No1 Seeds
Eurowatch updates for the Last Eight
No1 Seeds
By Jason Harris
January 29 2007
With the pool stages now out of the way, Eurowatch updates with some new teams for the knock-out phase. Glasgow, of course, stay in the Eurowatch frame as they will be next up for Saracens on 1 April, but there are some new teams from France and Wales to keep an eye upon.
No1 Seeds
January 29 2007
With the pool stages now out of the way, Eurowatch updates with some new teams for the knock-out phase. Glasgow, of course, stay in the Eurowatch frame as they will be next up for Saracens on 1 April, but there are some new teams from France and Wales to keep an eye upon.
With the quarter finals of the European Challenge Cup bringning in a new set of permutations and potential opponents, Eurowatch will be keeping tabs ASM Clermont-Auvergne, Newport-Gwent Dragons and Brive, but this latest edition will begin with the Warriors who were at home to Cardiff Blues at Hughenden on Friday night.
With the pitch in a better contidion presumbably than it was when Sarries and the Warriors splashed their way to a 6-all draw a week before, the home side kept up their impressive home record in the Magners League with a 22-3 win over the side from the Welsh capital.
The front row union was on song as prop Kevin Tkatchuk and hooker Fergus Thomson both crossed for tries with Glasgow's third being scored by replacement scrum half Sam Pinder. Colin Gregor, this week at outside half after playing in the centre against Sarries, kicked the remaining points with two conversions and a penalty. All Cardiff had to show for their long trip was a solitary Ben Blair penalty.
The Warriors move above Munster in the table to eighth on 27 points from their 13 matches played, although the reinging Heineken Cup champoins have a game in hand. Glagow will be back at Hughenden for their next game on Friday 16 February when Llanelli Scarlets, one place above them in the table, are the visitors.
Elsewhere in the Magners League the Dragons, who welcome Brive in the ECC quarter finals, put the hapless Border Reivers to the sword as they ran in seven tries in a 48-0 shut-out at Rodney Parade. The scorers were fullback Gareth Wyatt, wing Gareth Chapman, scrum half Alex Walker, no8 Nic Fitisemanu, replacement back rower Richard Fussell and a double from prop Adam Black while fly half Aled Thomas added five conversions and a Drop Goal.
Paul Turner's team is now sixth in the table on 29 points from 11 games played and they too will be back in action on 16 Februray when reigning Magners League champions Ulster visit Rodney Parade in a game that you can see live on BBC2W, Sky Channel 991, kicking off at 7.10pm.
The Dragons' ECC quarter final opponents Brive have been running in the tries from all over the place in Europe, but have been struggling in the Top 14. This week's assignment was a tough away trip to Biarritz and the French champions duly delivered the expected victory by 15 points to 6.
This latest reverse, allied to a big win for Montpellier over Bayonne, means that Brive slip to 13th place on 29 points from 19 games , just one point ahead of Bayonne on the bottom and two behind Narbonne, who were hammered 62-14 at Castres and sit in the first place of safety in the Top 14 table.
Unlike the Guinness and Magners leagues, the Top 14 takes a complete break during the Six Nations and so Brive's next game, a home match against Perpignan, won't be until 24 March.
Finally, we turn to the European Challenge Cup no1 seeds ASM who play Newcastle in the ECC last eight round. The Auvergne club has been compared with Sarries down the years for having a host of stars in their team, but rarely delivering.
Despite winning the Challenge Cup in 1999, ASM have not brought home any domestic success, but this season the side is right up there with the Top 14 front runners, and were sitting in second place going into Round 19, three points behind leaders Stade Francais.
However, this gap was extended to six points over the weekend as the Parisians edged out Toulouse 22-20 in front of 80,000 at Stade de France, while ASM crashed 22-18 at Agen.
In a fractious match dominated by penalties, ASM and France wing Aurelien Rougerie was given his marching orders during the second half for a second yellow card but the Top 14's highest scorer Brock James kept his place at the top of the charts by booting all 18 points by way of six penalty goals. For the record, Pepito Elhorga scored the game's only try for Agen which proved to be the difference between the two teams.
ASM will be on the road again in Round 20, travelling to Narbonne.
With the pitch in a better contidion presumbably than it was when Sarries and the Warriors splashed their way to a 6-all draw a week before, the home side kept up their impressive home record in the Magners League with a 22-3 win over the side from the Welsh capital.
The front row union was on song as prop Kevin Tkatchuk and hooker Fergus Thomson both crossed for tries with Glasgow's third being scored by replacement scrum half Sam Pinder. Colin Gregor, this week at outside half after playing in the centre against Sarries, kicked the remaining points with two conversions and a penalty. All Cardiff had to show for their long trip was a solitary Ben Blair penalty.
The Warriors move above Munster in the table to eighth on 27 points from their 13 matches played, although the reinging Heineken Cup champoins have a game in hand. Glagow will be back at Hughenden for their next game on Friday 16 February when Llanelli Scarlets, one place above them in the table, are the visitors.
Elsewhere in the Magners League the Dragons, who welcome Brive in the ECC quarter finals, put the hapless Border Reivers to the sword as they ran in seven tries in a 48-0 shut-out at Rodney Parade. The scorers were fullback Gareth Wyatt, wing Gareth Chapman, scrum half Alex Walker, no8 Nic Fitisemanu, replacement back rower Richard Fussell and a double from prop Adam Black while fly half Aled Thomas added five conversions and a Drop Goal.
Paul Turner's team is now sixth in the table on 29 points from 11 games played and they too will be back in action on 16 Februray when reigning Magners League champions Ulster visit Rodney Parade in a game that you can see live on BBC2W, Sky Channel 991, kicking off at 7.10pm.
The Dragons' ECC quarter final opponents Brive have been running in the tries from all over the place in Europe, but have been struggling in the Top 14. This week's assignment was a tough away trip to Biarritz and the French champions duly delivered the expected victory by 15 points to 6.
This latest reverse, allied to a big win for Montpellier over Bayonne, means that Brive slip to 13th place on 29 points from 19 games , just one point ahead of Bayonne on the bottom and two behind Narbonne, who were hammered 62-14 at Castres and sit in the first place of safety in the Top 14 table.
Unlike the Guinness and Magners leagues, the Top 14 takes a complete break during the Six Nations and so Brive's next game, a home match against Perpignan, won't be until 24 March.
Finally, we turn to the European Challenge Cup no1 seeds ASM who play Newcastle in the ECC last eight round. The Auvergne club has been compared with Sarries down the years for having a host of stars in their team, but rarely delivering.
Despite winning the Challenge Cup in 1999, ASM have not brought home any domestic success, but this season the side is right up there with the Top 14 front runners, and were sitting in second place going into Round 19, three points behind leaders Stade Francais.
However, this gap was extended to six points over the weekend as the Parisians edged out Toulouse 22-20 in front of 80,000 at Stade de France, while ASM crashed 22-18 at Agen.
In a fractious match dominated by penalties, ASM and France wing Aurelien Rougerie was given his marching orders during the second half for a second yellow card but the Top 14's highest scorer Brock James kept his place at the top of the charts by booting all 18 points by way of six penalty goals. For the record, Pepito Elhorga scored the game's only try for Agen which proved to be the difference between the two teams.
ASM will be on the road again in Round 20, travelling to Narbonne.
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