Leinster, Munster, and Connacht are all in action this weekend as the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup reach the Quarter Finals stage.
Leinster v Glasgow Warriors
Friday, April 11, Aviva Stadium, 8pm
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Straight off the back of a
statement 62-0 win over
Harlequins on Saturday,
Leinster host
Glasgow Warriors for the quarter-final. It certainly won’t be a walk in the park for the Irish giants though, as the
Scots’ six tries were enough to dominate
Leicester Tigers in the Round of 16.
For the hosts,
flanker Josh van der Flier will be hoping to cement his worth to Lions Head Coach
Andy Farrell in a tasty potential one-on-one with Glasgow equivalent
Rory Darge.
Having
played all of Leinster’s Investec Champions Cup outings so far this term as well as all of his country’s appearances in the recent Six Nations, van der Flier has
more than proved himself again and again at the highest level this season.
But, with a
personally impressive Six Nations campaign to his name,
Darge has entered the fray in recent weeks for a potential call-up.
The
Scottish number seven has made a name for himself thanks to his
67 tackles in this season’s Investec Champions Cup and
topping the equivalent charts for his country in the Six Nations. His
high offload and
turnovers won numbers also show how his game lends itself to
both defence and attack.
The pair will be looking to continue their form at the highest level this weekend should they feature and could be
pivotal to their side’s hopes of a semi-final.
UBB v Munster
Saturday, April 11, 3pm
A cornerstone of the Munster pack for almost 16 years,
Stephen Archer is set to make a remarkable 300th appearance in red in Saturday’s Investec Champions Cup quarter-final against Bordeaux-Begles.
Josh Wycherley starts in place of the injured
Jeremy Loughman and
Alex Nankivell returns after a successful appeal of his two-match ban.
Speaking to the press pre-match,
Defence Coach Denis Leamy explained his side’s thoughts heading into their quarter-final.
“The challenge going to Union Bordeaux-Bègles Bordeaux now will be even higher (than Stade Rochelais). It’s one we’re very excited about.
“This group of players has been in difficult places, has won in difficult places. It’s about growing all of those different pieces. The group’s in a confident mood”, he explained.
Connacht v Racing 92
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Connacht Rugby will welcome
French powerhouse Racing 92 in their quarter final clash at
Dexcom Stadium.
Connacht qualified after a head-earned victory over familiar foes
Cardiff Rugby, while
Racing 92 had an equally tough challenge in Perpignan against
USAP to book their place.
Irish international
Mack Hansen was full of confidence in his team after beating Cardiff: “We have a real believe that we can win this. Racing (92) is going to be a huge challenge for us, they are such a high-profile team. Even though we are at home we are probably going to be the underdogs, but you know what we love that. As I said, there is a new passion and pride around this team, we’ve really turned a corner and we’re ready to win this thing.”
Top seeds
Connacht remain undefeated in the
EPCR Challenge Cup this season, while
Racing 92 qualified after finishing fifth in their Investec Champions Cup pool. They will head to
Galway, aiming to claim an Irish victory.
They two sides have only met
once in the competition previously, back in
1998, where
Racing 92 beat
Connacht Rugby at the
Dexcom Stadium, 14-19.