Which Teams to Look Out For in the European Rugby Champions Cup?
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
Leinster Aiming For Champions Cup Redemption
After the heartbreak of losing to Toulouse in the final of the 2023-24 Champions Cup, Leinster look determined to make amends this season, currently leading Pool 2 of the competition with a perfect record of three wins from three and one bonus point.
Former World Cup-winning coach with the Springboks, Jacques Nienaber, has certainly got the Lions roaring this season and they made a statement last weekend when they held off La Rochelle 16-14 at the Stade Marcel Deflandre to keep their perfect record intact. The cornerstone of the side’s success this season has been Nienaber’s pressure defence which was on full display last Sunday when they held firm in the face of Ronan O’Gara’s charges late onslaught.
While defence has been a major factor for Leinster, we cannot overlook the impact of young Sam Prendergast, who notched up 20 points in his Champions Cup debut against the Bristol Bears and earned the Man of the Match award a week later in the victory over Clermont. The 21-year-old is a special talent and has been drafted into the Ireland squad for the Six Nations which gets underway in less than a month’s time.
Leinster are currently showing up as the second-favourites to win the competition according to the latest European Champions Cup odds, currently 2.10 with Bet365.
French Teams Dominate Champions Cup Leaderboard
With the exception of Leinster, there is no doubting, based on the first three weeks of the competition, that the French sides are the teams to beat in the competition this season, with Bordeaux Begles, Toulouse and Toulon all still holding unbeaten records to date.
Toulouse, the defending Champions Cup title holders, showed exactly why they are widely considered the best club side in the world last week when they travelled to South Africa to face the Sharks and recorded a commanding 20-8 victory over the Durban-based side despite difficult conditions. Indeed, the Sharks lost big names in Eben Etzebeth, Aphelele Fassi and Andre Esterhuizen ahead of kickoff but what was perhaps the most impressive part of the French outfit’s performance was that they romped to victory even with Antoine Dupont having a fairly average outing. Toulouse are priced at 1.70 to retain their title in the Champions Cup this season.
As for the Bordeaux-Begles, they have been on an absolute tear this season, currently leading the Top 14 by three points ahead of Toulouse while they are also the table-toppers in Pool 1 of this competition with 15 points, including earning bonus points in all three matches to date. Yannick Bru’s side travelled to Exeter last Saturday and delivered a 69-17 mauling of the Premiership side, with Damian Penaud providing a masterclass performance, scoring three of the team’s 11 tries on the day. Bordeaux are proving that they can be every bit as dangerous as Toulouse with the ball in hand this season and bookies currently price them at 3.50 to go on to lift the title.
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Bet on the Champions CupSouth African Teams Struggle in Champions Cup
The South African teams have struggled massively in this season’s Champions Cup. Last weekend, the Stormers were the only side to secure victory, thumping the Sale Sharks 40-0, while the Hollywood Sharks were humiliated on their home patch by Toulouse, and the Bulls were knocked out of qualification contention after losing a third straight game in the competition 49-10 to Castres.
Since being included in the Champions Cup back in 2022-23, the South African franchises have largely failed to assert themselves in the competition unlike in the United Rugby Championship where the Stormers and Bulls contested the Final in their first season while the Sharks reached the quarter-final. In stark contrast, across the last three seasons, no South African team has managed to progress beyond the quarter-final of the Champions Cup.
Heading into this weekend’s fixtures, all three Southern Hemisphere sides are set to face French opposition with the Bulls taking on Stade Francais, the Stormers travel to meet Racing 91, and the Sharks lock horns with the Begles in Bordeaux. The Stormers must win their match and the Sharks need at least a point from their match to advance to the Round of 16.
SportyTrader’s rugby experts will be providing their in-depth European Champions Cup predictions for all of this weekend’s matches, so be sure to check them out ahead of kickoff!
