Meanwhile, Saracens drubbing of Bristol helps them climb 3 places in the top ten.
Arix Viadana's win in the Italian Cup final cements their position as Italy's top-ranked club in 33rd.Week ending Monday 12th March 2007 All eyes on the Six Nations, but Gloucester's win over Tigers saw them move up the rankings to 3rd.
Ditto London Irish who now lie in 14th after beating Bristol and Wasps who returned to the top ten after defeating Quins near door to Twickenham!Week ending Monday 5th March 2007 Cardiff's win in Munster in the Celtic League sees them climb 3 places to 15th while the European champions slip 4 places to 7th.
Llanelli, minus their stars, made it a Welsh double over Ireland by defeating Ulster. The Scarlets move up 2 spots to 11th. Ulster drop 3 to 19th.
Meanwhile the Guinness Premiership continues unabated … Bristol crashed to Wasps who move above them in the rankings. Worcester got an important win over Bath while relegation rivals Northampton lost at home to Gloucester. Leicester, after their loss at home to Saints, defeated in-from Quins who drop to 17th.
Week ending Monday 26th February 2007 Most rugby eyes were on the Six Nations but the club players in England and Italy were in action at the weekend.
Northampton caused a stir by winning at Leicester but remain in 28th place in the EuroTable. This wasn't the only surprise result with Quins (+4 to 15th) beating Bristol (-2 to 10th), Newcastle (+1 to 21st)defeating Wasps (-1 to 14th) and London Irish (+2 to 19th) picking up an away win at Sale (-5 to 22nd).
Meanwhile Gloucester climbed 3 places to 7th after their victory over Worcester.Week ending Monday 19th February 2007 Bristol's last minute, one point win over Newcastle keeps them in 2nd spot in the Guinness Premiership and moves them up 3 places to 8th. Quins climb to 19th after their win at Saints, one place above Bath who slipped 3 spots after losing at London Irish (+2 to 21st).
Leinster remain top of the Magners League after their victory over Edinburgh. The Dublin-based side stay 4th while their closest rivals for the ML title Ulster climb 3 places to 15th after defeating the Dragons.Week ending Monday 29th January 2007 Home advantage rules! Bristol's win at Northampton was the only away victory in the Guinness Premiership. There were none in the Magners League and just Albi won in France.
Gloucester racked up 40 points against Sale, lifting them 2 places to 7th while the Tigers easily dismissed Newcastle.
Leinster looked very impressive in coming from behind at half-time to put 40 points on Llanelli. The Dublin-based province move up 2 places to 4th.
The big match in France saw Stade (+1 to 6th) narrowly overcome Toulouse (-4 to 8th) while Clermont remain 2nd despite losing at Agen.
Six Nations next week so most club players should have the week off ...Week ending Monday 22nd January 2007 It was 1st versus 2nd in the EuroTable this weekend. Tigers, with 4 Irishmen in their side (!), deservedly beat Munster (-1 to 3rd) to open up the gap at the top. Indeed it was a terrible weekend for the Irish with all 4 provinces losing. Leinster (-2 to 6th) lost at Gloucester (+1 to 9th) while Ulster (-4 to 17th) went down in Toulouse (+3 to 4th). Still, Leinster and Munster qualified for the quarters.
Llanelli (+1 to 8th) defeated London Irish to become the Welsh representatives in the last eight along with 2 French sides, Biarritz (5th) and Stade (7th) and 3 English teams: Leicester (1st), Northampton (a remarkably low 28th) and Wasps (+2 to 13th). The Londoners went through after a narrow win over Castres in France. Week ending Monday 15th January 2007 The Scarlets claimed a superb win in Ulster, scoring 5 tries despite playing in a gale! They move up a remarkable 7 places to 9th. In the same pool, Toulouse won at London Irish, albeit in a rather meaningless match, and climb back up to 7th.
Leicester (1st) won easily against Cardiff while their pool rivals Munster(2nd) struggled surprisingly to beat Bourgoin. Next week sees 1st play 2nd in Thomond Park!
Leinster (4th) looked very impressive in their defeat of Edinburgh while Stade (5th) drew with the Ospreys in Wales. Wasps (+3 to 15th) recorded a vital win over Perpignan to keep their hopes alive but Agen dented Gloucester's Heineken Cup ambitions, winning at home.Week ending Monday 8th January 2007 Newcastle's win over Leicester brings them into the top twenty (+3 to 19th). After 3 defeats on the trot, Sale find themselves back in the top ten (+3 to 8th) after a win over Gloucester.
Bayonne (+3 to 32nd) caused a big shock in France by beating Stade who drop 2 places to 5th while Clermont's victory over Castres sees them climb 2 places to 3rd, their highest ever ranking.
Leinster maintained their impressive home record with a comfortable win over Ospreys and move up to 4th. The Dragons lie 28th after their win over a weakened Munster side who nevertheless retain their number two ranking.Week ending Monday 1st January 2007 Happy New Year!
Bristol (+4 to 9th) and Quins (+6 to 25th) were the only English sides who managed to win both this week's fixtures (we included games played on Mon 1st Jan). Leicester remain as the top-ranked side despite a defeat at London Irish.
Up to 2nd in the EuroTable are reigning European Champions Munster who beat Leinster and Connacht.
Sale are the week's biggest losers going down at Newcastle and losing at home to Bristol. The Mancunians crash 6 places to 11th.Week ending Monday 25th December 2006 Toulouse's win in Biarritz was the pick of the pre-festive matches. Guy Noves side move up 2 places to 12th while Biarritz tumble 5 places to 7th. Clermont's victory in Montpellier sees them climb to 8th while Perpignan make up the fourth French side in the top ten.
England finish the year with Leicester on top and two other sides in the top ten. Sale down to 5th after their defeat at Bath and Gloucester in 6th.
Munster and Leinster top the Irish challenge in 3rd and 4th while Ulster lie just outside the top ten in 11th position.
The Scarlets (9th) are Wales only representative in the top ten but Cardiff (14th) and Ospreys (16th) have made great strides this season.Week ending Monday 18th December 2006 It was round two of the double-headers in the Heineken Cup. As many as 9 (out of a possible 12) teams managed to win both games, with a few surprises among them. First up were Llanelli (+2 to 8th) who won in Toulouse (-1 to 14th). Leinster (+1 to 6th) also surprised many by winning in Agen while Gloucester overcame the difficult trip to Edinburgh.
Revenge was sweet for Ulster (+1 to 10th) over London Irish as it was for Sale over Stade. The Mancunians leapfrog the Parisians into 3rd. In the all-French clash, Perpignan hammered Castres after losing narrowly last week.
Meanwhile, at the top Leicester hammered Bourgoin 57-3. To say that the French side don't take the competition too seriously is an understatement...Week ending Monday 11th December 2006 Of the 12 Heineken Cup ties, only London Irish (+4 to 16th) upset the form book with a win over Ulster (-2 to 11th).
There were five away wins but two of those were against the weaker Italian teams while Biarritz ground out an easy victory at the Borders. That leaves Leicester's crucial win in Bourgoin and Munster's equally important victory at Cardiff. The reigning champions top their pool and now lie 4th in the rankings despite a poor Magners league record this season.
The Welsh teams continue to show progress with Llanelli beating Toulouse by a single point. The Scarlets leapfrog the former champions into 10th place. Leinster's win over Agen sees them move up 3 places to 7th.
Finally, in the weekend's top clash, Stade Francais (+2 to 2nd) defeated Sale (-2 to 5th) at a sell-out Parc des Princes.
Week ending Monday 4th December 2006 With Stade slipping to 4th after their defeat to Clermont, Leicester pipped Biarritz and Sale to the number one ranking spot. But didn't Leicester lose to Northampton? That's correct but as they had already qualified for the semis in first place in their pool, our rules (justifiably in our view) mean that their result defeat doesn't count against them.
Leicester are joined in the Anglo-Welsh Cup semis by Sale (3rd) and two Welsh clubs, the rejuvenated Cardiff (+2 to 12th) who hammered London Irish and Ospreys (+2 to 14th) who brushed past a weakened Bristol outfit.
In the Celtic League, Ulster and Leinster drew and slipped to 9th and 10th as a result.
Perpignan's narrow win at Narbonne lifts them to 8th, one behind Clermont while Toulouse's victory over Montauban helps them move up to 11th.Week ending Monday 20th November 2006 Clermont-Auvergne's win over Biarritz sees them climb into the top ten (+3 to 8th). Stade Francais retain the number one spot despite losing at Montpellier (+3 to 31st). Toulouse also lost at home to Brive and slip out of the top ten.
Bristol's win at Bath helps them jump to 14th and Saracens victory at Northampton moves them up to 18th. Sale remain 3rd despite a home defeat to Newcastle (+2 to 21st).
Week ending Monday 13th November 2006 With Sale going down to Bristol (+2 to 18th), Stade's win over Agen was enough to lift them back to the top of the rankings.
Gloucester move up to 5th after their win at London Irish, one place ahead of Leicester who lost at Saracens (+3 to 20th).
Week ending Monday 6th November 2006 Sale's win over Wasps sees them back at the top of the rankings. Leicester (4th) and Gloucester (8th) each won at home to remain in the top ten.
In the Magners League, the Scarlets beat Munster and move into 11th while Cardiff had a good win in Edinburgh and climb a place to 17th.
Perpignan's narrow win over Stade knocked the Parisians down to 2nd and move the Catalans up to 10th position. Toulouse's poor run continued with a defeat in Agen and they slip 3 places to 9th.Week ending Monday 30th October 2006 Week 2 of the Heineken Cup produced a mixed bag. The French clubs, albeit with 2 easy games against Italian sides, probably came out best with 6 wins out of 7. Most notable was Agen's win at Gloucester but there was also Perpignan's victory over Wasps that saw them move up 3 places to 11th. Only Bourgoin went down, at the hands of Munster.
After last week's success, Llanelli Scarlets (+4 to 12th) were the only Welsh winners, beating Ulster at home, though Cardiff lost narrowly to Leicester (4th) and Ospreys (-4 to 16th) put up a decent fight against top-ranked Stade in Paris.
The English clubs continue to disappoint - while Leicester won away, Wasps and London Irish lost in France and Gloucester lost at home.
Edinburgh climbed 3 places to 15th after a last-minute drop goal clinched a win against Leinster who fall to 8th.
Week ending Monday 23rd October 2006 A great start to the Heineken Cup for the Irish and the Welsh, a mixed bag for the French but a real disappointment for the English clubs.
The two big Anglo-Irish clashes went the way of Leinster (+2 to 7th) who beat Gloucester (-3 to 8th) and Munster (+2 to 6th) who won at Leicester (-1 to 4th). But Ulster (+2 to 5th) are Ireland's top-ranked team after demolishing Toulouse (-3 to 9th) in the first half.
Ospreys (+2 to 12th) set the tone for the Welsh by knocking Sale off the top-ranked spot with a last minute victory. The Scarlets (+4 to 16th) also won at London Irish and more surprisingly Cardiff (+1 to 15th) in Bourgoin.
The two Anglo-French clashes ended with one apiece, Biarritz (3rd) beating Northampton and Wasps (10th) overcoming the challenge of Castres.Week ending Monday 16th October 2006 After the Anglo-Welsh Cup, it was back to Premiership action and Bristol move to the top of the championship after beating Quins. The west countrymen climb 3 places to 17th in the EuroTable. More significantly another English side Sale move to the top of the rankings after their 6th straight win (indeed they've 10 out of their last 11!).
Stade won the big game in France against Biarritz in front of 80,000 fans but slip ~(narrowly) to second. [For those who are interested in how the rankings work, English rugby has a slightly higher rating and Sale were playing away but it's almost to close to call at the top].
In the Celtic League, Munster and Leinster both lost to Scottish sides while Connacht and Ulster each defeated Welsh outfits. Ulster now move above their Irish rivals into 7th. Edinburgh's victory in Munster helps them up to 15th, a rise of 6 places!Week ending Monday 25th September 2006 Three wins and a draw including a weekend victory over the Saints have lifted Gloucester up to 5th in the rankings, behind Sale and Leicester. Wasps slipped to 12th after their defeat at Bristol.
Toulouse fall 3 places to 8th after managing a draw at Montpellier. Stade (2nd) continued their fine run by beating Bourgoin.
Ulster move back into the top ten after crushing the Ospreys who fall 5 places to 22nd. Llanelli's win over Leinster sees them climb 2 places to 16th.Week ending Monday 18th September 2006 The big clash in France went the way of the Parisians with Stade (2nd) now closing the gap on Biarritz and Toulouse back in 5th.
The big game in England saw Leicester (4th) draw with Gloucester (7th). Newcomers Bristol continue to shine beating London Irish (8th).
The Scarlets (+2 to 18th) and Ospreys (+1 to 17th) each won 2 games in the space of 3-4 days, a remarkable achievement. Edinburgh (19th) and Glasgow (+3 to 32nd) notched rare wins over the Irish provinces, Ulster (-2 to 12th) and Munster (-2 to 6th).Week ending Monday 11th September 2006 Toulouse's defeat at Perpignan sees them drop to 5th. Biarritz and Stade retain the top two ranking spots after home wins.
Sale climb to 3rd after beating Northampton while Leicester's drubbing at Bath sees them fall to 6th.
Munster move up to 4th after a narrow win over the Borders coupled with defeats for the teams around them in the rankings. Reigning Celtic League champions Ulster move into the top ten after an away victory at the Dragons.Week ending Monday 4th September 2006 Welcome back for another season's rugby!
The French lead the way with a 1-2-3 in the rankings. French clubs have already played 4 games this season. Stade and Toulouse have 100% records but Biarritz have already suffered two defeats.
Leicester won the big clash of the opening weekend in the Guinness Premiership against Sale and leapfrog them in the rankings as a result.
In the newly-sponsored Magners Celtic League, holders Ulster won at home against Llanelli. European Champions Munster lost at Cardiff but were without around a dozen first-choice players!Week ending Monday 29th May 2006 Trophies were up for grabs in England, Ireland and Italy at the weekend.
Sale climb 2 places to 3rd in the rankings having secured the English Premiership crown by beating Leicester 45-20 in Saturday's final.
Ulster won the Celtic League in the closing minutes of their game with the Ospreys and move up to 11th position.
In Italy, Benetton Treviso beat Calvisano in the play-off final and shoot up 5 places to 28th.
The last round of league games in France was largely academic (at the top end of the table) with Biarritz, Stade, Toulouse and Perpignan already qualified for next week's semis.Week ending Monday 22nd May 2006 After so many near-misses, Munster finally captured the Heineken Cup at the Millenium Stadium with victory over Biarritz. The French side retain the number one ranking spot ahead of Munster who climb to 4th. Their poor form in the Celtic League is to blame for them not being in a higher position.
Gloucester (10th) beat London Irish (-1 to 6th) after extra-time to lift the Challenge Cup on Sunday.
Finally, Ulster drew at Llanelli meaning they still need to win at the Ospreys next weekend to secure the Celtic League title.Week ending Monday 15th May 2006 The Premiership final in England will see Leicester take on Sale. The Tigers (+1 to 3rd) hammered the in-form London Irish (-2 to 5th) while Sale (+1 to 4th) overcame Wasps (-3 to 13th).
In France, the play-offs will be contested by Biarritz (1st), Stade (2nd), Toulouse (6th) and Perpignan (7th).
Ulster's win over Borders coupled with Leinster's defeat in Cardiff (+3 to 17th) puts the Northerners in pole position for the Celtic League title. In the rankings Ulster climb to 12th while Leinster remain 8th. Finally, Munster's defeat at Llanelli - their fifth loss in their last seven CL games - leaves them down in 9th, rather low for the Heineken Cup finalists.Week ending Monday 8th May 2006 Needing to win to stay in the title hunt, Wasps (+3 to 10th) clinched a thriller at Gloucester and set up a clash with Sale (+1 to 5th) who won a high-scoring affair at Northampton. The other semi sees London Irish (3rd) who beat Saracens visit Welford Road to take on the Tigers (4th) who hammered Bristol.
In France, Biarritz (1st) and Stade (2nd) had both done enough to qualify for the play-offs and are thus not penalised for their weekend defeats at Pau and Bayonne. In contrast Toulouse (+1 to 6th) secured their place with a win over Clermont.
The CL title looks like a two-horse race between Ulster (+2 to 13th) who beat Cardiff and Leinster (8th) who won in Glasgow.
Week ending Monday 1st May 2006 London Irish are arguably the in-form side in England and move up to 3rd in the rankings after an amazing nine-try win at Wasps who slip to 13th. Gloucester (+2 to 10th) won at Leeds and could claim the last play-off spot from Wasps. Leicester and Sale lie in 5th and 6th after wins over Saracens and Bath.
Cardiff Blues (+3 to 18th) continued their good run by beating Connacht to keep up the pressure on the Irish trio at the top of the Celtic League. Munster (4th) and Leinster (8th) each won with a bonus point.
In France, the big guns all look to have qualified for the play-offs: Biarritz (1st), Stade (2nd) and Toulouse (7th).
Week ending Monday 24th April 2006 Biarritz (1st) saw off Bath (10th) to reach their first Heineken Cup final. Their opponents will be Munster (+3 to 3rd) who will play their 3rd final after defeating Leinster in the all-Ireland clash.
The Challeneg Cup final will be between in-form London Irish (4th) and Gloucester (12th).
In the Celtic League, Cardiff Blues made it 5 wins on the trot and move up to 21st.Week ending Monday 17th April 2006 Important wins for Toulouse (v Stade) and Bourgoin (v Biarritz) in the French Championnat and a bad defeat for Perpignan at Pau but the big movers in this week's rankings were rewarded for their consistency over the past couple of months:
Leinster's win over the Scarlets was their 8th in the last 10 games and sees them move into 3rd place, just one ahead of London Irish. Their victory over relegated Leeds also made it 8 wins out of 10. With Munster and Ulster also victorious, it's now an Irish 1-2-3 in the Celtic League.
In the English Premiership, Saracens (19th)upset Wasps (-5 to 10th) while Newcastle (+1 to 14th) defeated leaders Sale (-2 to 5th).Week ending Monday 10th April 2006 With Munster (-3 to 6th) slipping up at the Dragons 5+6 to 22nd) in the Celtic League, Sale climbed a place to 3rd after a hard-fought encounter with Gloucester and Wasps move into 5th after lifting the Powergen Cup.
Toulouse's fall from grace continued with a defeat at top-ranked Biarritz and the reigning European champions now lie 10th. Stade remain 2nd after defeating Clermont.
Leeds (-4 to 29th) look to be as a good as relegated from the Premiership after losing at home to Saracens. Week ending Monday 3rd April 2006 The Heineken Cup quarter-finals produced 2 hard-fought but predictable home wins, and 2 away wins, each of them a surprise but one of them stunning!
Leinster move up 3 places to 7th in the rankings after a remarkable four-try victory over reigning champions in Toulouse (-1 to 6th). Munster made it a great weekend for Irish rugby by defeating Perpignan at Lansdowne Road and as a result climb 4 places to 3rd.
The all-England clash saw underdogs Bath (+1 to 11th) narrowly defeat Leicester (-3 to 9th) while in Sunday's quarter-final, top-ranked Biarritz won a close-fought encounter with Sale (-1 to 4th).
In the Challenge Cup quarters, Gloucester and London Irish each overcame French opponents while Worcester beat Northampton and Newcastle won comfortably over Connacht.Week ending Monday 27th March 2006 Last weekend saw Europe's clubs playing some 'normal' league games sandwiched between the Six Nations and next week's Heineken Cup quarter-finals.
Leeds (-4 to 26th) look losing out in the relegation battle in the Guinness Premiership after a hammering at Wasps (8th) and the two other sides under threat each winning: Bristol (+3 to 29th) at Gloucester and Saracens (+3 to 23rd) over Worcester. Sale stay top after a fine win at London Irish and climb a place to 3rd.
In France, Perpignan's win at Bourgoin was the pick of the results and they now lie 4th in the EuroTable. The big three of Biarritz, Stade and Toulouse all notched up victories.
Ulster's win over the Dragons sees them hang on to the lead in the Celtic League and moves them up 2 places to 14th in the EuroTable.Week ending Monday 20th March 2006 Just the French sides in league action during this last weekend of the Six Nations. Very few changes in the rankings ... Week ending Monday 13th March 2006 The top English club sides certainly missed their Six Nations stars this weekend. Understrength Sale went down at home to Saracens (+4 to 26th) and slipped to 4th. A weakened Wasps side (-3 to 9th) got hammered at Worcester (+4 to 20th) while Leicester scraped home against Leeds. Meanwhile London Irish climb to 7th after three wins on the trot.
In contrast, the top French sides made their home advantage count: the top 3 ranked sides Biarritz, Stade, Toulouse all won while Bourgoin and Clermont Montferrand each climbed places in the top twenty. Week ending Monday 6th March 2006 The inaugural Anglo-Welsh Powergen Cup final will be an Anglo-Welsh affair after two close semi-finals. Llanelli (+3 to 15th) beat Bath (-2 to 13th) while Wasps (+1 to 6th) overcame Leicester (8th).
At the top end in France Stade Francais v Biarritz attracted 80 000 fans to the Stade de France. The Parisians emerged victorious but the south west side remain the top-ranked club. Meanwhile Perpignan climb to 5th after an away win at Clermont Auvergne.
Ulster's comfortable win over a weakened Munster side helps them climb to the top of the Celtic League and moves them up 3 places to 14th.
Week ending Monday 27th February 2006 (Nearly) all rugby eyes were on the Six Nations but the English clubs are still determined to get their money's worth out of their players.
On Friday Leeds (+2 to 22nd) thought they had improved their chances of avoiding relegation as they beat Worcester but then Bath (+1 to 11th) won at Gloucester and Bristol (+1 to 32nd) won at Saracens. On current form the Londoners now look in trouble.
At the other end, Wasps (+2 to 7th) beat leaders Sale who slip a place to 3rd. The biggest win saw London Irish (10th) easily overcome Northampton (14th) by 30-3.Week ending Monday 20th February 2006 The return or not of their 6 Nations stars impacted on some clubs but not all. Toulouse's internationals didn't help them from going down at Narbonne which sees the Heineken Cup holders slip to 4th. Stade remain in 3rd after they lost in Agen (+4 to 19th).
In England, Saints win was the pick of the games but Gloucester (+2 to 8th) and London Irish (+3 to 10th) each won well at Newcastle and Bath respectively.
In the Celtic League, Glasgow (30th) produced the shcok of the day, if not the season, in beating an albeit understrength Munster side (5th) at the infamous Thomond Park. Ulster (+3 to 17th) closed the gap on Munster after winning at Murrayfield against a weakened Edinburgh side.Week ending Monday 13th February 2006 The only club action last weekend was in England ... not many changes in the rankings. Week ending Monday 30th January 2006 In the two big games in England, Leicester (6th) and Sale (-1 to 5th) shared the points while Leicester Bath (11th) defeated Wasps (7th). Elsewhere London Irish move up to 12th after winning at 10th placed Gloucester.
The weather took its toll in France with 4 of the 7 league games postponed but top ranked Biarritz managed to win comfortably at Perpignan.
Munster were without 7 of their pack for the visit of the Dragons but managed to cling on and climb a place to 4th. Among the chasing pack for the CL title, Leinster (9th) and Edinburgh (+3 to 18th) each won while Ulster (+2 to 20th) dented the Scarlets (-3 to 15th) chances. Week ending Monday 23rd January 2006 Some stunning performances completed the Heineken Cup pool stages. First up was Munster who simply destroyed Sale scoring 4 tries to boot. The Mancunians lasted just one week at the top of the rankings. Another Irish side, Leinster, also hit peak form easily beating Bath at the Rec. The Dubliners climb to 9th, 2 places above Bath. Leicester, too, scored some superb tries in beating Clermont Auvergne away to secure a home quarter-final. The Tigers now lie 6th in the rankings.
Biarritz at home were much too strong for Saracens and regain the number one ranking spot they held last season. Toulouse won a high-scoring thriller at Llanelli and move up to 3rd.
Leeds and Stade Francais each scored 40 points in their final pool games but both lost out on a quarter-final place. Week ending Monday 16th January 2006 A fair bit of excitement as always in the Heineken Cup but no real shocks. Sale's win over the Dragons and Stade's last minute defeat at Leicester see the Mancunians swap with the Parisians. Biarritz move up to 3rd after ending Ulster's impressive home record at Ravenhill while Toulouse move above Wasps whom they defeated to secure a place in the quarter-finals.
Bath (+5 to 10th) maintained their 100% record with an excellent win in Bourgoin. Perpignan (8th) also recorded a fine win away from home, against Cardiff Blues.
Meanwhile, Leinster's win over Glasgow and Saracens narrow victory over Treviso maintain their hopes of qualification.Week ending Monday 9th January 2006 Toulouse's shock home defeat at the hands of Bayonne sees them drop from 2nd to 5th. Also in the top ten, Perpignan dropped 2 places to 9th after a heavy defeat in Agen (+4 to 18th).
Sale continue to top the Premiership after winning at Bath and at home, albeit narrowly, against Bristol and now move up to 2nd in the rankings behind Stade Francais. Northampton got a much needed win at Worcester and climb 5 places to 20th. Meanwhile Gloucester's victory at Saracens sees them move into the top ten.
Llanelli Scarlets are the Celtic team of the week after defeating both Cardiff and Leinster. They move up 4 places to 9th with Munster the only Celtic team above them.Week ending Monday 2nd January 2006 Leinster's two CL wins over their main Irish rivals lifts them 5 places to 10th. In contrast, Ulster slip to 21st after losing both games over the festive period, including one in Connacht (+4 to 31st). Among the Welsh sides, Cardiff beat the Ospreys and Dragons and now lie 20th. The Ospreys (-4 to 24th) also lost to the Dragons making it 4 defeats on the trot.
In the Guinness Premiership, Newcastle (+7 to 18th) enjoyed a good Xmas winning at Leeds and at home to Worcester. Wasps too won both fixtures and move up a place to 4th.Week ending Monday 26th December 2005 All 7 ties in the French Top 14 were won by the home side. Castres (+2 to 17th) and Biarritz (4th) each notched up over 50 points in their wins. Stade's win over Montpellier helps them top the rankings at the end of the year just ahead of Toulouse who head the French league going into 2006.
Games played in the Guinness Premiership and Celtic League on 26th and 27th December will be included in next week's rankings.Week ending Monday 19th December 2005 There was still plenty of drama but the 12 H Cup ties didn't really produce one single upset. While teams such as Toulouse (2nd), Sale (3rd) and Biarritz (4th) completed easy doubles, others such as Saracens and Bourgoin were out for revenge after last week.
Bourgoin (+4 to 9th) produced the biggest turnaround after last week's hammering by Leinster (-3 to 13th) but they are a formidable side at home while Saracens (+3 to 11th) defeated Ulster (17th).
In the Challenge Cup, Connacht (+2 to 35th) deserve a mention for a great injury time win over Worcester (-1 to 20th).
Week ending Monday 12th December 2005 Anyone with Sky TV (this is not a plug) must be exhausted after so many live Heineken Cup matches. And it's the same again next week with this weekend's fixtures in reverse.
In the 12 H Cup games, there were 7 home wins and 5 away though only one of the latter was a surprise - our team of the week Sale.
Among the notable home winners were: Llanelli Scarlets (+4 to 11th) who have surely ruined Wasps (-2 to 6th) chances of progress this year; Leinster (+6 to 10th) who demolished a slightly but not entirely disinterested Bourgoin side (-4 to 13th); struggling Leeds (+4 to 23rd) scored in the dying minutes to beat Perpignan (-3 to 8th); and Ulster (+3 to 17th) also left it late to defeat Saracens (-3 to 14th).
In the Challenge Cup, there were thumping wins for Newcastle in Italy and Gloucester in France.
Week ending Monday 5th December 2005 Second loss on the trot for Toulouse, this time by one point at Brive (+4 to 24th) but the reigning European champions remain in pole position in the EuroTable. It did give the chasing pack the chance to close the gap and Biarritz (2nd), Stade (+1 to 3rd) and Perpignan (+2 to 5th) duly did.
The Anglo-Welsh Powergen Cup seems to be taken very seriously by some clubs but others decide to field a virtual second XV. Sale (-2 to 7th) were an example of the latter as they went down to the Scarlets (+5 to 15th). Impossible to factor this into the rankings! Elsewhere Wasps thumped Saracens and move up to 4th.
In the Celtic League, Glasgow gave Edinburgh a right hammering (46-6) but still lie 31st compared to their rivals 17th position. Big shock of the weekend however was Ulster's win in Cork. The northerners move up to 20th while Munster slip 3 places to 6th.
Heineken Cup returns next weekend ...Week ending Monday 28th November 2005 The French joined the Celts for another week off but it was full steam ahead in hte Guinness Premiership and the Italian Skoda Cup.
Hit by international call-ups, Sale (-3 to 5th) and Wasps (-3 to 6th) both went down to opponents they would have expected to beat. The league leaders from Manchester lost at Bristol (+3 to 30th) while the Londoners lost narrowly at Newcastle (+3 ot 23rd).
Leicester Tigers had no such problems dealing with London Irish (35-3) and climb 2 places to 8th. There were also two fine away wins for Leeds at Bath and Worcester at Northampton where Saints old boy Shane Drahm scored all the visiting side's points. Worcester now occupy their highest ever ranking position (16th).Week ending Monday 21st November 2005 The Celts had another week off but no such luck for the French, English and Italians.
Clermont Auvergne (Montferrand) became only the second side to beat Toulouse this season and move up 3 places to 9th in the EuroTable. Elsewhere, Perpignan and Biarritz maintained their top ten placings with comfortable home wins.
In England, Leeds (+1 to 29th) registered their first win of the season over Northampton (-1 to 23rd). In the top of the table clash, Sale (2nd) beat Leicester who slip to 10th. Wasps move up to 3rd after beating Bath.Week ending Monday 14th November 2005 Some good news for Irish rugby after their demolition at the hands of the Kiwis - Munster climb 2 places to 3rd in the EuroTable! Things are so tight between the chasing pack (behind Toulouse) that defeats for Biarritz and Stade in the French league helped the Irish province move up without actually playing!
Sale, meanwhile, sitting pretty at the top of the English Premiership now lie second in the rankings after their 6th consecutive win, this time over high-flying Worcester (-3 to 20th). Pick of the wins in England was probably London Irish's win at Newcastle while at the bottom Bristol (+3 to 33rd) hammered Leeds (-1 to 30th) who look in real trouble.
Across the channel, Biarritz (-2 to 4th) and Stade (-3 to 6th) slid down the rankings after defeats at Bayonne and Bourgoin who themselves move into the top ten.Week ending Monday 7th November 2005 While the All Blacks continued to take rugby to a new level at the weekend and France brushed aside Australia, only the French gave their club players a rest.
In the Celtic League, many teams were forced to field a lot of reserves. Munster notched a fine away win in Cardiff while the Ospreys outgunned the Ulster at Ravenhill. The Welsh side climb 2 places to 14th. Edinburgh claimed a bonus point by winning at understrength Leinster and move up 3 places to 15th.
In the Guinness Premiership, team of the week Worcester defeated Leicester who slip to 9th. Saracens move above them into 8th after coming from behind to beat Northampton while London Irish (24th) recorded a big win over Bath (10th) whose league form has been poor in comparison to its performances in Europe. Finally, a welcome to Bristol whose provisional ranking is a lowly 36th. Surely the only way is up!Week ending Monday 31st October 2005 Of the 12 Heineken Cup ties, only 3 were won by the away side: Saracens (10th) at Treviso, Leinster (+3 to 13th) in Glasgow and the pick of the bunch Sale who destroyed the Dragons and climb to 5th. Their rivals in Pool One Munster move up 3 places to 4th after hammering Castres (-1 to 14th).
The two big clashes of the weekend failed to live up to the hype: Stade (3rd) grinding out a win over Leicester (-3 to 8th) while Wasps (-2 to 6th) could ony draw at home to champions Toulouse (1st).
Elsewhere, Bath (+1 to 9th) look favourites to coòe through their pool after a bonus point win over Bourgoin while Perpignan's easy win over Cardiff leaves them well-placed and lifts them to 7th in the EuroTable.Week ending Monday 24th October 2005 If Friday and Saturday's opening games in the Heineken Cup were largely predictable, the tournament burst into life on Sunday with the teams ranked 2nd, 3rd and 4th in the EuroTable all losing!
First was the Ospreys (see Club of the week) win over Stade closely followed by Edinburgh's thrilling injury-time defeat of Wasps. The Scots jump 4 places to 17th. And thirdly, Saracens move into the top ten after beating last season's semi-finalists and former top-ranked Biarritz.
Among the other games, Sale (+2 to 6th) leapfrogged Munster (7th) after beating them on Friday evening. Bath (+1 to 10th) gained revenge for last season's two defeats by pipping Leinster in Dublin while Cardiff Blues crushed Leeds 40-13. Finally, holders and top-ranked Toulouse looked in ominous form by posting 50 points on Llanelli.Week ending Monday 17th October 2005 All 7 games in the French championship produced home wins, none more important than Stade's win over Toulouse that was more emphatic than the scoreline suggests. Biarritz too moved up a place to 2nd after beating Bourgoin (9th) while Perpignan climbed 3 places to 6th after crushing Pau.
In the Guinness Premiership, Sale beat Wasps in the weekend's top match. THe Manchester outfit move up to 8th while the Londoners slip to 4th. Leicester (-1 to 7th) drew against Newcastle (+3 to 23rd).
Ulster (19th) and Edinburgh (21st) kept up the pressure on CL leaders Munster with important wins. Leinster (14th) bounced back after last week's hammering in Munster to score 5 tries against Cardiff but slip a place due to Castres' demolition of Montferrand in the French league.Week ending Monday 10th October 2005 If round one of the Powergen Cup went to the Welsh, round two saw the English clubs gain some revenge. The Dragons (31st) and Cardiff (23rd) lost heavily at Northampton and Wasps respectively. The Londoners, who Jonathan Davies rates as the 'best side in the British Isles' now move into 2nd place. The Ospreys (-4 to 18th) lost as well though by a narrow margin to Bath (+1 to 12th) with just the Scarlets (+4 to 16th) managing to win in a close fought game with Newcastle.
In the Celtic League, the Borders upset Edinburgh, Ulster predictably beat Connacht and Munster (5th) demolished Leinster (-2 to 13th).
In France, Toulouse maintained their unbeaten record. Their opponents Biarritz slip a place (3rd), as do Stade (4th) who lost at Montferrand. Castres move up 2 spots to 14th after a big win over Brive.Week ending Monday 3rd October 2005 First blood to the Welsh in the first round of the Anglo-Welsh Powergen Cup. The Dragons (30th) beat Leicester (-1 to 6th), the Scarlets (+4 to 20th) won at Leeds while Cardiff (+3 to 23rd) defeated Saracens. Only the Ospreys (-2 to 14th) went down at Gloucester (+3 to 15th).
Top-ranked Toulouse made it seven in a row in the French Championship (Top 14) while second-placed Biarritz beat Montferrand who nevertheless overtake Bourgoin who crashed to a heavy defeat at Perpignan (+1 to 9th).
Munster and Leinster emerged victorious from the interprovincial games in the Celtic League. Leinster move up 2 places to 11th while previously unbeaten Ulster slip to 22nd. Week ending Monday 26th September 2005 The top eight ranked sides all won at the weekend. In fact the only change in the top ten sees Sale (+2 to 9th) swap places with the team they defeated, Saracens (-2 to 11th). Bath move up 2 places to 14th after a somewhat surprising win (given their performances last week, if not the rankings) at Newcastle who lie in 27th.
Home advantage continues to count in French rugby with only Biarritz winning away at Castres whose third defeat in a row means they slip to 15th.
The Borders made it two wins on the trot with a narrow victory in Connacht but are still ranked as low as 36th. Ulster's win at the Dragons moves them to 20th, one place behind Edinburgh, who have also started the season in style, this time beating the Ospreys (12th). Week ending Monday 19th September 2005 Toulouse made it 5 out of 5 in the French league with a win over Toulon and stretched their lead at the top. Behind them, Stade Francais won narrowly at 2nd ranked Biarritz but remain in 3rd. Bourgoin move up to 7th after winning at Narbonne.
Wasps (4th) and Leicester (5th) each moved up a place after comfortable victories over Leeds and Bath respectively. Worcester (+1 to 17th) continued their great start to the season by scraping home against Saracens while newcomers Bristol came back down to earth after being hammered at home by Gloucester.
Glasgow (+2 to 33rd) took the honours in the CL by defeating Munster (-2 to 6th) but credit too to the Borders who notched a rare win, against injury-hit but nevertheless reigning champions the Ospreys (-2 to 12th). In-form Edinburgh (-2 to 22nd) couldn't make it a Scottish clean sweep losing at Ulster (+2 to 23rd). Week ending Monday 12th September 2005 The big clash in England saw Leicester (6th) draw at Wasps (-2 to 5th). Northampton (+2 to 19th) upset Bath away as did Worcester (+2 to 18th) at London Irish. There was another fine win for newcomers Bristol this time at Newcastle.
In France, there were crushing wins for Toulouse, Montferrand and Biarritz. Only Perpignan (+2 to 12th) won away from home, at Castres (-1 to 13th).
In the CL, Munster (+1 to 4th) were surprisingly comfortable winners over reigning champions Ospreys (-2 to 10th). Notoriously poor travellers Ulster won at Cardiff while Edinburgh (+3 to 20th) look to be the league's form side after an easy win over Connacht. Week ending Monday 5th September 2005 It may have been week 3 in France but for all other European clubs it was the first competitive match of the season!
In the Guinness Premierhsip, newcomers Bristol beat rivals Bath who slip to 13th. Leicester minus Back and Johnson still gave Northampton including Carlos Spencer a 32-0 drubbing. The Tigers move up a place to 6th. Last year's English Premiership winners Wasps also won, against Saracens, and now lie 3rd.
Across the Channel, Stade lost their second game, this time to Perpignan. The Parisians drop to 4th while the Catalans climb to 14th. Top-ranked club Biarritz lost at Agen and with Toulouse winning in Montpellier, the Heineken Cup holders move up to 1st spot in the EuroTable.
CL holders, the Ospreys, edged out Leinster in the dying minutes and move up to 8th while Munster stay 5th despite an unconvincing 9-7 home win over Borders. Edinburgh (+5 to 23rd) produced the shock of the day winning at Llanelli.Week ending Monday 29th August 2005 France is still the only country where the league season has kicked off.
Not much change at the top with the home team winning in each of the 7 games. After last week's upset at Narbonne, Stade got back to winning ways with an easy 31-3 win over Toulon. Week ending Monday 22nd August 2005 Season kicked off in France.
The first surprise of the season was Narbonne beating Stade Francais 26-20. THe south-west team move up 2 places to 21st while the Parisians slip to 3rd. Other results were rather predictable. Week ending Monday 13th June 2005 So, the French end the season with a 1-2-3 in the rankings: French champions Biarritz, followed by losing finalists Stade and Heineken Cup winners Toulouse.
Not surprisingly Zurich Premiership play-off winners Wasps (4th) and the league champions Leicester (6th) head the English contingent though Saracens (8th) may raise a few eyebrows. The fact is that they finished with 9 wins out of 11 games.
Celtic Cup winners and League runners-up Munster (5th) are the top CL side ahead of the league champions the Ospreys (9th).
The top Scottish side is Edinburgh in a disappointing 29th while the leading Italian outfit is Treviso in 37th.
Meanwhile, that's the end of another season. We aim to be up and running again at the end of August for another exciting European rugby season ... have a nice summer!Week ending Monday 6th June 2005 With the British and Irish Lions in New Zealand, only the French are still playing club rugby.
In the French Championship semi-finals, Stade beat Toulouse 23-18 on Friday while the next day Biarritz narrowly defeated Bourgoin 32-27. The final takes place next Saturday evening at the Stade de France.Week ending Monday 30th May 2005 The French Championship (Top 16) semi-final play-offs certainly includes all the big guns. The top two ranked clubs in Europe go head-to-head yet again. Stade Francais who finished the league season in pole position take on Toulouse.
The other semi sees Biarritz (ranked 4th) come up against Bourgoin (12th).
Week ending Monday 23rd May 2005 Toulouse won the Heineken Cup for the third time following a nailbiting 18-12 win in extra time over Stade Francais. The Parisians though remain the top-ranked club but only just.
The Challenge Cup final saw Sale (+1 to 11th) hammer a poor Pau outfit (-2 to 32nd) while in the Shield, French side Auch (+8 to 25th) defeated Worcester who slip to 20th.
Week ending Monday 16th May 2005 The big winners in England this week were Wasps (+3 to 2nd) following their play-off final win against the Tigers (-3 to 6th) and Saracens (+3 to 7th) whose victory over Gloucester guarantees them Heineken Cup rugby next season.
Munster (+2 to 4th) won the Celtic Cup final against Llanelli (-3 to 21st).
In France, most of the big guns are all through to the play-offs though Biarritz's defeat (-3 to 5th) at Montferrand (+2 to 9th) means they are still uncertain.Week ending Monday 9th May 2005 Stade have overtaken Biarritz (-1 to 2nd) at the top of the EuroTable after 4 wins on the trot, the last one at Brive in the French Elite. Their Heineken Cup opponents Toulouse racked up 50 points at Narbonne and climb a place to 4th.
Wasps bounced back from last week's hammering at the hands of Leicester to set up another clash with the Tigers in the ZP play-off final. They came back from a half-time deficit to beat Sale (12th) and move up to 5th. Meanwhile Saracens (10th) and Gloucester (+5 to 22nd) will contest the ZP wildcard final.
The Celtic cup final will see Munster (6th) take on the Scarlets (18th) after they defeated Leinster and the Ospreys respectively.Week ending Monday 2nd May 2005 A dramatic climax to the ZP with Quins going down at the death and their opponents Sale clinching the play-off spot climax as Bath lost at home to Leeds. The Yorkshire side (+2 to 14th) finished the season strongly winning the Powergen Cup and then beating Quins and Bath in the same week. At the top Leicester (+2 to 3rd) thumped Wasps (-3 to 6th).
In France, Stade (2nd) warmed up for the Heineken Cup final by hammering fellow finalists Toulouse (-1 to 5th) in Paris.
The Celtic cup semis see an all Irish clash between Munster and Leinster and an all Welsh affair between CL champions the Ospreys and the Scarlets.
Finally Treviso (37th) won the Italian cup final against Arix Viadana.
Week ending Monday 25th April 2005 The 2005 Heineken Cup final will be an all-French affair after Stade Francais (+2 to 2nd) defeated Biarritz (hang on to 1st position) and Toulouse (+1 to 4th) beat Leicester (-1 to 5th).
Sale and Pau will contest the European Challenge Cup final. The English side hammered Connacht in the semi-final 2nd leg and move up to 11th while Pau qualified at the expense of Brive despite losing the 2nd leg and climb a place to 21st.
Worcester overcame Leeds in the semi-final of the European Shield and will take on Auch in the final after they won a close contest against Bayonne.Week ending Monday 18th April 2005 Saracens (+3 to 10th) inflicted a rare ZP defeat on Leicester (3rd) who perhaps have their mind on the Heineken Cup semi with Toulouse.
While Leeds (+6 to 16th) were winning the Cup final, their rivals for the drop in the ZP were battling it out. Northampton grabbed a vital win over Newcastle but Worcester lost out at Wasps.
In the CL, Cardiff (31st) and Ulster (25th) secured their place in the Celtic Cup and for next season's Heineken Cup. The Welsh side beat the Borders, the Irish province defeated Llanelli.
In France, league leaders Bourgoin (11th) lost while the 3 other sides tipped for play-off places all won: Toulouse (+3 to 5th), Stade (4th)and Biarritz (1st). Week ending Monday 11th April 2005 Defeats for Toulouse (-3 to 8th) and Stade (-1 to 4th) helped Bourgoin stretch their lead at the top of the French Elite. Biarritz lost heavily at Narbonne (+2 to 16th) but remain top of the EuroTable.
While Leicester (2nd) look to be holding off the challenge of Wasps (3rd) for the ZP title, at the other end any one of five teams could be relegated. Worcester (+6 to 17th) moved off the bottom of the table with a win at Newcastle.
The race for the top 8 of the CL is also hotting up with Cardiff recording an important win over Ulster and Connacht losing at home to champions the Ospreys.Week ending Monday 4th April 2005 For the neutral, at least Biarritz (1st) against Munster (-1 to 6th) produced some excitement or at least a spirited second-half fightback. The other Heineken Cup quarter-finals were mismatches. Leicester (+1 to 2nd) easily beat Leinster (-3 to 12th) in Dublin while the two anglo-French clashes resulted in crushing victories for the French sides.
First, Toulouse (+1 to 5th) destroyed Northampton (16th), then Stade (+1 to 3rd) dismantled Newcastle at the Parc des Princes (-4 to 24th).
In the Challenge Cup semis first legs, Sale (+4 to 10th) fought off a plucky Connacht side (-3 to 29th) while Pau (+6 to 21st) established a commanding lead over Brive (-2 to 19th).Week ending Monday 28th March 2005 The Ospreys (7th) clinched the Celtic League title after a comfortable win over Edinburgh. Their main rivals Munster lie above them in the rankings (5th) thanks to their European performances but the Irish side did manage a notable win at the Dragons.
Biarritz's demolition of Stade Francais (-2 to 4th) wasn't the biggest win in France this weekend: that honour went to Toulouse (6th) who destroyed Brive (17th) by 71-3! Bourgoin (+3 to 11th), who caused controversy earlier in the season by fielding an understrength side in the H cup, remain the French league leaders after beating Montferrand.
The relegation battle in the English ZP remains fierce with bottom club Leeds (+7 to 24th) beating leaders Leicester (3rd). Elsewhere, Northampton got the vital points in a narrow victory over Quins. At the top end of the table, Wasps won at Sale and move up to 2nd in the EuroTable rankings while the Manchester side slip to 14th.Week ending Monday 21st March 2005 The Ospreys moved closer to the CL title with a 30-0 victory over the Dragons while in the all-Irish clashes, Munster beat Ulster and Leinster defeated Connacht. Week ending Monday 7th March 2005 Stade Francais bounced back from their mauling at Bourgoin last week to beat Perpignan (-1 to 15th). It keeps them at the top of the French Top 16 but it wasn't enough to stop Biarritz taking over as Europe's top ranked club after the south-west's side win over Toulouse. After last week's great victory over Stade, Bourgoin (-2 to 13th) went down narrowly at Castres (9th).
The English Powergen Cup final will see Bath take on Leeds following Sunday's semis. The west country derby saw Bath (+2 to 11th) beat Gloucester (-2 to 18th) at Kingsholm while the relegation-threatened Yorkshire side (29th) beat London Irish (20th).
The Ospreys win at Leinster sets them up nicely for the Celtic League title and moves them a place to 7th while second-placed Munster drop one spot to 5th after losing at lowly Cardiff (+3 to 31st).Week ending Monday 28th February 2005 Full club programme in England and France this weekend. Northampton (+3 to 22nd) upset Leicester who just cling onto the number one spot ahead of two French clubs. Unfortunately for the Saints, other teams near the bottom like Worcester and Quins (+5 to 31st) also won, the latter at Bath. Wasps win at London Irish helps them climb 2 places to 5th.
In France, Bourgoin (+2 to 11th) destroyed Stade (2nd) while Biarritz thumping win at Bayonne lifts them to 3rd.Week ending Monday 21st February 2005 A break in the Six Nations saw many players return to club action. Leicester regained top spot by destroying Newcastle (-4 to 17th). Behind them in the ZP lie Sale (5th) and Wasps (7th) after comfortable home wins. London Irish (+3 to 16th) caused a surprise at Saracens (-5 to 19th) and leapfrogged their opponents.
In France, there were wins for all the big guns except Perpignan (-2 to 14th) who lost at Montferrand (+3 to 12th).
In the CL, Edinburgh's 4th win on the trot, this time over Leinster, helps lift them 4 places to 27th place. Week ending Monday 7th February 2005 While most eyes were on the Six Nations, there was no respite for the Zurich Premiership clubs. Leicester (-1 to 2nd) and Bath (-1 to 8th) slugged it out for a draw, Wasps (7th) lost in the last minute at Newcastle leaving Sale (+3 to 5th) to climb above them in the ZP with their win over London Irish.
Meanwhile in France, two big guns in Toulouse (-2 to 6th) and Perpignan (-3 to 12th) couldn't cope with their international call-ups losing at Bayonne (28th) and Auch (39th). Stade (+1 to 1st) and Biarritz (+2 to 3rd) made the most of it with away wins.
No games in the Celtic League this weekend ... at least some rugby administrators have pity on the players!Week ending Monday 31st January 2005 Just a week before the Six Nations begins, an almost full-strength Leinster side +1 to 10th) predictably hammered an under-strength Dragons outfit (-3 to 22nd) while a strong Munster XV (3rd) surprisngly lost at struggling Llanelli (+2 to 27th) in the Celtic League. Edinburgh's win in Cardiff was their third victory in a row and they moved up 4 places to 29th while Glasgow held CL leaders the Ospreys (-4 to 11th) to a draw.
In the ZP, Leicester, Sale and Gloucester all won at home as expected but Bath upset Wasps (-2 to 6th). Leeds and Saracens also recorded important wins in the relegation scrap.
In France, the big guns all won with Stade (2nd) most impressive crushing hapless Montpellier by 80 points.
Week ending Monday 24th January 2005 In the 3 all-Premiership quarter-finals of the Powergen Cup, the away team ran out winners. Leeds (+3 to 27th) beat the Saints, Bath (+3 to 9th) won at Sale (-1 to 8th) and London Irish (+4 to 14th) defeated Saracens who slip out of the top twenty.
Perpignan (+1 to 10th) bounced back from Heineken Cup disappointment to beat Toulouse who remain 5th.
In the CL, there was some cheer for the Scots with Edinburgh (33rd) beating Llanelli and the Borders (40th) defeating a weakened Leinster side.Week ending Monday 17th January 2005 The last round of the Heineken Cup pools certainly produced a few surprises none more so than Stade's drubbing of Gloucester. But there were others ... top-ranked Leicester somehow made it to the quarter-finals despite losing two games after Biarritz (+3 to 6th) beat Wasps, Castres (-4 to 10th) lost at the Ospreys and, remarkably, Perpignan (-3 to 11th) got hammered in Edinburgh (+3 to 35th).
Leinster qualified as top seeds and were the only side to make it 6 out of 6 with a facile win over Treviso.
The quarter-final line-up, though not until April, sees Leinster (8th) v Leicester (1st), Toulouse (5th) v Northampton (14th), Stade (2nd) v Newcastle (13th) and Biarritz (6th) v Munster (3rd).Week ending Monday 10th January 2005 The weekend belonged to the French and Irish with all their teams (6 and 4 respectively) winning apart from Bourgoin. Top marks go to Biarritz (9th) who won at Leicester (1st) but the other Anglo-French clashes also saw the French prevail with Perpignan (8th) and Castres (6th) hammering Newcastle and Quins. There was some consolation for the English with Northampton (+3 to 15th) winning at Llanelli.
Leinster (+3 to 10th) became the first side to qualify for the q-finals with a somewhat fortuitous win at Bath while Munster are in pole position in their pool after defeating the Ospreys. Ulster look out of contention though they were jeopardised Gloucester's chances by beating them at Ravenhill. Meanwhile in the Challenge Cup, Connacht (+2 to 27th) produced another remarkable result by winning the first leg in Grenoble.
Would anyone who signed up for the weekly mailing for the first time between 17 October and 10 January please do so again as we appear to have lost some of the recent subscribers details. A new backup system should stop this from happening again. Apologies to anyone affected.
Week ending Monday 3rd January 2005 While the French and Italian clubs had a Xmas break, the English and Celts all played two matches.
Top-ranked Leicester ended 2004 by thumping Worcester and began the new one by winning at Gloucester who slip to 10th as they also lost at Wasps. The Londoners maintained their number two ranking spot with a victory at Quins. Northampton were another side to recorded two wins and they climbed back into the top twenty (+4 to 18th). In contrast, Bath lost both games and fell 6 places to 14th.
In the CL, Munster (+2 to 5th) made it ten in a row with hard-fought wins over Connacht and Leinster. Their Heineken Cup clash next Saturday with the CL leaders the Ospreys (+3 to 8th after two wins) should be worth watching. A rare win for the Borders over Edinburgh helped them end the year with some optimism though they stay in 41st place.
Week ending Monday 20th December 2004 Hard to follow the Heineken Cup. The English Powergen Cup almost produced a shock at 1st division Bristol but second-ranked Wasps won in extra-time. Elsewhere, Saracens (+4 to 24th) under a new coach won narrowly over Newcastle (-2 to 16th). London Irish (+2 to 14th) also won a tight affair at Worcester.
In the Celtic League, Munster (7th) beat the Ospreys (-2 to 11th) in their dress rehearsal for the crunch Heineken Cup tie in the new year.
Perpignan (6th) go into the break leading the French Championnat after a win over Biarritz (12th). The chasing pack includes Bourgoin (+4 to 18th) who won at Beziers, Stade (3rd) who beat Grenoble and Toulouse (4th) who won at Auch.Week ending Monday 13th December 2004 Sweet revenge for Ulster and Munster this weekend after their defeats the previous week in France. Ulster move up 3 places to 26th after beating Stade (3rd) while Munster (+3 to 7th) crushed Castres (-7 to 12th). Leinster (+3 to 13th) made it a good weekend for the Irish provinces by completing the double over Bourgoin.
The weekend's top clash though saw top-ranked Leicester beat second-ranked and Heineken Cup holders Wasps. Gloucester (+1 to 5th) also won for the second week running against Cardiff.
Top French sides Toulouse (4th) and Perpignan (6th) made up for last weekend's defeats with wins over Northampton and the Dragons though another Welsh side won convincingly at Quins to move up 4 places to 9th.Week ending Monday 6th December 2004 Home sides dominated week 3 of the Heineken Cup with 10 wins out of 12. This included a couple of major upsets - Treviso (+3 to 35th) beating Bath (-3 to 8th) and Northampton (+4 to 19th) defeating Toulouse (4th).
It was a good weekend for the Welsh - the Dragons (12th) beat Perpignan (7th), the Ospreys (13th) overcame Quins, Llanelli (+2 to 23rd) won at Glasgow and even Cardiff grabbed a point at Gloucester.
Castres win over former finalists Munster lifts them 5 places to 5th while Leinster climbed 3 places to 16th after running up a cricket score against a disinterested Bourgoin.
With back-to-back matches taking place next weekend, the rankings are likely to change somewhat by next Sunday evening! Week ending Monday 29th November 2004 Bath's fourth win on the trot in the ZP lifts them to 5th. Leicester also remained undefeated during the autumn international period and with Wasps going down at Worcester, the Tigers have closed the gap at the top of the EuroTable. Sale (11th) will be glad to have their international contingent return having lost their last 3 games.
After two straight defeats, Toulouse (4th) got back to winning ways with a narrow 21-20 victory over Agen. Perpignan (+2 to 6th) won at Grenoble and reclaimed the top spot in the French Championship.
Munster's 9th win on the trot, away at Edinburgh, sees them move into 8th place. Connacht continue to surprise, this week beating the Dragons (12th) and climbing to 28th.
Unluckiest team of the weekend were Amatori Catania in the Italian Cup. They were leading by 8 points at Petrarca Padova with only 6 minutes to go when their game was abandoned due to fog !
Look out for the return of the Heineken Cup next weekend. Week ending Monday 22nd November 2004 Another week without their international stars didn't suit the Ospreys (-1 to 15th) and Dragons (-1 to 12th) in the Celtic League who each lost at home to Connacht (30th) and Edinburgh (35th) respectively. Munster (10th) recorded their eighth win on the trot and Ulster (23rd) their second, beating lowly Cardiff (27th).
The showdown between the top two-ranked clubs, Wasps and Leicester ended in stalemate. Elsewhere in the ZP, Quins (+4 to 24th) won again, this time at Sale while Bath (+2 to 6th) and Worcester also emerged victorious away from home. London Irish made it 3 wins in a row, by beating Newcastle and move up 4 places to 14th.
In France, Toulouse (4th) went down again at Castres (+2 to 7th) while third-ranked Stade could only draw at Narbonne and Perignan dropped 3 places to 8th after losing at Brive. Biarritz were the side to benefit climbing 2 places to 5th after a home win over Montferrand.
Finally, a rare defeat for Treviso away at Viadana in the Italian championship.Week ending Monday 15th November 2004 Some teams coped well without their international stars, others simply didn't. Toulouse (-2 to 4th) went down at home to Narbonne (+5 to 17th) while the other top sides Perpignan, Stade, Biarritz and Castres all won.
Across the channel, high-flying Sale fell to 12th after losing at Bath who moved up to 8th and Gloucester lost at home to Wasps. Elsewhere in England, Quins 5+4 to 28th) got off the mark this season by hammering Saracens while London Irish 5+3 to 18th) won a close match at Northampton (-3 to 16th), their 7th ZP defeat on the trot.
The Ospreys (14th) remain top of the CL after winning in Edinburgh while Munster (+2 to 10th) maintained their impressive form with their 7th consectuive CL win, this time over second-placed Dragons (-4 to 11th).Week ending Monday 8th November 2004 After 2 weekends of European action it was back to the CL, ZP and French Championship this weekend.
In the ZP, only Bath (+1 to 10th) won away, against Saracens (-5 to 23rd). The top game saw Leicester (+1 to 3rd) outgun Gloucester (5th) while Leeds (+3 to 29th) win over Northampton (-3 to 13th) may have surprised some.
Toulouse (+1 to 2nd) won the big encounter in France over Stade Francais (-2 to 4th) while Perpignan (6th) slipped up at Bayonne (37th). Castres (+2 to 11th) also maintained their impressive home record beating Biarritz (-2 to 9th).
In the CL, Ulster (-6 to 26th) continue to freefall after another home defeat at the hands of Munster (+2 to 12th). In the big Welsh clash, the Dragons (+1 to 7th)overcame the Ospreys (-3 to 15th) although the latter still head the CL.Week ending Monday 1st November 2004 The big clash of the second round of the Heineken Cup was arguably in Biarritz (7th) where the French side overcame former winners Leicester (-2 to 4th). Two other French sides, Stade and Toulouse each won comfortably and move above the Tigers into 2nd and 3rd.
Gloucester climb to 5th after hammering 1999 champions Ulster (-2 to 20th) while Perpignan drop to 6th after losing at Newcastle (+5 to 15th).
Leinster recorded the biggest climb of the week, up 6 places to 21st, after a fine win over Bath (-3 to 11th).
In the Challenge Cup, Brive overturned a 14 point 1st leg deficit to beat Worcester but performance of the round must go to Connacht who, yet again, upset the odds to beat Narbonne 40-21 to qualify narrowly on aggregate.
Week ending Monday 25th October 2004 The opening round of the Heineken Cup didn't produce too many surprises. Only 4 out of 12 sides won on the road and of those Toulouse (4th) at Llanelli (19th), Saints (13th) at Glasgow (34th) and Leinster (27th) at Treviso (37th) were predictable enough. The only slight upset came at Rodney Parade where Newcastle (20th) outfought the Dragons (9th).
Elsewhere, Bath's win over Bourgoin lifts them into the top ten (+3 to 8th) while home wins for Munster (14th) and Ulster (18th) see them also climb the table.
The best game of the weekend was arguably in Paris where Stade Francais (3rd) overcame Gloucester (6th) by 39-31 in an exciting eight try encounter.
In the Parker Pen Challenge, the minnows didn't feature too well except for Spanish side Cetransa El Salvador who beat Italian side Overmach Parma 36-12.Week ending Monday 18th October 2004 Plenty of upsets in France this weekend with Pau (+3 to 28th) beating Perpignan (-1 to 6th), Montferrand (+5 to 23rd) defeating Toulouse (-1 to 3rd) and Stade (4th) held by Castres (13th).
In England, Leicester's win at Quins sees them go second behind Wasps while Sale (+3 to 10th) continue to surprise after an away win at Northampton (-2 to 12th).
The Ospreys (+2 to 9th) stretched their lead at the top of the CL after beating Leinster. There was a boost for Scottish rugby with Edinburgh (33rd) and Glasgow (35th) both winning against Irish opposition in Connacht (-3 to 32nd) and Ulster who now lie 19th after beginning the season in 10th.
A warm welcome to the two newly-promoted French sides who each get a provisional ranking after playing their 10th game: Bayonne (2 wins, a draw and 7 defeats) in 36th and Auch (1 win and 9 losses) in 38th.
Next weekend sees the start of the Heineken Cup ...Week ending Monday 11th October 2004 Sale (13th) lost their unbeaten record at home to London Irish (+3 to 24th). Elsewhere in the ZP, the big clash of the day between Leicester (3rd) and Bath (-2 to 9th) ended in stalemate, 16-all. The other four games ended in favour of the home side, including Saracens (+4 to 25th) upsetting Northampton (-2 to 10th) who have now lost 4 games on the trot.
In France, the venue was even more telling with the home side winning in each of the 8 games. The most notable was newly-promoted Auch notching their first victory among the Elite by beating Agen (14th).
In the CL, the Ospreys made 6 out of 6, climbing 2 places to 11th while the Dragons win in Ulster lifts them 3 spots to 7th, their highest ever ranking. Shock of the day came at Llanelli (15th) where Connacht (29th) won, again, as they did last season.Week ending Monday 4th October 2004 Away wins for Sale (+3 to 12th), their 5th out of 5, and Leicester (3rd) maintained their fine starts to the season in the ZP . Gloucester's unbeaten run ended at Bath and they slip to 6th, one above their opponents who climb 3 places while Wasps pulled off a narrow win at Saints. Worcester and London Irish each registered their first and second wins of the season respectively.
Perpignan's win at previously unbeaten Agen was the pick of the day and lifts them to 5th behind the bug guns Stade and Toulouse who also notched victories.
Top performance in the CL was arguably the Dragons' impressive win against Leinster. They now lie 10th and are the top-ranked Welsh side, above the Ospreys (13th) who easily beat Glasgow. Edinburgh restored a bit of Scottish pride beating Cardiff at Murrayfield.Week ending Monday 27th September 2004 In the ZP, the only 2 sides with 100% records continued their good starts: Sale (15th) hammering Worcester and Gloucester (4th) seeing off Newcastle. Leicester (+2 to 3rd) looked impressive in beating Northampton (-2 to 8th) while Leeds (+2 to 33rd) and Bath (+1 to 10th) notched up important away wins.
There were two big clashes in France with Perpignan (+2 to 6th) beating Stade (-3 to 5th) and Toulouse (+1 to 2nd) scraping home against Biarritz (7th).
The Ospreys (+4 to 14th) stay top of the CL after their win in Ulster (-6 to 16th) and that after being 0-14 down at half-time! while the only other side with 4 wins out of 4, Leinster, easily defeated Borders.Week ending Monday 20th September 2004 Four away wins in the ZP this week, the pick of them being Gloucester (+3 to 4th) at Northampton who slip to 6th. Top-ranked Wasps won their first match of the season, at Leeds while Bath (11th) and Leicester (5th) also won on their travels.
In France, new side Bayonne shocked Biarritz who fall two places to 7th, one place ahead of Perpignan who also drop down the rankings after losing at Castres (9th).
The Ospreys (+3 to 18th) made it 3 out of 3 in the CL crushing Cardiff 39-3 ! Reigning champions Llanelli fall 3 places to 13th, one place above the Dragons who beat them 15-0. In the all-Irish clashes, Leinster (+4 to 23rd) and Ulster (+2 to 10th) emerged as the winners.Week ending Monday 13th September 2004 Wasps slipped up yet again in the ZP, this time at home to Sale who shoot up 6 places to 15th. Newcastle (17th) also upset the odds by defeating Bath (11th) at the Rec while Northampton move up to 4th after an easy win at Quins (-5 to 19th). Home wins for big guns Gloucester and Leicester see them stay in the top ten.
Agen ruined Biarritz's 100% record in France. The latter slip 3 places to 5th while Agen jump 4 to 13th.
An understrength Leinster side spoiled Ulster's unbeaten home run of 21 games but the Dubliners still lie in 27th due to their poor end to last season.
Finally, a reminder to anyone who enrolled for the weekly mailing in the past few months and who is not receiving it to please re-register.
Week ending Monday 6th September 2004 EuroTable is back ! The French Championnat began a couple of weeks ago, but for Europe's other top clubs, this was the first weekend of club action.
After four games, Biarritz (+1 to 2nd) are now the only French club with a 100% record. Reigning champions Stade Francais drop to 3rd after their second defeat in a row while Toulouse hang on to 4th spot.
In the English ZP, Saracens (+3 to 26th) upset champions Wasps (still well out in front). Second favourites for the title Leicester lost at Sale and slip 3 places to 8th while Northampton under new management climb 3 places to 5th after defeating Bath (-3 to 10th).
The 2004 winners, Llanelli are the top-ranked CL side in 9th after their opening win at Borders.
Finally, a reminder to anyone who enrolled for the weekly mailing in the past few months and who is not receiving it to please re-register Week ending Monday 28th June 2004 The last game of the season saw Stade Francais retain their French Championship title. They finish the season in 3rd behind worthy leaders Wasps and Heineken Cup finalists Toulouse.
Hope you all enjoyed our coverage of European club rugby this season. It has to be said that the club scene was badly affected by the World Cup but next season promises to be much more competitive. All being well, we'll be back again at the end of August. Week ending Monday 21st June 2004 Stade Francais (3rd) will play Perignan (5th) in the French Championship final next weekend after wins over Bourgoin and Toulouse respectively.
Benetton Treviso defeated Calvisano to win the Italian Super 10 title. Week ending Monday 14th June 2004 Next weekend's French play-off semis see Toulouse (2nd) take on Perpignan (10th) and Stade Francais (+5 to 5th) play Bourgoin (17th). The latter were lucky to qualify after losing at Beziers but Perpignan's win over Castres saw them clinch the runner-up spot in Pool A.
In Italy, the Super 10 final pits Calvisano (41st) against Benetton Treviso (39th) after they overcame Viadana and Overmach Parma respectively.Week ending Monday 7th June 2004 Penultimate weekend of French Championship action with Biarritz's win over Stade, the pick of the results. The south-west outfit climb 3 places to 7th while Stade drop 4 positions to 10th.
Bourgoin (+1 to 16th) also kept their hopes alive with a win over Perpignan (-2 to 11th)while Toulouse qualified for the semis after beating Brive at home.Week ending Monday 31st May 2004 Yet another hard-fought victory for Wasps, this time over Bath to clinch the Zurich Premiership title.
Leicester qualified for next season's Heineken Cup after a win against Sale in the wildcard play-off.
In France, Toulouse beat Biarritz twice in a week to maintain their French Championship challenge.Week ending Monday 24th May 2004 Having been ranked Number One virtually the whole season, Wasps were deserved winners of the Heineken Cup though runners-up Toulouse could easily have retained the trophy.
Another London side, Harlequins (+2 to 14th), lifted the Parker Pen Challenge Cup, also after another nailbiter against French side Montferrand (-1 to 16th).
There was some consolation for France with Montpellier (+4 to 22nd) beating Arix Viadana to win the Parker Pen Shield.
In the French Elite play-offs, Stade Francais continued their fine run by crushing Brive 34-10 and move up 3 places to 4th in the EuroTable.Week ending Monday 17th May 2004 Wasps showed their mettle on Sunday by destroying Northampton, setting up a Grand Premiership final with Bath and (most importantly!) regaining their Number One ranking spot. Meanwhile the wildcard play-off final will be between 6th place Leicester and 8th place Gloucester.
Down and out a few weeks ago, reigning French champs Stade Francais 5(+4 to 7th) have a good chance of retaining their crown after upsetting Toulouse. Perpignan (+3 to 13th) also won away at Castres (-5 to 10th).
Llanelli (9th) lifted the Celtic League on Friday beating closest rivals Ulster (12th) in the final game of the season.
Next Sunday sees Wasps and Toulouse fight it out for the Heineken Cup final.Week ending Monday 10th May 2004 Having been ranked No.1 all season, Wasps slip to 2nd after their defeat in a row, this time at the hands of Leicester (+5 to 7th). Bath (+2 to 4th) finished top of the Zurich Premiership after hammering Gloucester but now have to wait 3 weeks before they take on the winners of Northampton v Wasps for the Premiership title.
Wins for Ulster (10th), Llanelli (9th) and Newport Gwent Dragons (12th) sets up a thrilling finale next weekend with each team still in with a shout of the Celtic League title.
Toulouse win at Brive in Round One of the French play-offs helps them take over at No.1 in the EuroTable. Castres and Stade Francais also notched up important wins to climb 2 places to 5th and 11th respectively.Week ending Monday 26th April 2004 An epic Heineken Cup semi in Dublin saw EuroTable leaders Wasps beat Munster 37-32 in one of those rare games which lives up to all the hype. The Londoners confirm their status as No.1 while Munster's lowly 18th position owes much to their poor Celtic League form.
Toulouse won the other semi against Biarritz and that coupled with Bath's defeat at Montferrand sees the French side move into 2nd place.
Harlequins (11th) lost the 2nd leg of their Parker Pen Challenge Cup semi in Connacht (+4 to 19th) but go through to the final against Montferrand (+6 to 22nd) on points difference.
Finally, the European Shield final will see Montpellier take on Arix Viadana. Week ending Monday 19th April 2004 Newcastle won a thrilling Powergen Cup final against Sale and climb 7 places to 17th.
Zurich Premiership leaders Bath cling on to 2nd place in the EuroTable despite a defeat at 6th placed Northampton.
With Llanelli (8th) crushing Leinster and Ulster (9th) overcoming a stiffer than expected challenge from Connacht, it all points to a final day showdown between the two.
In France, Stade Francais (15th) clung on to their hopes of a championship play-off spot with a narrow win at Agen, thus spoiling the southern side's unbeaten home record. Week ending Monday 12th April 2004 Three of the four home sides in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals progressed to the semi-finals. Wasps (1st) hammered Gloucester (5th) by 34 points to 3 while Toulouse (3rd) easily overcame Edinburgh (31st).
Munster (+4 to 13th) stormed to an early lead but had to hang on in the end to defeat Stade Francais (16th) in a nailbiting 37-32 win. The Irish province will face Wasps at Lansdowne Road in a fortnight.
Finally, Biarritz (4th) set up an all- French semi-final tie with Toulouse by upsetting Llanelli (-1 to 8th) in Wales.
In the Parker Pen Challenge Cup semi-finals, Bath and Harlequins take 14 and 9 point leads into their 2nd leg ties at Montferrand and Connacht respectively.
Week ending Monday 5th April 2004 Plenty still to play for in all club competitions this season. In the Zurich Premiership, Wasps (1st) destroyed Northampton (-3 to 6th) while Bath remain 2nd after a narrow win over Sale (-3 to 22nd). Leicester's draw at Newcastle lifts them back into the top ten.
The top French clubs are still fighting for play-off spots. Agen's surprise win at Castres renews their chances. Bourgoin (+7 to 19th) are assured of their place after crushing Brive (-4 to 14th) by 39 points to 6.
Llanelli (+2 to 7th) and Ulster (-1 to 9th)are joint top of the Celtic League after the Irish side lost at Cardiff (+6 to 18th).
Week ending Monday 29th March 2004 It was the climax to the Six Nations but all Celtic League and Zurich Premiership sides were in action. Sale shoot up 8 places to 19th after hammering Gloucester (-3 to (6th). Leicester's fine run continued with a win at Quins which sees them jump 3 spots to 11th. Saints victory over Saracens was their 8th in 9 games and they now move up 3 places to 3rd.
Ulster (+1 to 8th) move clear at the top of the Celtic League after they thrashed Edinburgh 37-0 and the Scarlets (-1 to 9th)could only manage a draw at home to ever-hungry Connacht. The Dragons (14th) squeezed home against the Warriors (15th) while, after recent poor runs, Leinster and Munster got back to winning ways.
In Italy, Calvisano won the Italian Cup final beating Arix Viadana. Week ending Monday 22nd March 2004 With the Six Nations in full flow, there were just 4 games involving Europe's Premier clubs this weekend. The Tigers (+7 to 14th) managed an important home win over Harlequins (10th) while London Irish (-5 to 18th) lost narrowly at home to Bath (2nd).
The Italian Cup final will see Arix Viadana take on Calvisano after the former put out favourites Treviso. Viadana climb above Treviso into 40th.Week ending Monday 15th March 2004 Newcastle (22nd) and Sale (27th) will meet in the Powergen Cup final after wins over Pertemps Bees and Leeds.
In the Celtic League, Ulster (+1 to 9th) won the top of the table clash over the Warriors (12th) but the Dragons (+6 to 15th)and Scarlets (8th) kept up the pressure with away wins over Munster and Cardiff respectively.
In France, Montferrand (+6 to 20th) won at pool leaders Brive (11th), ruining their unbeaten home record this season. Reigning champions Stade Francais (-3 to 17th) are all but out of the running this season after their loss at Bourgoin (+1 to 26th). France's top 3 sides in the EuroTable, Biarritz (4th), Toulouse (5th) and Castres (7th) all recorded important wins.
Week ending Monday 8th March 2004 No rest for the Celtic league sides during the Six Nations. Cardiff climb 6 places to 16th after winning at Leinster who slip out of the top twenty. The five other ties were won by the home side. Ulster (+3 to 10th) easily won the derby against Munster (-3 to 13th). Llanelli (+4 to 8th) crushed Edinburgh but the other Scottish sides fared better with Glasgow (33rd) hammering the Dragons and Borders (+3 to 38th) winning a see-saw game with Connacht. Finally in the all-Welsh tie the Ospreys upset the Warriors. Week ending Monday 1st March 2004 Quarter-finals in the English Powergen Cup saw the top two ranked clubs knocked out: a slightly understrength Wasps at home to Pertemps Bees and Bath away at Leeds (33rd).
For the 2nd week running in the Celtic League, none of the Irish provinces managed a win. The Ospreys (32nd) won in Munster (-4 to 10th), Leinster (-3 to 19th) lost a thriller in Edinburgh (+3 to 14th), Ulster (-3 to 13th) lost their spot at the top of the Celtic league going down to the Dragons (+4 to 18th) while Connacht drew 28 all with Glasgow.
In France, Stade Francais (-2 to 15th) risk missing out on the play-offs after a home defeat by Brive (+3 to 11th). Narbonne (+4 to 21st) demolished Perpignan 47-18. The Catalans slip 6 places out of the top twenty. The other upset saw Beziers (+4 to 16th) narrowly defeat Toulouse who remain 4th.
Week ending Monday 23rd February 2004 While Ireland hammered Wales in the Six Nations, the Welsh sides all overcame their Irish counterparts in the Celtic League. Cardiff (+4 to 23rd) won in Connacht, the Warriors (+4 to 11th) beat Leinster in Dublin, their 5th win on the trot and Llanelli Scarlets (+3 to 8th) overcame Munster at home. Ulster's defeat in Glasgow meant that all 4 Irish provinces lost for the first time in the competition's history.
In the Zurich Premiership, Wasps snatched a win over Quins with the last kick of the game. Bath beat Leeds to hang on to 2nd spot and Gloucester's win at Rotherham helps them leapfrog Toulouse into 3rd position in the rankings. Northampton crushed Sale and climb to 5th while Leicester move up 5 to 21st after their win at London Irish.Week ending Monday 16th February 2004 In spite of the start of the Six Nations, there was a pretty full Celtic League, Italian Cup and Zurich Premiership programme.
Ulster (6th) stretched their lead at the top of the Celtic League with a win over the Ospreys (34th) and Llanelli Scarlets (-1 to 11th) going down at the Dragons (+2 to 19th). Munster (5th) won their all-Irish tie against Leinster (12th).
In England, almost a second string Wasps side overcame Rotherham, while Gloucester (4th) thumped Sale (-3 to 28th). Finally, there were two good away wins for Leeds (+3 to 32nd) at Newcastle, the win coming after 7 straight defeats, and Northampton Saints (+2 to 7th) at Saracens.Week ending Monday 9th February 2004 It was 1st against 2nd this week with Wasps deservedly stretching their lead at the top over Bath. Quins (+5 to 8th) and Northampton (+2 to 9th) both moved into the top ten after wins against Saracens and Rotherham. Gloucester hold onto 4th spot after a comfortable victory over Newcastle while England's other side in the top twenty, London Irish climb 2 places to 13th after an away win at Leeds.
In France, Stade Francais (15th) needed their win over Castres (-5 to 12th) to stay in contention. Elsewhere, there were big wins for the other Heineken Cup quarter-finalists Toulouse (3rd) and Biarritz (+5 to 7th) while Perpignan (+2 to 19th) hammered Montauban.
Ulster (+3 to 6th) narrowly defeated Llanelli (-2 to 10th) to take over at the top of the Celtic League. The four other Welsh sides however all won including Cardiff's 50-10 demolition up in Edinburgh. The Scots slip to 14th while the Welsh side climb to 28th. Week ending Monday 2nd February 2004 It was winner takes all this weekend in the Heineken Cup. Wasps (1st) scored an incredible four tries to win down in Perpignan who slip out of the top twenty. Munster (+4 to 5th) too ensured a home quarter-final by beating Bourgoin as did Llanelli (+4 to 8th) who pulled off a shock win at Northampton (-4 to 11th). The other upset was at Welford Road where Stade Francais (+4 to 17th) knocked out former champions Leicester (-1 to 26th).
Two other French sides made it into the quarter-finals: Toulouse (3rd) whalloped previously unbeaten Edinburgh who qualify nevertheless and Biarritz (+1 to 12th) who knocked out Leinster (-2 to 6th). Last of the quarter-finalists are Gloucester (+1 to 4th) who will have to travel to top side Wasps.
Week ending Monday 26th January 2004 The penultimate week of Heineken Cup pool action produced a few more predictable results than previous weeks. The pick of the away wins were Northampton (+3 to 7th) at Agen and two other English sides, Gloucester (+4 to 5th) at Bourgoin and Leicester (+2 to 25th) who spoiled Newport Gwent Dragons (-3 to 24th) unbeaten home record. The Tigers will play Stade Francais (+3 to 21st), who narrowly defeated Ulster (-5 to 5th) for a place in the last eight.
Biarritz (+6 to 13th) set up a mouth-watering clash with Leinster by beating Sale, while Edinburgh (6th) became the first ever Scottish side to qualify for the quarter-finals.
In the Parker Pen Challenge Cup quarter-finals, Quins (+1 to 11th) hammered Brive while Connacht (+4 to 18th) pulled off a remarkable win at Narbonne.Week ending Monday 19th January 2004 Sweet revenge for 8 teams this week in the Heineken Cup. Leicester (+4 to 27th) basically did to Ulster what the Irish side had done to them last weekend. In the two other Anglo-Irish ties, Leinster (+3 to 3rd) overcame Sale away from home while Munster (+3 to 8th) were outstanding in their win over Gloucester (-5 to 9th).
After last weekend's upset in London, Wasps (1st) managed to win at the Warriors (20th) while Stade Francais recovered from a defeat in Wales to hammer the Dragons in Paris. Cardiff (+4 to 32nd) surprised Biarritz (-1 to 19th) with a narrow home win.
Only four sides, this season's surprise package Edinburgh (+3 to 6th), Toulouse (+1 to 4th), Perpignan (15th) and Northampton (10th) managed to win for the second week running. Week ending Monday 12th January 2004 Some cracking matches in this weekend's Heineken Cup with the home side coming out on top in 10 of the 12 ties. The Warriors move into the top twenty after stunning Wasps in London while Sale (+6 to 14th) also caused a major upset by beating Leinster (-3 to 6th) in Dublin.
Of the home wins, Ulster's 33-0 demolition of Leicester lifts them a place into 3rd. In perhaps the biggest clash of the round, Gloucester outplayed Munster and climb 2 places to 4th while the Irish side slip 3 places, out of the top ten.
Benetton Treviso (38th) produced a rare victory for Italian club rugby with a thrilling 42-33 win over Bourgoin (-8 to 21st). Week ending Monday 5th January 2004 No new year cheer for Leicester (29th) who suffered another home defeat, this time to Gloucester (6th). The biggest surprise though was Quins (+3 to 19th) injury time win at Newcastle (-1 to 16th).
The French clubs had two league games each last week. Biarritz benefited the most climbing 6 places to 15th, largely due to their win over Toulouse (-2 to 5th). Castres (+2 to 7th) also won both their matches over Brive and Colomiers while Pau (+5 to 27th) also deserve a mention after beating Agen and drawing at Brive.
Ulster’s defeat at Leinster allowed the Dubliners to climb above them into 3rd. It also enabled Llanelli (11th) who beat the Ospreys to take over at the top of the Celtic League.
Week ending Monday 29th December 2003 Two away wins for the top two clubs in the Zurich Premiership with Bath (1st in the ZP but 2nd in the EuroTable) beating Saracens and Wasps winning at London Irish. Leicester languishing in 27th hammered Leeds who drop 5 places to 26th while Newcastle (+1 to 15th) saw off Northampton (-2 to 11th).
Edinburgh move into the top ten after winning their Celtic League clash in Glasgow while the Warriors climb 4 places into the top twenty after their victory in Cardiff.
Happy New Year !Week ending Monday 22nd December 2003 They hadn't won a trophy since the Heineken Cup in 1999 but Ulster (4th) picked up the Celtic Cup on Saturday by beating 12th place Edinburgh.
In England, Wasps (1st) and Bath (2nd) are the teams to beat with the Londoners hammering Saracens (-3 to 31st) and the west countrymen seeing off Newcastle (-1 to 16th) to maintain their lead at the top of the Zurich Premiership.
Across the Channel, Stade Francais (+2 to 23rd) got their first league win of the season beating Agen (-4 to 25th). Brive (+2 to 15th) preserved their unbeaten record with a narrow 19-18 win at Colomiers (-2 to 35th). Week ending Monday 15th December 2003 Week 2 of the Heineken Cup saw quite a few sides bounce back following opening weekend defeats: Ulster (4th) won narrowly over Stade Francais, Leicester (expect them to rise quickly from 27th) and beat the Dragons.
3 of the French sides also recovered well Toulouse (3rd) overcoming Leeds, Biarritz (18th) beating Sale and Perpignan (13th) winning against the Warriors albeit narrowly.
With Munster (9th) winning easily against Treviso and Gloucester (6th) hammering Bourgoin it's all set up for a couple of mighty clashes between the two in January.
Week ending Monday 8th December 2003 Round One of the Heineken Cup gave the Irish, Scots, English and Welsh something to smile about but there was very little joy for the French and none at all for the Italians.
In the big Anglo-Welsh clash, Llanelli (+2 to 14th) overcame Northampton (-3 to 13th) while the Dragons (+3 to 16th) caused a bit of an upset against high-flying Ulster (-1 to 5th).
It does seem odd to see Stade Francais and Leicester not ranked in the top twenty but quite simply they've hardly won any games. Stade's win over the Tigers and Agen's over Borders were the only French victories in the H Cup. Bourgoin (10th) and Biarritz (24th) both lost to Munster (9th) and Leinster (+4 to 4th) respectively while champions Toulouse (3rd) went down in Edinburgh (-4 to 11th) and last season's finalists Perpignan (-5 to 17th) were blitzed by top-ranked Wasps.Week ending Monday 1st December 2003 In the French league, reigning champions Stade Francais (27th) suffered their fourth league defeat going down 6-13 at Pau. Brive (+5 to 18th) lead their pool after beating Bourgoin (-3 to 9th). Colomiers (+2 to 34th) also pulled off a surprise win at Montferrand.
In the Celtic league, Edinburgh continued their good run of form winning at the Warriors and move up to 15th.
In the Zurich Premiership, Wasps (1st) won a tight game at Newcastle as did Bath (2nd) at Leicester. Meanwhile, home wins for London Irish and Gloucester sees them climb to 5th and 6th respectively.Week ending Monday 24th November 2003 Most rugby eyes were on Sydney this weekend (in fact I'm still there !) but there was a full programme of Zurich Premiership games. Bath's win over Quins lifts them into 2nd place above Toulouse. Newcastle's away victory at London Irish sees them move up 3 places to 13th while Irish drop one spot to 6th.
Northampton's win over Leeds and Gloucester's defeat at Wasps means that the Saints move above the Cherry and Whites, in 8th place.
In the one Celtic League game, Newport Gwent Dragons win over Connacht helped lift them into the top twenty.Week ending Monday 17th November 2003 Castres won the Challenge Sud Radio Cup final against Bourgoin and move up to 6th place in the EuroTable.
The Celtic Cup final on 20 December will be between Ulster (+2 to 4th) who beat Glasgow and Edinburgh (+7 to 17th) who won narrowly at Connacht.
The English Powergen Cup saw Bath (+1 to 3rd) crush Northampton, London Irish (+3 to 5th) win at Gloucester and Sale (+4 to 13th) put out Leicester at Welford Road.Week ending Monday 10th November 2003 In England, Leicester move up 6 places to 22nd after a much-needed victory over Wasps. Bath now lie 4th, one spot behind their vanquished opponents Gloucester. London Irish (8th) and Quins also continue to climb after wins over Saracens and the Saints.
In the Celtic League, Connacht climb 6 to 15th, their highest ever ranking, after beating league leaders Ulster who slip to 6th. The Warriors win over Glasgow leaves them as the highest place Welsh side in 14th.
Castres (9th) and Bourgoin (5th) will contest in the final of the French Challenge Sud Radio after wins over Biarritz and Brive.Week ending Monday 3rd November 2003 In the Celtic league, Ulster stretched their lead at the top after a comfortable win over Cardiff. With Connacht upsetting the Ospreys, Leinster winning in Glasgow and Munster beating the Warriors, it was a clean sweep for the Irish provinces.
In England, London Irish's win at Sale moves them into the top ten while Quins are now 15th after a win at Leeds. Leicester continue to fall and now lie 28th after a defeat at Bath !
In France, the Challenge Sud Radio quarter finals saw Castres win away at Toulouse. With ten games under their belt, Brive get a provisional rating and find themselves in 32nd place. Week ending Monday 27th October 2003 In the French league, Bourgoin's win at Stade Francais lifts them 3 places to 6th while the Parisian side third defeat on the trot sees them slip out of the top twenty. Castres, who were 22nd a month ago, now find themselves in 12th after a win over Pau.
Ulster (4th) moved top of the Celtic League after thrashing Edinburgh (23rd). Cardiff climb 7 places to 22nd after destroying the Ospreys who fall from 10th to 14th.
In England, Bath (-2 to 7th) lost their first game, at Newcastle (+9 to 19th) while Wasps confirmed their place at the top of the rankings with a 42-3 demolition of Saracens away from home.Week ending Monday 20th October 2003 Bath made it 6 out of 6 in the Zurich Premiership and move up 2 places to 5th, just ahead of Northampton who beat Newcastle. Leicester's defeat at Leeds (+5 to 22nd) sees the Tigers drop to 19th, their lowest ever ranking.
In France, champions Stade Francais lost for the 2nd week running and slip to 20th. All 8 French championship games were won by the home side.
In the Celtic League, the Gwent Dragons (27th) hammered Munster (8th). The Ospreys move into the top ten after an easy win over Edinburgh. Leinster's win over Connacht was their first in the league and they climb a place to 11th.Week ending Monday 13th October 2003 The World Cup is clearly having a big bearing on the EuroTable with teams like Leinster (-4 to 12th) and Leicester (-4 to 15th) slipping fast while others such as Ulster (+2 to 4th after their win in Munster) and London Irish (+7 to 9th) are making the most of the WC absentees.
Wasps regain the number one spot after a narrow win at Sale, added to Toulouse's shock defeat by newly-promoted Montpellier in the first round of the French Championship. Big names Biarritz, Agen and Stade Francais also lost. Week ending Monday 6th October 2003 The Celtic Cup quarter-finals saw the two remaining Welsh clubs eliminated. Connacht (+2 to 24th) shocked Llanelli (-4 to 21st) while Edinburgh (+2 to 18th) put out Cardiff. Ulster (6th) and Leinster (8th) drew 23-all, with the northerners going through on try count while Glasgow (30th) knocked out Celtic League champions Munster (4th).
In England, Wasps defeat by Bath (+5 to 7th) saw them lose their number one spot in the EuroTable to Toulouse, whose loss in the French Challenge Cup didn't count against them as they had already qualified for the quarter finals. Elsewhere in England, Sale won at Leicester (-3 to 11th) while Newcastle (+4 to 23rd) beat 3rd place Gloucester.Week ending Monday 29th September 2003 Northampton Saints (+2 to 6th) were the pick of the teams in this week's Zurich Premiership beating Wasps. Bath were the only side to win away, over Sale, and with 3 out of 3 this season they move up 4 places to 12th.
In the Celtic League, Edinburgh (+4 to 20th) caused the biggest surprise winning at Leinster (-3 to 9th). Borders (37th) won their first game of the season beating Cardiff (25th) while Connacht (+4 to 26th) again upset the odds by defeating Glasgow away. Week ending Monday 22nd September 2003 In the opening round of the Celtic Cup, Glasgow (31st) upset previously unbeaten Celtic Warriors (-2 to 10th) while there were comfortable home wins for Leinster Lions (+3 to 6th) and Llanelli Scarlets (17th) and a narrow away victory for Connacht (30th) over Borders (39th).
In the Zurich Premiership, London Irish (15th) and Bath (16th) each moved up 3 places following excellent home wins over Gloucester (3rd) and Northampton (-3 to 8th). Quins (18th) also move up 3 places into the top 20 after crushing newly-promoted Rotherham.
In France, some teams are taking the Challenge Sud Radio more seriously than others in spite of the Heineken Cup place up for grabs. Reigning French league champions Stade Francais have lost all 4 games to date and slip to 9th.Week ending Monday 15th September 2003 Zurich Premiership kicked off with Quins upsetting play-off champions Wasps and moving up 5 places to 21st. Bath (+4 to 19th) and Saracens (+2 to 16th) also started well, winning away from home.
In the Celtic League, Llanelli (+4 to 17th) beat Munster at Thomond Park, their first defeat there since 1995 ! Celtic Warriors (+3 to 8th) leapfrog Leinster (-2 to 9th) after beating the Dublin side.
By popular demand, we have included games played in the French Challenge Sud Radio, a tournament that offers the winner a place in next season's Heineken Cup.Week ending Monday 8th September 2003 The new season kicked off with 6 Celtic league games. Reigning champs Munster (4th) began well beating Leinster in Dublin and thus closed the gap on 3rd place Gloucester.
Neath-Swansea Ospreys (+2 to 14th) won a high-scoring game against Ulster (-2 to 10th).
Llanelli Scarlets, whose low position in the EuroTable is due to a poor end to last season, move up 7 places to 21st after an easy 35-11 victory over Gwent Dragons.
Finally, the biggest win of the weekend was Celtic Warriors (+1 to 11th) 49-12 hammering of Borders in Scotland.Week ending Monday 9th June 2003 Stade Francais won the French Championship final defeating Heineken Cup champions Toulouse in the play-off final. The Parisians finish the season in 5th place.
Toulouse's defeat sees them drop to second behind Wasps whose strong finish to the season leaves them in pole position, albeit by a whisker (Toulouse's rating is 99.48 against Wasps 100 !)
EuroTable will return at the end of August as soon as the 2003/04 season begins. Have a good summer !Week ending Monday 2nd June 2003 Wasps finished the season so strongly, winning the Parker Pen Challenge Cup and destroying Gloucester in the Zurich Premiership play-off final, that they now lie in second place, one spot above long-time leaders Gloucester.
In France, Heineken Cup champions Toulouse (1st) reached the French play-off final after defeating Agen (-1 to 6th) and will play Stade Francais (+3 to 5th) next Saturday after the Parisians easily overcame Biarritz (-3 to 10th).
In Italy, Benetton Treviso beat Calvisano in the Italian Super 10 final.
Week ending Monday 26th May 2003 Winning the Heineken Cup was enough for Toulouse to leapfrog Gloucester at the top of the EuroTable. Wasps (3rd) closed the gap on Gloucester after winning the Parker Pen Challenge Cup against Bath. If they can beat the Cherry and Whites in the Zurich play-off final, they will more than likely move into 2nd spot. Castres' win over Caerphilly in the Parker Pen Shield lifted them 6 places to 22nd.
In Italy, Calvisano and Treviso will contest the Italian Super 10 final.
Meanwhile in Wales, Bridgend (+1 to 12th) sealed the Welsh Premiership title.Week ending Monday 19th May 2003 Wasps win over Northampton gives them a crack at Gloucester for the Zurich Premiership title and sees them move into 3rd in the EuroTable. Saracens (+4 to 18th)and Leicester (12th) will fight it out in the wildcard play-offs for a place in next season's Heineken Cup.
In France, most of the final play-off games were rather meaningless (cf Bourgoin's 82-19 win over Toulouse) as the semi-final pairings were already decided.
Next Saturday 24th May sees Toulouse take on Perpignan at Lansdowne Road in the Heineken Cup final.Week ending Monday 28th April 2003 This year's Heineken Cup final in Dublin will be an all-French affair. Toulouse's narrow win over Munster sees them close in on Gloucester (97%). Perpignan's shock victory over Leinster sees them stay 12th but their rating increased from 69 to 76%.
Wasps are now third after progressing to the Parker Pen Challenge Cup final where they will meet Bath (+5 to 23rd) who overcame Saracens.
In the Zurich Premiership, Gloucester's win over Quins confirms them as league winners though they still have to contest the play-offs. Week ending Monday 7th April 2003 EuroTable leaders Gloucester picked up the Powergen Cup with an emphatic win over Northampton (-2 to 9th) at Twickenham in Saturday’s final. In the Zurich Premiership, Leicester (+2 to 7th) won the big clash against high-flying Sale (-1 to 13th). Wasps (6th) hammered Bath (29th) while London Irish (17th) recorded a last-minute win at Saracens (28th).
In France, Agen’s defeat at Stade Francais was only their second loss since August. They drop 3 places to 5th while the Parisians climb 2 spots to 11th. The other big guns Toulouse (3rd) and Biarritz (4th) also won.
Quarter-final day in the Welsh Principality Cup saw Llanelli (+2 to 16th) hammer Neath (-2 to 19th) and leapfrog them in the EuroTable. Cardiff’s form (35th) has been so poor that their win over Pontypridd (12th) goes down as an upset.
Week ending Monday 3rd March 2003 It was back to club action this weekend. In England the cup final will be contested by Gloucester (1st) who edged out Leicester (5th) and Northampton (+1 to 9th) who gained revenge on last year's winners London Irish (-2 to 18th). In the Premiership Bath's win over Saracens lifts them above the Londoners into 22nd.
In France it was the last round of matches before the play-offs. Agen, Biarritz and Stade Francais all lost but were safely through in any case. The shock was Grenoble's (+5 to 34th) win at Montferrand (-1 to 24th).Week ending Monday 10th February 2003 Sale's hammering of Quins lifts them to 13th. Newcastle gained an important win at Leeds which moves them in to 29th.
Agen won the clash of the day in France against Perpignan, their 12th in succession.
No shocks in the Welsh cup with all the big guns through.
Week ending Monday 3rd February 2003 After dismissing Gloucester a few weeks ago, Munster had no problem defeating Neath on Saturday to clinch the Celtic League title. The Irish province now finds itself in 2nd position in the EuroTable.
The other big movers in this week's top 20 were Bourgoin (+4 to 14th) after they crushed Biarritz who slip 4 places to 6th.
In England, Leeds win at Bristol moves them to within a place of the west country side, in 20th. Newcastle's defeat of Quins was vital in their relegation battle (if such a thing exists in the Zurich Premiership ?) and lifts them 5 places to 32nd. Finally, Wasps (+1 to 8th) win over Northampton (-2 to 10th) helps them move above the Saints.Week ending Monday 27th January 2003 The favourites emerged victorious in all four quarter-finals in the Powergen Cup in England. The only nailbiter was Northampton Saints win over Bath.
In France, Biarritz won the clash of the day, beating Stade Francais and move into 2nd place.
Week ending Monday 20th January 2003 An exciting last round of Heineken Cup matches saw 3 French, 2 Irish, 2 English and a Welsh side progress to the quarter-finals in April. Performance of the weekend was undoubtedly Munster's extraordinary win over Gloucester. The Irish side move up to 4th and had they not lost in Perpignan two weeks ago would probably be ranked number one. As it is, Gloucester's lead has been cut dramatically.
Elsewhere, Biarritz move into 2nd after a 75 point demolition of poor Cardiff. Toulouse (3rd) had already won their pool so their defeat against London Irish doesn't count against them. Leinster's victory at Bristol gave them the only 100% record in the competition. They remain 5th. And Llanelli (12th) hammered Glasgow to keep Welsh hopes alive. Of the non-qualifiers, Ulster (10th) ended their campaign in style with a win over Northampton (11th) who they leapfrog in the rankings.
In the Shield, Wasps (+2 to 8th) recorded an impressive win away at Stade Francais.
Week ending Monday 13th January 2003 The penultimate round of Heineken Cup pool games were again dominated by the home sides. Only 3 sides managed away wins and two were relatively predictable: Leicester at Calvisano and Ulster in Cardiff. The surprise was in Montferrand where Bristol (+2 to 15th) upset the French side by 30 points to 22.
There were some notable home wins. In France, Perpignan (+3 to 16th) defeated Munster (-2 to 6th) while Toulouse put 70 points on Newport and move into 2nd place in the EuroTable above Biarritz who lost at Northampton. Edinburgh (+3 to 17th) emerged from a tough battle with London Irish (-3 to 18th).
In the Parker Pen Challenge Cup quarter-finals, Wasps (10th) take a 13 point lead into the second leg against Stade Francais (12th) while Bath have a 3 point deficit from their tie with Montauban.
Week ending Monday 6th January 2003 follows later Week ending Monday 30th December 2002 In the Zurich Premiership, Gloucester's narrow win at Northampton was the pick of the day. The Saints drop a place to 8th. Leicester's defeat at Wasps sees the Tigers fall two places to 7th while the Londoners climb to 11th. A rare win for Bristol, over Sale, helps them move up 4 places to 13th. Their westcountry rivals Bath also climb 4 places to 24th after defeating Quins. Meanwhile Saracens (21st) followed up their win over Sale last week with a victory against Leeds.
In Wales, the only slight surprise was Swansea (29th) beating Neath (-3 to 19th) in the Premiership.
Week ending Monday 23rd December 2002 In England, the Premiership teams entered the Powergen Cup. Bristol Shoguns fell to first division Rotherham while Orrell ran Northampton very close, forcing them into extra-time. Bath (+4 to 28th) surprisingly won at Wasps (-3 to 12th).
In France, all the top sides secured victories with Stade Francais (11th) stretching their unbeaten run to 8 games.
In Wales, Ebbw Vale (40th) upset Llanelli (14th) although the Scarlets virtually fielded their second-string. Meanwhile Pontypridd (9th) moved into the top ten after a hard-fought win over Cardiff.Week ending Monday 16th December 2002 Some very big wins in the Heineken Cup this weekend with Leicester (5th) and Toulouse (3rd) each posting scores of 50-plus points against Beziers and Edinburgh. Munster and Neath also ran up half-centuries albeit against modest Italian opposition. Meanwhile London Irish (+1 to 21st) hammered Newport 42-5 and Northampton (+1 to 7th) trounced Cardiff in Wales 31-0.
Perpignan (+4 to 19th) produced the result of the weekend beating Gloucester although Ulster came very close to upsetting Biarritz in France.
In the Shield, Connacht overturned a first leg 15 point deficit against Narbonne to win the tie by 50-49 !
Week ending Monday 9th December 2002 After a long break, the Heineken Cup returned at the weekend. Ulster scored a fine win over French champions Biarritz and move into the top ten for the first time. Indeed, apart from Toulouse's impressive victory in Edinburgh that lifts them in to 3rd, it was a disappointing weekend for French clubs. Perpignan went down at Gloucester while Beziers lost at home to Leicester (6th) and Montferrand slipped up against Leinster (+2 to 7th).
Llanelli's win at Sale sees them climb 5 places to 14th and more or less put paid to the English side's Euro campaign. Other Welsh sides also fared well with Swansea, Newport and Bridgend all beating English oppostion.
Meanwhile Italian side Calvisano (43rd)deserve a mention after they came from behind to beat Neath (-4 to 18th).
Week ending Monday 2nd December 2002 Northampton’s win at Leicester sees them move up 2 places to 7th while the Tigers slip to 6th. There were two other away victories in the Premiership with Wasps (12th) spoiling Leeds (20th) unbeaten home record and Bristol beating lowly Newcastle.
In the Celtic League, home advantage counted for little except in Munster’s case. Their win over Connacht helps them into 4th position. Ulster (11th) and Cardiff (+5 to 18th) each won in Scotland while Neath (+4 to 14th) upset some people’s favourites for the trophy Pontypridd.
In France, Agen (3rd) and Toulouse (5th) each won away from home while reigning champions Biarritz (2nd) overcame the challenge of Montferrand (24th).
Week ending Monday 25th November 2002 Another week with just the Zurich Premiership clubs involved. Gloucester (1st) easily brushed the challenge of high-flying Leeds (-2 to 17th). After a disappointing start to the season London Irish (+5 to 22nd) had a surprisingly comfortable home win over Leicester who slip to 3rd. Elsewhere Sale (+1 to 8th) defeated Wasps (-1 to 12th) away from home and Bristol (+4 to 15th) won at Bath. There were also home wins for Northampton and Saracens. Week ending Monday 18th November 2002 No rest for the Zurich Premiership clubs. Gloucester suffered only their second defeat of the season at the hands of Leicester but hang on to the number one spot. Elsewhere Quins (+5 to 22nd) upset Wasps (-1 to 11th) and Leeds (15th) continue to climb after a fine win over Northampton Saints (-2 to 10th). Bath's mini revival continued with a fine away victory at Newcastle. Week ending Monday 11th November 2002 On a great weekend for Northern Hemisphere rugby at national level, only the English and Italian clubs were in action. In the Zurich Premiership, Gloucester (1st) and Leicester (+1 to 2nd) impressed with wins on the road at London Irish (-6 to 28th) and Northampton (-1 to 8th) respectively. Bristol hammered a Newcastle side minus Jonny Wilkinson and climb back into the top twenty. Wasps (10th) draw with Leeds (16th) sees each side move up one place. Finally, Bath (32nd) and Saracens (33rd) each climb 4 places after important home wins. It was Bath's first league win in 8 games.
In Italy, Benetton Treviso (41st) scored 90 points against Roma while reigning champions Viadana (43rd) defeated Rovigo.Week ending Monday 4th November 2002 Home advantage certainly told in France this weekend with all 8 host sides winning. The pick was Bourgoin (+ 4 to 15th) who hammered Montferrand (-4 to 20th) while Agen's 7th straight win sees them move up a place to 7th. Toulouse (6th) also climb one spot after they put 40 points on Perpignan (-4 to 19th).
In the Zurich Premiership too, there were home wins in 5 of the 6 ties. The only exception was London Irish (+4 to 22nd) surprise victory at Newcastle. Leeds (+5 to 17th) continued their remarkable season with a big second-half comeback to defeat Saracens.
In the first Scottish interpro Edinburgh (13th) beat Glasgow (27th) while in Wales Swansea’s (34th) season got even worse as they lost to Ebbw Vale (40th) in the Welsh Premier League.
Finally, provisional rankings are included this week for newly-promoted Grenoble and Mont-de-Marsan who have now played 10 games.
Week ending Monday 28th October 2002 Following two comfortable wins in the Heineken Cup, Gloucester succumbed to their first defeat of the season in their Zurich Premiership clash with Wasps (+1 to 9th). Northampton Saints move up 2 places to 3rd after a hard-fought victory over London Irish (26th). Newcastle’s win over Sale lifts them into the top twenty while Leicester (4th) notched their first away win of the season at Saracens.
Agen (+2 to 5th), who are banned from European competition this season, beat Toulouse (-4 to 7th) in the top of the table clash in France. Biarritz’s facile win over Montauban helps them consolidate 2nd place in the EuroTable. Meanwhile, Montferrand (+3 to 16th) were the only side to pick up points on their travels with a one point win at Grenoble.
In the Celtic League, Pontypridd (10th) and Munster (6th) each topped their pools after home victories over Cardiff and Caerphilly. The runners-up Edinburgh (13th) and Glasgow (24th) will also have home advantage in the quarter-finals.
Week ending Monday 21st October 2002 After round 2 of the Heineken Cup, each of the six pools has (only) one team with a 100% record. French sides again fared well. In Pool 6, Biarritz (+1 to 2nd) won the weekend’s biggest clash against Northampton (-3 to 5th). In Pool 3, Bourgoin (+2 to 18th) won a high-scoring game against Llanelli (-3 to 17th) while Toulouse (+2 to 3rd) and Beziers also overcame Welsh opposition. However, it wasn’t all good news for the French with Perpignan (-2 to 14th) coming unstuck in Munster (6th) and Montferrand going down at Bristol who move back into the top twenty.
In Scotland, Glasgow (27th) won well over Sale (8th) but Edinburgh (-2 to 15th) lost surprisingly to out-of-sorts London Irish (-3 to 23rd). All four Irish provinces all won including Leinster at Swansea.
In the Parker Pen Challenge Cup, Saracens broke the points scoring record with a 151-0 thrashing of Bucharest while Benetton Treviso are the only Italian side through to round 2 after upsetting Castres.
Week ending Monday 14th October 2002 European club rugby stepped up a gear at the weekend. The Heineken Cup and Parker Pen Challenge Cups are arguably the best means to compare Europe’s clubs and this is reflected in the numerous changes in this week’s EuroTable. Gloucester’s resounding win over Munster helps them open up a large gap at the top. Northampton and Biarritz each jump 3 places to 2nd and 3rd after wins over Ulster (16th) and Cardiff (19th).
Bourgoin’s shock win at Sale lifts the French side into the top twenty and knocks the Manchester outfit down 3 places to 6th. Indeed, all French sides in the Heineken Cup emerged victorious in round one. Edinburgh continue to impress and now lie 13th - after starting the season in 26th – following a win over Newport.
In the Parker Pen Challenge Cup, there were as always some crushing wins but there was one big upset in Italy with Treviso (41st) beating Castres (-4 to 36th) by 22-9.
Week ending Monday 7th October 2002 The big climbers in England this week were Northampton (+2 to 5th) who narrowly defeated Wasps, Quins who shot up 8 places to 29th after a 47-23 drubbing of Newcastle and Leeds who are just outside the top twenty after beating Bristol. London Irish’s freefall continues and they slip to 23rd after a heavy defeat at Sale.
In the Celtic League, the top-ranked Welsh side Pontypridd (10th) crushed Connacht. Ulster move up 3 places to 12th thanks partly to their easy win over Caerphilly but also because the three teams ranked above them all lost. Meanwhile, Llanelli and Borders each notched up 50+ points against Swansea and Glasgow respectively.
In France, Montferrand moved back into the top 20 after a home win over Stade Francais (15th). It was Agen (8th) though who recorded the result of the day by winning at Perpignan (13th).
Week ending Monday 30th September 2002 While top-ranked Gloucester were held to a draw at Bath (33rd), the three teams beneath them all lost their games on the road. Leicester went down narrowly at Bristol (+3 to 19th), in-form Northampton (-3 to 7th) were upset by Saracens while an understrength Munster found Ulster (+1 to 15th) too hot to handle in the Celtic League. Elsewhere in England, Newcastle (+2 to 23rd) inflicted the first defeat of the season on Leeds Tykes (25th).
In the Celtic League, Connacht (22nd) remain the only undefeated side after their win at Bridgend. Edinburgh (+4 to 16th) made it 4 wins out of 5 with a thumping 38-14 victory over Llanelli while the Borders managed their first win after beating reigning champions Leinster.
In France, Begles-Bordeaux (36th) upset previously unbeaten Stade Francais (-3 to 14th). Champions Biarritz are still the top-ranked French outfit (5th) after a home win over Bourgoin while Toulouse stay 6th after a draw at lowly Pau (38th) and Agen remain 8th after their narrow win at Beziers.
Week ending Monday 23rd September 2002 Some resounding wins in the Zurich Premiership at the weekend. Gloucester (1st) hammered Bristol (-3 to 22nd), Leicester (2nd) destroyed Newcastle (-5 to 25th), Northampton Saints (+2 to 4th) cruised past Bath (-1 to 32nd) while Wasps (10th) romped home against Saracens (-2 to 36th).
In the Celtic League, Munster (3rd), Glasgow (+5 to 21st) and the season’s surprise package Connacht (+6 to 23rd) are the only 3 teams with a 100% record after 4 rounds. The Irish ‘development’ province began the season way back in 37th. Elsewhere, Edinburgh move into the top twenty after scoring 60 points at lowly Caerphilly while Ulster bounced back well from last week’s heavy defeat in Swansea to beat Neath.
In France, the top of the table clash saw Stade Francais (11th) overcome reigning champions Biarritz (-2 to 7th) while Toulouse (6th) and Agen (8th) each climb a place after home wins.
Week ending Monday 16th September 2002 After more than a year in pole position, Leicester’s defeat at Sale and Gloucester’s win at Newcastle sees the Tigers displaced by the Cherry and Whites at the top of the EuroTable. There was yet another win for Leeds (+4 to 23rd) at lowly Quins (38th) which leaves them sitting pretty at the top of the Zurich Premiership.
In the Celtic League, Connacht (+6 to 29th) maintained their 100% record by upsetting Leinster (-4 to 8th) in Dublin. Following two defeats in their opening matches, Swansea climb 4 places to 32nd after hammering Ulster (17th). Glasgow (+4 to 26th) continued their fine run by winning at Newport.
Across the Channel, Stade Francais (12th) are the only side with 3 wins out of 3. Meanwhile Narbonne (+5 to 24th) surprised Perpignan (-3 to 14th) and Montferrand (18th) lost again at Castres (25th).
Week ending Monday 9th September 2002 After surprising Leicester last week, Leeds demolished London Irish 41-16 on Sunday and leapt 6 places to 27th. There were also big wins for Gloucester (gaining ground on Leicester), Saracens (+3 to 31st), Northampton (8th) and Leicester.
The two big Scottish sides continue to move up the rankings after more Celtic league success: Edinburgh (+3 to 21st) won in Ulster while Glasgow (+6 to 30th) overcame a much-weakened Leinster side. However, the Borders crashed heavily at Bridgend. Munster had a comfortable win over Ebbw Vale and move up 2 places to 3rd.
In France, most of the big guns recovered from their opening day losses : Biarritz’s win at Montferrand was the pick of the day’s results and they climb to 6th. Toulouse and Agen consolidated their places in the Eurotable top ten with home wins over Narbonne and Mont-de-Marsan while. Stade Francais made it two wins out of two and now lie 12th.
Week ending Monday 2nd September 2002 With the rugby season kicking-off last weekend, the Eurotable returns with its ranking of every Premier rugby club/province in Europe. How long will Leicester be able to hang on to their number one spot ?
The Zurich Premiership kicked-off on Friday night with Sale consolidating their 4th place in the Eurotable after a win over Northampton (8th). The shock of the weekend was undoubtedly Leeds (+2 to 33rd) win over champions Leicester who remain in pole position but have Gloucester breathing down their necks.
In France, last year’s champions Biarritz (7th) lost, at newly-promoted Grenoble, while favourites Toulouse (6th) were beaten at Perpignan (+5 to 10th).
Last season’s Irish domination of the Celtic league continued with all four provinces recording wins, the pick being Munster’s victory at Llanelli that lifts them 2 places to 5th. Elsewhere, Edinburgh and Glasgow also started well with wins over Swansea and Cardiff.
Week ending Monday 10th June 2002 The final two matches of surely the longest club rugby season on record were played on Saturday. Gloucester won the Zurich Premiership play-off trophy after a closer than expected encounter with Bristol. As a result, Gloucester finish the season in 2nd while Bristol slipped a place to 14th.
Across the Channel, the Stade de France was the venue for a thrilling French final. After extra time, Biarritz (+1 to 6th) emerged victorious over Agen (9th).
Eurorugby will be back at the end of August when the club season resumes. We hope you’ve enjoyed our coverage throughout the season. Have a good summer.
Week ending Monday 3rd June 2002 It was semi-final weekend in England and France. The Zurich play-offs have been much castigated but they still offer a back door into the Heineken Cup. Bristol (+5 to 13th) are one club who will be grateful for this rule after they defeated Northampton (-2 to 8th). In next week’s final, they will play Gloucester (+3 to 4th) who progressed comfortably at the expense of Sale (-1 to 3rd). The battle for 2nd place is very tight but victory for Gloucester will secure the runner-up spot.
Next Saturday evening’s final of the French ‘Top 16’ will be between Biarritz (7th) who, as expected, proved too strong for Montferrand (19th) and Agen (9th) who shocked favourites Toulouse (-2 to 5th).
Week ending Monday 27th May 2002 To most neutral observers, Leicester were deserved winners of the Heineken Cup after beating Munster 15-9 in Saturday’s final. Having also retained the Zurich Premiership this season, I doubt if any rugby fan would question their Number One ranking. The Neil Back incident was however unfortunate. It wasn’t so much that he knocked the ball out of Stringer’s hands but that he ‘chose’ to do it and then talked about it so calmly afterwards. Sad that professionalism has come to this. All said and done, it shouldn’t take anything away from Leicester’s consecutive double. Munster remain 5th after a disappointing climax to their season.
The weekend’s other final saw Sale just pip Pontypridd for the Parker Pen Shield in a closely fought encounter. Both teams finished the season strongly which isn’t reflected too well in the rankings. Sale move above Toulouse in the rankings although the French side are likely to recapture 2nd place next week while the Welsh Cup winners Pontypridd lie 14th largely as a result of two recent league defeats.
On would have thought that the two European finals should mark the end of a long season but, no, the French and English play-offs continue next week. Rugby players certainly have to earn their money.
Week ending Monday 20th May 2002 After 6 rounds of the French play-offs, 4 teams have qualified for the semi-finals: Toulouse (2nd ) who had already wrapped up their pool before their weekend defeat will take on Agen (9th) who drew at Stade Francais while Montferrand (14th) travel to Biarritz (8th) who defeated Bourgoin.
The Zurich quarter-final play-offs saw Bristol (+5 to 18th) become the first league side to win at Leicester for more than 4 years ! They are joined in the semis by Northampton (6th) who gained revenge on London Irish, Gloucester (7th) who hammered Newcastle and Sale (3rd) who had to fight back to beat Wasps.
In Wales, Pontypridd’s cup final success lifts them 5 places to 13th, just behind Llanelli league champions in 12th.
Finally, congratulations to Arix Viadana (43rd) who won the Italian league title with a 19-12 victory over Calvisano.
Week ending Monday 13th May 2002 Fans of Leeds, Bath and Saracens were saved from a nailbiting finale to the Zurich Premiership by what seems like a disgraceful decision not to promote Rotherham from the First Division. For the record, all three clubs lost their last game. Saracens record of only one win in ten sees them emerge as England’s lowest-ranked club in 37th just below Leeds in 35th. From a low point of 34th this season Northampton now lie 7th, climbing 2 places this week thanks to wins over Bristol and Newcastle.
This season’s Irish Interpros also ended in a bit of a farce with the number of games being reduced mid-season. In the end Leinster (3rd) won the title by beating Connacht (39th) while Ulster (+3 to 16th) upset reigning champions Munster (-2 to 4th).
After 5 wins out of 5 in the French play-offs, Toulouse are up to 2nd in the EuroTable. Montferrand (+3 to 13th) are also through to the semis after beating Perpignan. In the other pool, Biarritz (8th), Agen (10th) and Bourgoin (24th) still have it all to play for in next week’s final round of games.
Llanelli (12th) clinched the Welsh/Scottish league title at Cardiff on Friday evening after Neath (17th) lost at Swansea in midweek. Newport (20th) finished the season with 3 wins but will be kicking themselves after losing 3 on the trot in April.
Week ending Monday 6th May 2002 There were mixed fortunes for the sides at the bottom of the Zurich Premiership: Quins (+4 to 28th) all but secured their Premiership status with a resounding 40-16 win over bottom-placed Leeds (33rd). But Bath (27th) and Saracens (36th) are still in trouble after heavy defeats at Gloucester and Newcastle. In the battle for next season’s Heineken Cup places, Sale (+1 to 6th) won a thrilling encounter at London Irish (-2 to 5th). With the title in the bag, Leicester’s defeat at Bristol doesn’t affect their ranking.
After 4 rounds of the French play-offs, Toulouse (+2 to 3rd) are the only side with a 100% record after their win at Montferrand (-2 to 16th). In the other pool, Biarritz (7th) are the leaders after beating Stade Francais (14th). Agen (10th) are favourites to join them in the semis after crushing Bourgoin.
In the Welsh/Scottish league, the title is still up for grabs after the weekend’s results. Edinburgh (+4 to 25th) surprisingly hammered Llanelli (-2 to 12th) while Neath (+3 to 13th) handed Pontypridd a similar hiding which leaves them top of the league.
Week ending Monday 29th April 2002 After nailbiting semi-finals, the two top-ranked sides will contest the Heineken Cup final in Cardiff on 25th May. Leicester snatched a win over Llanelli (-2 to 10th) in the dying minutes while Munster (+1 to 2nd) overcame Castres (-3 to 21st) in the south of France.
In contrast, the two underdogs made it to the final of the Parker Pen Shield: Sale (+3 to 7th) defeated Gloucester (-2 to 9th) while Pontypridd (+4 to 15th) knocked out London Irish (-1 to 3rd).
At the bottom of the Zurich Premiership, there were defeats for Bath (-3 to 24th), Quins (-2 to 32nd) and Saracens (-1 to 34th), who are now the lowest ranked English side. Favourites for the drop are still Leeds (31st) who didn’t play at the weekend.
In Wales, Newport slip to 23rd after their 4th successive defeat, this time at the hands of Cardiff (18th).
Week ending Monday 22nd April 2002 With Munster and Leinster drawing 6-6 in the Irish Interpros, London Irish move above them into 2nd place thanks to their thumping win in the Powergen Cup final over Northampton. The Saints meanwhile slip to 9th. After 2 heavy defeats on the road, Gloucester recorded an important league win 41-40 at Bristol and climb 2 places to 7th.
Plenty of shocks in Wales with title-chasing Newport (-8 to 22nd) suffering at home to Neath and Swansea (+1 to 34th). Neath also crushed Ebbw Vale and as a result shoot up 6 places to 16th. Cardiff drop to 20th after losing heavily at Edinburgh. Llanelli remain the top-placed Welsh side in 8th after wins over Pontypridd and Glasgow.
In the French play-offs, Toulouse (5th) made it three wins out of three with a comfortable victory over Montferrand (13th) while Bourgoin (+2 to 23rd) and Beziers (+3 to 25th) surprisingly defeated Agen (11th) and Perpignan (15th) respectively.
In Italy, two wins for Arix Viadana helped them overtake Treviso at the top of the league and sees them up a place to 43rd.
Week ending Monday 15th April 2002 Leicester Tigers wrapped up the Zurich Premiership title with a few weeks to spare by beating Newcastle 20-12. Northampton (+3 to 7th) hammered Gloucester (-4 to 9th) by 58-21 and move above the west-country outfit. At the other end of the table, the relegation battle continues. Wasps two wins this week sees them move back into the top twenty, up 6 places to 15th. Meanwhile, Quins (30th) draw at London Irish (4th) leaves them one place above their main rivals for the drop Leeds (31st) who lost at Bath.
In France, the top two sides Toulouse (5th) and Biarritz (6th) each move up a place after useful wins over Perpignan and Bourgoin. Agen provided the upset of the weekend with a surprisingly facile win over Stade Francais. As a result, they climb to 11th, above the Parisians who slip 4 places to 13th.
In the Welsh Principality Cup semi-finals, Llanelli (8th) as expected overcame Ebbw Vale but Pontypridd (+5 to 18th) will be their opponents in the final after upsetting Cardiff (17th) in the other tie.
Finally in Italy, leaders Padova lost at Calvisano, allowing reigning champions Treviso to take over at the top.
Week ending Monday 8th April 2002 Next weekly round-up on Monday 15th April Week ending Monday 1st April 2002 It's tight at the bottom of the Zurich Premiership. Wasps win over top-ranked Leicester lifts them out of trouble and helps them climb 7 places in the EuroTable to 21st. However, Quins (32nd) defeat at Bristol leaves them in the dreaded relegation position. Bath (18th) aren't entirely out of trouble and slipped to another defeat at the hands of Northampton whose recent good form sees them move into the top ten.
In the French Championship play-offs, Bourgoin shoot up 6 places to 26th after a shock win in Paris over Stade Francais (-2 to 9th). Toulouse (6th) and Biarritz (7th) both won while the clash of the day saw Montferrand (+4 to 11th) win and leapfrog their opponents Perpignan (-2 to 13th).
The Welsh Cup quarter-finals went largely according to form although Cardiff (16th) over league leaders Newport (15th) was a bit of a surprise.
Finally, in Italy Gran Rugby Parma (50th) upset champions Treviso (42nd).
Week ending Monday 25th March 2002 Next weekly round-up on Monday 1st April Week ending Monday 18th March 2002 London Irish are arguably the surprise team of the season – pushing Gloucester for the runner-up spot in the Zurich Premiership, in the Powergen Cup final and in the semis of the Parker Pen Shield. Their win at the weekend over Bristol and Gloucester’s defeat at Leicester helped the Irish to move above Gloucester into 4th place in the EuroTable. Elsewhere in England, Harlequins eased their relegation worries with a vital win over Northampton but remain in 31st.
In the Welsh/Scottish league, Neath’s win in Glasgow sees them move into the top twenty. The two top Welsh sides Llanelli and Newport each won but against weak opposition and find themselves overtaken by French sides.
The last round of games in the French league saw Montferrand (15th) and Bourgoin (32nd) take the final play-off places with victories over Narbonne and Begles. The other qualifiers are Toulouse (6th), Stade (7th), Biarritz (8th), Perpignan (11th), Agen (12th) and Beziers (21st). The biggest name to miss out is Castres who owe their high ranking (18th) to their Heineken Cup success – they play Munster in the semi-final.
Week ending Monday 11th March 2002 The English Powergen Cup final on 20th April will see Northampton take on London Irish. The Saints (+5 to 15th) destroyed Newcastle (21st) while the Irish (6th) scraped home against Quins (31st). Nigel Melville’s first game in charge at Gloucester sees them move up a place to 4th after hammering Sale who slip to 10th.
In the Welsh/Scottish league, Edinburgh (+4 to 30th) move above Glasgow (-2 to 35th) after a fine win at Swansea while their Scottish rivals suffered heavily (5-55) at the hands of Newport (+2 to 12th).
Across the Channel, France’s elite clubs are battling it out for the play-off places. Montferrand and Castres are two clubs whose league form has dipped well below that of their performances in Europe this season – defeats at the weekend mean that they each fall 4 places to 16th and 17th while their opponents Perpignan (13th) and Agen (14th) qualify for the play-offs. Meanwhile, the two big guns Toulouse (+1 to 5th) and Stade Francais (+3 to 7th) have each recently returned to form and qualified for the play-offs along with Biarritz (9th) and Beziers (20th).
Week ending Monday 4th March 2002 Next weekly round-up on Monday 11th March Week ending Monday 25th February 2002 After scaling the heights at Twickenham last weekend in front of 75,000 people, England’s internationals were back to the grind of the Zurich Premiership this weekend with crowds of around 5,000. J.Wilkinson’s Newcastle fall 4 places to 22nd after losing at Bristol who move up to 24th. P.Vickery’s Gloucester side stay 5th after their win at W.Greenwood’s Quins who drop to 30th. Finally, a great try from J.Robinson helped Sale (+5 to 7th) overcome M.Tindall’s Bath side (-3 to 9th).
Round 7 of the Welsh Cup produced two upsets: Pontypool of Div. One knocked out Swansea (35th) who are having a terrible season and Ebbw Vale (37th) progressed to the quarter-finals at the expense of Neath (23rd).
In France, Agen (+4 to 16th) put the disappointment of their European ban behind them to win at Montferrand (-2 to 12th). Beziers (17th) come into the top twenty after winning at Montauban while Bourgoin (32nd) crushed Pau (18th). Finally, Heineken Cup semi-finalists Castres (13th) continued their poor league form by slipping up at home to Begles (39th).Week ending Monday 18th February 2002 Next weekly round-up on Monday 25th February Week ending Monday 11th February 2002 Plenty of league action this weekend in between the Six Nations. The match of the day, on paper at least, saw Gloucester (+2 to 5th) beat London Irish (-1 to 7th) and leapfrog them in the table. Eurotable leaders Leicester had a potentially tricky tie at Saracens but simply hammered their opponents 48-7. Sale recorded a fine win at Northampton and climb to 12th while Wasps are now 24th after a good win over Bristol.
In France, wins for Stade Francais over Biarritz and La Rochelle sees them move up to 13th. Beziers are now 23rd after destroying Colomiers 49-10.
Swansea (32nd) got back to winning ways at Caerphilly. The Scottish clubs continue to disappoint with Glasgow (31st) going down at Pontypridd and Edinburgh (33rd) drawing at home to Newport, who fall 3 places to 15th.Week ending Monday 28th January 2002 Quarter-final weekend in Europe produced its fair share of surprises. Only one team had previously won away from home in the last eight of the Heineken Cup. In Paris on Saturday, Munster (+1 to 2nd) added to that list by beating Stade Francais (-4 to 15th). Llanelli (+4 to 10th) managed it too by seeing off Bath (-4 to 9th) at the Rec. In the all-French clash, Castres (+2 to 8th) emerged the victors after a nailbiting finish against Montferrand (-2 to 11th). But, the firm favourites for this year’s trophy must be reigning champs Leicester who comfortably saw off the challenge of second-placed Leinster (-1 to 3rd).
Granted, the Parker Pen Shield is a notch or two below the main competition, but the added carrot of a place in next season’s Cup has given it added interest. By hammering Pau in France, London Irish enter into unchartered waters in the Eurotable in 5th place, one place above Gloucester who progressed to the semis by beating Ebbw Vale. Sale (14th) narrowly defeated Bristol (24th) but upset of the round goes to Pontypridd (+7 to 29th) who knocked out Saracens (-3 to 20th) away from home.
In the Zurich Premiership, Wasps (27th) and Northampton (16th) each won away, confirming they’re on the road to recovery. Week ending Monday 21st January 2002 Such is their record over the past two seasons that Leicester can afford to lose two games on the trot and still retain their number one spot. But another failure at home to Leinster next Sunday might change that. As they did last year, it was Harlequins (way down in 24th), who knocked the Tigers out of the Powergen Cup.
The other semi-finalists will be Northampton (+6 to 18th) who continued their fine run under their new Kiwi coach with a good win over Saracens, Newcastle (+4 to 19th) who won at Leeds and high-flying London Irish (+4 to 8th, their highest-ever placing) who knocked out Gloucester.
The big clash in Wales saw Newport (+1 to 12th) outgun Llanelli (-3 to 14th) who couldn’t match their heroics of the previous week against Leicester.
In France, Toulouse consolidated their 4th place with a 21-10 home win over Stade Francais (11th). Pau (+2 to 16th) produced a shock with a 19-15 victory at Montferrand (-2 to 9th) while Bourgoin (33nd) overcame Heineken Cup quarter-finalists Castres (10th).Week ending Monday 14th January 2002 Who would have predicted it ? The top three teams in the Eurotable (with only 4 defeats between them all season) each lost their final group game in the Heineken Cup. In fairness, they are all safely through to the quarter-finals but as a result of their defeats, most of the chasing pack gained ground: Llanelli (11th) defeated top-ranked Leicester, Toulouse (4th) hammered a previously unbeaten Leinster side while Castres (9th) outgunned Munster.
Despite their poor league form, Bath were the only side with a 100% record in the pool stage and move up 2 places to 6th after beating Biarritz (-4 to 8th. Newport (+4 to 13th) and Ulster (+3 to 19th) missed out on qualification but finished in style, each scoring over 50 points. One remarkable stat from the last round - apart from Perpignan’s win in Italy over Calvisano, all other ties were won by the home team !
And finally, a couple of noteworthy performances in the Shield : Arix Viadana (45th) upset Neath (-3 to 17th) while Ebbw Vale (40th) destroyed Agen (20th).Week ending Monday 7th January 2002 After a lengthy break, European action returned this weekend with round five of the Heineken Cup and Pen Parker Shield. Credit must go to Perpignan and Wasps who, despite having no chance of progressing in the competition, found enough motivation to win their ties. The French side move up 3 places to 13th after hammering Llanelli (-3 to 12th) who may now miss out on qualification. A similar fate may await Ulster (-2 to 22nd) who went down 36-32 to Wasps (+2 to 27th).
Cardiff also deserve praise as they move back into the top twenty after beating Montferrand (-3 to 7th). They now have an outside chance of qualifying for the quarters.
Munster (3rd) and Castres (9th) each won comfortably to set up next weekend’s showdown in France. Both teams are through to the next stage but a home berth is at stake. Toulouse and Biarritz each move up 2 places to 4th and 5th after good home wins but they remain out of contention.
In the Shield, the English clubs continue to dominate although Neath provided some much needed good news in Wales with an exciting 33-29 win over Bristol that lifts them 3 places to 14th.Week ending Monday 31st December 2001 2001 ends with Leicester Tigers showing no sign of giving up the Number One spot. They comfortably saw off the challenge of Sale (-4 to 18th) winning by 33-10. Gloucester are England's second ranked side, up 3 places to 5th after a narrow win over Newcastle. The West countrymen have never been ranked higher. Saracens high scoring victory over Quins propels them 7 places to 15th although this also reflects the rather congested nature of this part of the EuroTable.
Two sides who will want to forget 2001 are Wasps (29th) and Northampton (25th). Both at least ended the year in style winning against Leeds and London Irish respectively.
In Wales, Ebbw Vale (+1 to 42nd) predictably lost at Newport but then upset Cardiff (22nd). Neath (+2 to 17th) and Newport (+3 to 13th) each recorded two wins during the week. Llanelli however remain the top-ranked Welsh outfit in 9th despite a heavy defeat at Swansea.Week ending Monday 24th December 2001 The big clash in the French Elite saw Toulouse (+2 to 6th) win at previously undefeated Biarritz who still hang on to 5th spot. Good wins for Perpignan and Beziers help them climb into the top twenty.
In Wales, Caerphilly's first league win of the season lifts them 2 places to 48th while their opponents Glasgow slip to 28th. Their Scottish compatriots Edinburgh (35th) figured much better, running up 50 points against Swansea. The All Whites were as high as 7th at the start of the season but now lie in 29th !
Only 2 games in the Zurich Premiership managed to beat the weather. Leicester notched up yet another win away at Quins who slip out of the top twenty while London Irish move up to 9th after defeating Saracens. Week ending Monday 17th December 2001 A pulsating Celtic League final at Lansdowne Road saw Leinster overcome Munster and move above their Irish rivals to 2nd place in the EuroTable. Leinster last lost a game in January 2000 !
In England, the big guns joined the Powergen Cup at the 6th round stage. No major upsets but three surprising away victories: London Irish enter the top ten for the first time ever after beating Bath. Harlequins move up 6 places to 17th with a win over Sale (-3 to 14th) while Gloucester (+3 to 6th) become England's second-ranked side after their second string knocked out Bristol,who fall out of the top twenty.
In France, a few games fell foul of the weather, but Beziers (+4 to 23rd) managed to win a thriller at Toulouse (-2 to 8th) by 33-22. Narbonne (+3 to 27th) continued their good form with a big win over Castres (-3 to 13th).
In Wales, the shock of the weekend came on Friday night when lowly Pontypridd (+2 to 39th) beat Swansea (-4 to 25th) at St Helen's.
Week ending Monday 10th December 2001 In the Celtic League semi-finals, Munster (2nd) and Leinster (3rd) each maintained their impressive records this season (one defeat between them !) to reach next week's inaugural final. Despite losing to Munster, Ulster stay in 18th thanks to their narrow defeat (9-15), the quality of the opposition and the stage of the competition (see Behind the Rankings for more info).
In England, the battle of the West country saw Bath (7th) narrowly overcome Gloucester (9th). Newcastle continue to blow hot and cold (take a look at the graph of their ranking over the season !), moving up 5 places to 15th this week after beating Saracens at Vicarage Road. Further down the EuroTable, Northampton (29th) swap places with Wasps (31st) after a 23-10 win over the Londoners.
In France, the upset of the weekend came at Narbonne (+2 to 30th) edged out Montferrand (4th) by a point, 24-23. Biarritz gained ground in 5th with a comfortable 37-10 victory over Montauban.
Finally, Llanelli (+2 to 8th) strengthened their position as the in-form side in Wales with a narrow 17-13 win over Newport. Week ending Monday 3rd December 2001 The inaugural Celtic league continues to be dominated by the Irish. Only Glasgow (+3 to 24th) prevented all 4 provinces making it to the semis with a fine away win over Connacht (35th). Ulster saw off Neath and duly move up 5 places to 18th while the Welsh All Blacks slip to 15th.
In England, Northampton (31st) finally managed a league win, over Newcastle who drop to 20th. Wasps (29th) too showed a return to form with a 23-10 victory over Bath who fall to 8th. Meanwhile, Saracens (+9 to 17th) were the week's biggest climbers after they won at Bristol.
Across the channel, Biarritz and Toulouse had fine away wins which lifts them to 5th and 6th position. But the pick of the performances was Colomiers' (30th) defeat of Stade Francais (12th). Meanwhile, newly-promoted side Montauban enter the rankings this week in 33rd.
And finally spare a thought for newly-promoted poor Italian side Identicar Bologna who've been given a provisional ranking of 4.00 after losing all their games so far this season !Week ending Monday 26th November 2001 Another round of the Zurich Premiership at the weekend produced some high-scoring games: London Irish scored the most, a half-century at Saracens which lifts the Irish up 5 places to 12th, their highest ever ranking. The crushing defeat sees Sarries slide 8 places to 26th.
Sale (+2 to 17th) ran up 47 points at Leeds (33rd) while Gloucester maintained their impressive home record by thumping Wasps 43-13. The West countrymen move up 3 places to 11th while the Londoners fall 2 places to 30th, just a few places above Northampton who also lost at the weekend.
Bath (5th) defied their league placing but partly justified their high EuroTable ranking by defeating Newcastle (-5 to 16th). Of course, Bath's ranking owes much to their unblemished European record this season.
Next weekend sees the return to action of all Europe's Premier clubs with the highlight arguably being the Celtic League quarter-finals. Week ending Monday 19th November 2001 Another quiet weekend for all Europe's top clubs with the exception of the English Premiership teams who were forced yet again to play without their international players.
Leicester, who suffered at the hands of Leeds last week, made amends on Saturday with an excellent 37-3 away win at Sale who fall 3 places to 19th. After least week's heroics against the champions, Leeds (32nd) came back down to earth with a thumping 64-14 defeat at lowly Wasps (+2 to 28th).
How the mighty have fallen ! Heineken Cup winners in 2000, Northampton's 48-12 hammering at London Irish was their 7th loss in 9 games - a record that leaves them the lowest ranked English club in 33rd.
Newcastle's narrow victory over Gloucester was their 5th straight win in the league and helps them to 11th place in the EuroTable.
The Irish Interpros were to have taken place next weekend but the IRFU has decided to give its players a well-earned rest. There's no such luck for players in the Zurich Premiership ! Week ending Monday 12th November 2001 With all the home nations playing this weekend, the only Premier clubs in action were the English ones.
The shock of the day undoubtedly came at Leeds (+3 to 32nd) with last year's Premiership II champions overcoming Leicester by 37-16. It must be said that Leicester were without 7 internationals but, then again, they've been able to cope in the past with such a handicap. The Tigers remain in 1st place but all the clubs beneath them have closed the gap.
Bristol (-4 to 19th) too were without key players, namely their Argentinian half-backs and were crushed 51-17 at Gloucester (+3 to 11th).
Elsewhere Bath (5th) narrowly defeated London Irish (-2 to 18th) while Saracens last-minute win over Sale helps them leapfrog the Manchester side. Sarries are now 15th, one place above Sale. Wasps home defeat at the hands of Newcastle sees them fall yet again, this time 2 places to 30th, having begun the season in 4th !
With another series of international games next weekend, it's again just the Zurich Premiership teams who will be in action.Week ending Monday 5th November 2001 Home advantage proved to be a key factor in this weekend's Heineken Cup games. Only Leinster (3rd) won away from home as they extended their winning run to 11 games. Following heavy away defeats two weekends ago, a number of teams exacted revenge on their opponents back on home soil: Ulster (+5 to 24th) upset Stade Francais (10th) as did Glasgow (+3 to 27th) over Cardiff (-3 to 21st) and Newcastle (+8 to 17th) over Toulouse (-3 to 8th). Meanwhile, after hard-fought wins away from home two weekends ago, the top-ranked teams Leicester, Munster and Montferrand all crushed their hapless opponents Perpignan (25th), Bridgend (41st) and 2000 champions Northampton who drop to 30th.
Treviso's 32-17 win over Wasps was the first by an Italian side in the Heineken Cup this season and lifts them to 39th.
Finally, Leeds who were newly-promoted to the Zurich Premiership this season enter the EuroTable in 35th with a provisional ranking after playing 10 games.
Week ending Sunday 28th October 2001 A last-gasp win by Leicester in Perpignan denied the French a clean sweep in the 4 Anglo-French ties in this weekend’s Heineken Cup. Castres (+7 to 11th) and Montferrand (remain 4th) each claimed victory in England while Toulouse (+1 to 5th) had a comfortable 33-13 home win over Newcastle (down to 25th).
It was a day to forget in Scotland as Edinburgh (34th) were hammered at home by Bath, who are now 6th thanks almost entirely to their excellent form in Europe, and Glasgow (30th) who were on the wrong end of a 46-7 drubbing in Cardiff (+6 to 16th). Of the other Welsh sides in the Heineken Cup, Bridgend and Newport battled hard but lost out to Munster and Leinster but Swansea (+4 to 21st) produced a great performance to narrowly defeat Biarritz (-2 to 7th).
The Irish provinces finally lost their 100% record with Ulster (29th) well beaten in Paris by Stade Francais (9th) and Connacht (33rd) being pipped by Sale who move into unchartered territory in 13th place.
In the Pen Parker Shield, the biggest upset was Overmach Parma’s 41-29 win over Beziers who drop right out of the top twenty. Elsewhere, some cricket scores in the Pen Parker Shield by Gloucester (98-14) and Saracens (113-3) sees each of them move up a place to 18th and 19th respectively.
Week ending Sunday 21st October 2001 The Irish side that upset England on Saturday was made up almost entirely of Munster and Leinster players, reflecting the two provinces high EuroTable ranking. Meanwhile, the side above them, Leicester proved what incredible strength in depth they have by hammering Saracens 36-10 without their English contingent. Sarries slip to 20th as a result. Elsewhere in England, London Irish (16th) and Sale (17th) each achieve their highest-ever ranking after fine wins over Gloucester and Northampton.
In Wales, Cardiff slip out of the top twenty for the first time after losing to Llanelli (+1 to 8th) while Newport's win over Swansea makes them the highest-ranked Welsh side in 7th.
Across the Channel, the team of the week was certainly Toulouse (+4 to 6th) after wins over Stade in Paris and at home to La Rochelle. Lowly-ranked Begles-Bordeaux (38th) surprised Castres (18th) with a
39-25 victory.
Finally, in Italy champions Benetton Treviso slip 3 places to 41st after a shock defeat at Padova.Week ending Monday 15th October 2001 Although Ireland were playing Wales in the Six Nations (36-6), there was plenty of club action in England, France and Italy. In the Zurich Premiership, Gloucester shoot up 8 places to 13th after an impressive 33-7 win over Quins who slip to 14th. Saracens drop out of the top ten after losing to newly-promoted Leeds (will be ranked after 10 games) while Wasps drop right out of the top twenty - the first time in almost a year - after their home defeat to London Irish (+6 to 23rd).
In the French Elite, the two big guns Stade (+1 to 7th) and Toulouse (+1 to 10th) recorded important away wins after indifferent starts to the season. Montferrand (4th) and Biarritz (5th), however, remain above them in the ranking after comfortable wins over Begles and Dax.
In Italy, Benetton Treviso 61-5 crushing win over Roma lifts moves them up one place to 38th.Week ending Monday 8th October 2001 Week 2 in Europe provided another mixed day for the English clubs. Bath move up to 6th after hammering Swansea who are in freefall, slipping to 23rd after beginning the season in 7th. Northampton are back in the top twenty after a convincing win over Glasgow. However, Wasps and Newcastle both suffered at the hands of the Irish whose provinces extended their 100% record in Europe this season. Ulster move up 3 places to 28th after their win against Wasps who fall to 20th.
With Swansea suffering at Bath and Cardiff (15th) taking a hammering at Montferrand (+1 to 4th), it was left to Llanelli (+3 to 9th) and Newport (+6 to 7th) to salvage Welsh pride. Newport's win over Toulouse helped them leapfrog their opponents who drop to 11th.
In Italy, Arix Viadana provided some cheer with a surprise win over Bourgoin. This lifts them 3 places to 42nd.
Next week sees a return domestic league action.Week ending Monday 1st October 2001 Round One of the Heineken Cup and Pen Parker Shield provided plenty of surprises. Biggest of all was Bath with 4 defeats in their 4 league games winning at Biarritz. The English side move back into the top ten. But it was a mixed day for the English sides with Wasps (down 5 to 16th) losing to Stade Francais (up 4 to 6th) and Newcastle (24th) also suffering a home defeat at the hands of Newport (13th). In another Anglo-Welsh clash, Cardiff (14th) bounced back from their Celtic League elimination to beat Northampton (25th). Finally, Llanelli are a bit unlucky to drop to 12th after pushing top-ranked Leicester so close at Welford Road.
The Irish Provinces continued where they left off in the much-maligned Celtic League with 4 wins out of 4. Leinster move up to 3rd in the Eurotable thanks to a thumping win over Toulouse (-2 to 7th) while Ulster and Connacht each climbed a couple of places to 31st and 35th respectively.
Round Two of European competition begins on Friday night ...Week ending Monday 24th September 2001 In the French Elite, Biarritz continued their storming start to the season with a resounding 40-15 win over La Rochelle. They move up 2 places to 3rd while Montferrand's slip-up at Pau sees them drop to 6th. Bourgoin have also begun the season in fine form and a good win at Castres lifts them to 12th spot.
In England, Leicester maintain the gap at the top of the Eurotable after hammering Bath who have lost all four league games and now lie in 14th after starting the season in 5th. Quins big win over Wasps moves them into the top ten.
In the Welsh/Scottish league, Cardiff's win over Swansea helped them leapfrog their opponents. The Blue and Blacks move up to 15th while the All Whites drop to 19th.Week ending Monday 17th September 2001 An excellent week for the Irish provinces in the Celtic League saw them win all 8 ties against Welsh clubs and all 4 qualify for the quarter-finals. Leinster move up 5 places to 4th after starting the season in 20th. Meanwhile, Cardiff's poor start continued and they slip 6 places to 20th after a 51-10 hammering against Munster.
In the Zurich Premiership, Sale's win at Wasps lifts them 5 places to 24th while the Londoners fall to 7th. Saracen's last-minute win against Bath sees them move back into the top twenty.
In France, newcomers Montauban upset Stade Francais (9th) but need to play more games before they receive a provisional Eurotable ranking. Meanwhile, the clash of the day saw Biarritz (+5 to 5th) overcome reigning champions Toulouse (-3 to 6th). Montferrand's win over Castres lifts them to 3rd place.Week ending Monday 10th September 2001 With Neath (-3 to 11th) surprisingly losing at Connacht (41st), Leinster remain the only side in the Celtic League with a 100% record after scoring 51 points at Bridgend. They move up 2 places to 9th. Llanelli, whose only defeat this season was to Leinster, are now the top-ranked Welsh side in 6th spot after a win at Pontypridd.
The top clash in the Zurich Premiership saw Leicester show why they are the No.1 side by hammering 4th placed Wasps 45-15. Meanwhile, fine wins for Northampton and Bristol help them climb 5 and 7 places to 18th and 26th respectively.
In France, Beziers (+4 to 15th) got their season off to a great start by defeating the champions Toulouse (3rd). Last season's runners-up Montferrand (5th) were also beaten at Bourgoin who move up 4 places to 22nd. Finally, in Italy Arix Viadana upset champions Benetton Treviso.Week ending Monday 3rd September 2001 Plenty of surprises on day one of the Zurich Premiership. Leeds, who will be given a provisional Eurotable ranking after 10 games, upset Bath who drop 2 places to 6th while Newcastle's defeat of champions Leicester helps them climb 2 places to 16th. Wasps win over Saracens sees them move up to 4th.
In the Celtic League, Leinster and Neath maintained their 100% records and duly climb to 11th and 8th respectively. However, it was a bad week for Ulster who lost two matches and slip 5 places to 39th.
After a 50-15 hammering at Bridgend, Glasgow Rugby engineered an amazing turnaround two days later with a crushing 59-14 win over Pontypridd. Week ending Monday 27th August 2001 Round 2 of the Celtic League produced more shocks with pre-tournament favourites Swansea and Cardiff both defeated yet again. They drop to 8th and 16th respectively. Meanwhile Cardiff's opponents Neath climb 3 places to 11th.
Irish side Leinster made it two out of two with a fine win at Llanelli. They move up 2 places to 15th while the Scarlets slip 3 to 12th.
This week should see plenty of changes in the ranking with two rounds of the Celtic League to be played and the start of the Zurich Premiership.
Week ending Monday 20th August 2001 New season, new league. The Celtic League finally got underway and week one saw a clean sweep for the Irish provinces. Ulster (35th) and Connacht (41st) both defied their low rankings to defeat the two highly-rated, but understrength, Welsh sides Swansea (down 3 places to 7th) and Cardiff (-4 to 13th).
Pontypridd were the week's biggest climbers, up 4 places to 32nd after a 27-19 win at Bridgend.Week ending Monday 11th June 2001 Toulouse's win in the French Championship final lifted them 4 places to finish the season in 3rd place. Runners-up Montferrand dropped 2 places to 5th.
The Eurotable returns on 18th August with the launch of the Celtic League. The Zurich Premiership re-starts on 1st September while the French Championship begins on 7th September. Week ending Monday 4th June 2001 Saturday was semi-final day in France with the two favorites narrowly making it through to the final on Saturday 9th June at the Stade de France. Montferrand (3rd in the Eurotable) defeated Biarritz (13th) by 16-9 while Toulouse (7th) overcame Castres (11th) by 32-21.
Benetton Treviso (33rd) won this season's Italian Serie A title by beating Fly Flot Calvisano 33-13 in the final.
Week ending Monday 28th May 2001 The French Championship quarter-finals produced just one shock with Biarritz (12th) knocking out Stade Francais (down 4 to 7th) in Paris. Elsewhere, the favourites used their home advantage to progress to the semi-finals: Montferrand (up 2 places to 3rd), Toulouse (8th) and Castres (9th).
In Italy, the Championship play-offs had reached the semi-final stage. Benetton Treviso (33rd) and Fly Flot Calvisano (44th). Viadana and last year’s champions RDS Roma are the teams to miss out on this season’s final.
Week ending Monday 21st May 2001 Leicester stretched their lead at the top of the Eurotable after yet another triumph. Their win over Stade Francais in the Heineken Cup final was their 15th in their last 16 games.
Stade remain in 3rd and can still look forward to winning the French Championship this season.
Harlequins win over Narbonne in the European Shield lifted them 4 places to 12th.
In the French Championship relegation play-off, a victory for Pau (25th) condemned Grenoble (41st) to the 2nd division.Week ending Monday 14th May 2001 After winning the Welsh Cup final by 13-8, Newport (+5 to 13th) leapfrogged Neath (-2 to 14th) in the rankings.
The other final taking place at the weekend confirmed Leicester as the one-and-only Zurich Premiership champions after winning the play-offs and the league itself. As a result, all clubs below them saw their ratings slip: their vanquished opponents Bath, 6th with a rating of 78%, remain the second highest ranked English side.
In France, Agen's 36-19 win over Beziers saw them grab the last quarter-final spot at their opponent's expense. In the rankings, Agen move up 5 places to 21st while Beziers slip 6 places to 22nd.Week ending Monday 7th May 2001 With each French club playing two games this week, there was plenty of movement in the rankings. The biggest climbers were Castres (+3 to 8th), Biarritz (+7 to 13th) and Beziers (+8 to 16th) who each won both matches. Meanwhile, Agen crashed 12 places to 26th after a crushing defeat at Castres and another loss at Bourgoin.
In England, it was semi-final stage in the Zurich Premiership play-offs. Leicester (1st) continued their fine run with victory over Northampton (19th) while Bath (+2 to 3rd) swapped places with Wasps (-4 to 7th) after an exciting win.
In Wales, Swansea clinched the Welsh/Scottish league title after notching up 50 points against Cross Keys and Glasgow.
In the Eurotable, they climbed 2 places to 5th.Week ending Monday 30th April 2001 No surprises in the Zurich Premiership quarter-final play-offs with Wasps (+1 to 3rd), Bath (still 5th) and Northampton (+6 to 18th) joining ‘champions’ Leicester in the semis. Harlequins, who didn’t even make the play-offs, might raise a few eyebrows in 15th place but they have reached both the Tetleys and European Shield cup finals this season.
In France, Beziers (+5 to 24th) shocked Stade Francais who drop a place to 4th. In the weekend’s top clash in the French Championnat, Montferrand (6th) defeated Toulouse (9th).
Llanelli move into the top 10 after a big win at Ebbw Vale while Edinburgh make the top 20 for the first time after crushing Neath.
In Italy, Benetton Treviso (33rd) kept well ahead of their compatriots in the Eurotable with an important win over title hopefuls Arix Viadana (48th).
Week ending Monday 23rd April 2001 This year’s Heineken Cup final will see English champions Leicester take on Stade Francais. In the semis, Leicester (1st) as expected fought off the challenge of Gloucester (down from 16th to 23rd) while Stade (3rd) exacted revenge on Munster (2nd) after last year’s defeat in the competition. In so doing, their rating improved and Munster’s fell but the Irish men remain 2nd in the rankings.
The 2 finalists in the Shield each climbed into the Eurotable top twenty: Harlequins up 8 places to 15th, one place above the team they defeated, Newcastle. In the all-French semi, Narbonne surprised Agen (down 2 places to 14th) and climbed 7 places to 17th.
Elsewhere, fine wins for Neath and Llanelli lifted them each 6 places to 12th and 13th respectively.
Week ending Monday 22nd January 2001 After the final round of pool games in the Heineken Cup, the quarter-final line-up includes the top five ranked Eurotable teams plus Biarritz (13th), Pau (20th) and Gloucester (22nd).
Stade Francais leapfrog the top 2 Welsh sides after hammering Swansea in Paris. Toulouse had a fine win over Cardiff which sees them move up to 6th but they still miss out on a Heineken quarter-final spot. Pau remarkably scored the 5th try they needed to qualify in the last minute against Pontypridd and move into the top twenty as a result.
Week ending Monday 15th January 2001 After a two-month break, the European Cup and Shield returned this week. Munster consolidated their position as Europe's side by beating Newport who slip to 16th. Welsh club, Cardiff move above Swansea who lost at Wasps (+3 to 12th). Cardiff easily overcame 1999 champions Ulster who fall to 40th.
Bath (+5 to 6th) and Northampton (+6 to 14th) climb the most number of places after recording wins over French sides Castres and Biarritz respectively. Outside the top 20, Saracens (+4 to 22nd) checked their dramatic slide in recent weeks with a fine win over Toulouse.
Week ending Monday 18th December 2000 A fine win for Dax over in-form Colomiers moved them into the top twenty (+4 this week, +10 over the last month) into 17th place. Castres moved up 3 places into 5th after thumping Begles
A 50 point thrashing of Edinburgh saw Newport move up 3 places to 12th which makes a climb of 7 places in the last month. Meanwhile, Llanelli after a fine 99/00 season are slipping badly - 4 places this week to 26th (-9 in the last month) after a defeat to lowly Glasgow (46th).
Week ending Monday 11th December 2000 Colomier's two wins in the French league over Toulouse and La Rochelle saw them climb 4 places to 6th. Biarritz (9th) also moved up 4 places after 2 victories. Meanwhile, Toulouse slipped 3 places to 7th after losing both matches this week. This allowed Swansea (2 wins) and Cardiff (1 win and a shock defeat in Edinburgh) to move up to 4th and 5th respectively.
This week sees newly-promoted French side Beziers enter the Eurotable in 27th with a provisional rating of 65%.
Leicester (3rd) remain the only English side in the top ten while France has 6 clubs ranked among the first ten.
Week ending Monday 4th December 2000 Castres shock win over Stade Francais enabled them to climb into the top ten (+3 to 8th). Stade stay 2nd but their rating drops to 92%. Montferrand find themselves just outside the top ten in 11th after a high-scoring 46-35 win over Brive. Meanwhile, Perpignan who are perhaps the surprise package in the top twenty move up to 15th after an easy home win over Mont de Marsan.
In England, Saracens freefall continues (-4 to 14th) after a resounding 10-30 defeat at the hands of Northampton who come back into the top twenty (19th).
Swansea (5th) move above Cardiff (6th) after a comfortable win in Glasgow by 42-22.
Week ending Monday 27th November 2000 The French clubs were back in action this weekend after a few weeks off. The clash of the day saw Stade Francais (2nd place with a 97% rating) overcome Agen (down 2 places to 6th) 27-22. Elsewhere, a fine away win by Montferrand (+3 to 14th) over Narbonne (-5 to 20th) saw them leapfrog their opponents.
In England, Newcastle (+3 to 16th) had a narrow win by 32-27 over higher-ranked Saracens (-3 to 10th). Bath (+3 to 9th) moved back into the top ten with a comfortable victory over Rotherham (47th) by 42-19.
Week ending Monday 20th November 2000 The only Premier club action in Europe this week took place in the Zurich Premiership.
All 6 matches were won by the home side although the only real surprises were Gloucester (up 3 places to 22nd) beating Saracens (down 1 place to 7th) and, after a dreadful run, Northampton (up 2 places to 26th) overcoming Newcastle (down 3 places to 19th).
Elsewhere, Bristol moved up 2 places to 34th while Leicester again made ground on Munster, increasing their rating to 88% with a comfortable 28-13 win over Wasps.
Week ending Monday 13th November 2000 With all nations bar England in action this weekend, the only European Premier club activity was the 5th round of the Tetley's Bitter Cup.
The big movers this week are Newcastle who climb 3 places to 16th after their fine win over Bristol (down 3 to 36th).
Leicester who overcame Gloucester away from home consolidated their position in 3rd place. They also gained some ground on the leaders Munster with a rating of over 86%.
Week ending Monday 6th November 2000 After four weeks of intense European competition, it was back to domestic league and cup this weekend.
Munster are still clinging on to the No.1 spot after drawing against Leinster in the final Interprovincial match of the season but the gap with the rest of the pack has closed further.
Swansea (up 3 places to 8th) continued their fine run of form with an excellent win over Cardiff. Llanelli (16th) and Pontypridd (26th) each climbed 3 places after overcoming Neath (45th) and Bridgend (40th) respectively.
After their fine win in Europe last week, Bath (-2 to 12th ) crashed out of the Tetley's Bitter Cup losing at home to Gloucester (+1 to 23rd).
Week ending Monday 30th October 2000 In spite of their first defeat of the season against Bath on Saturday, Munster retain the No.1 spot. However, all the clubs beneath them that won at the weekend closed the gap.
After a disappointing start to the Heineken Cup, the French clubs hit back with a vengeance in Round 4 winning all 6 games. Stade Francais (still 2nd but now with a rating of 96%), Pau (+1) and Biarritz (+4) all completed the double over their Round 3 opponents while Toulouse, Colomiers and Castres (+1) gained revenge over theirs.
Welsh clubs continue to perform well in the Heineken Cup and this is starting to be reflected in the rankings. Cardiff, with the European performance of the week after doing the 'double' over Saracens climb 3 places to their highest-ever placing of 4th.
Outside the top twenty, Italian side Benetton Treviso climbed to 28th after their 4 straight win in the Shield.
Week ending Monday 23rd October 2000 The third round of European games certainly belonged to the Welsh and Irish with 5 wins for the former and 2 wins and a draw for the latter. Munster consolidated their position at No.1 with a fine 31-9 win over Bath who slipped to 10th. Despite fine performances for Leinster (20th) and Ulster (32nd), they remain well off the pace in the Eurotable.
Swansea, the only club, along with Munster, to have won all 3 European ties continues its dramatic climb (up to 7th) after a crushing win in Italy over L'Aquila. Meanwhile, Cardiff's excellent away win over Saracens sees them lead the Welsh challenge, increasing the gap between themselves in 6th and the teams below them.
Finally, having played 10 games this season, Cross Keys join the Eurotable this week with a provisional ranking. Unfortunately for them, they enter in last place (58th).
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