2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup

The 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup was the third European Rugby Champions Cup championship (22nd overall), the annual rugby union club competition for teams from the top six nations in European rugby. The competition replaced the Heineken Cup, which was Europe's top-tier competition for rugby clubs for the first nineteen years of professional European rugby union.[1] The opening round of the tournament took place on the weekend of 14/15/16 October 2016. The final took place on 13 May 2017 at Murrayfield in Edinburgh.[2][3]

2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup
Tournament details
Countries England
 France
 Ireland
 Italy
 Scotland
 Wales
Tournament format(s)Round-robin and Knockout
Date14 October 2016 – 13 May 2017
Tournament statistics
Teams20
Matches played67
Attendance1,018,026 (15,194 per match)
Highest Attendance55,272
(The Final: Saracens v Clermont)
Lowest Attendance2,500
(Zebre v Wasps)
Tries scored363 (5.42 per match)
Top point scorer(s)Owen Farrell (Saracens)
(126 points)
Top try scorer(s)Isa Nacewa (Leinster)
(7 tries)
Final
VenueMurrayfield, Edinburgh
Champions Saracens (2nd title)
Runners-up Clermont

English side Saracens were the 2015–16 champions, having beaten Racing 92 of France in the 2016 final in Lyon.

Saracens retained the cup, defeating Clermont in the final 28–17.[4][5]

Teams

Twenty clubs from the three major European domestic and regional leagues competed in the Champions Cup. Nineteen of these qualified directly as a result of their league performance.

The distribution of teams was:

  • England: 6 clubs
    • The top 6 clubs in the English Premiership. (6 clubs)
  • France: 7 clubs
  • Ireland, Italy, Scotland & Wales: 7 clubs, based on performance in the Pro12.
    • The best placed club from each nation. (4 clubs)
    • The 3 highest ranked clubs not qualified thereafter. (3 clubs)

Due to the 2015 Rugby World Cup, it was decided that the play-off system that had previously decided the final team would be suspended, and that this year the winner of the 2015–16 European Rugby Challenge Cup would automatically qualify for the tournament. In the event this team had already qualified, the team's domestic league would be allocated an extra qualifying place.[6]

The following teams qualified for the 2016–17 tournament.

Aviva Premiership Top 14 Pro 12
England France Ireland Italy Scotland Wales

This was the first time all four Irish provinces qualified for Europe's top club competition on their own merits, as Connacht's two previous appearances in the former Heineken Cup had been as a result of Leinster winning that cup the previous season.

Team details

Below is the list of coaches, captain and stadiums with their method of qualification for each team.

Note: Placing shown in brackets, denotes standing at the end of the regular season for their respective leagues, with their end of season positioning shown through CH for Champions, RU for Runner-up, SF for losing Semi-finalist and QF for losing Quarter-finalist.

Team Coach /
Director of Rugby		 Captain Stadium Capacity Method of Qualification
Bordeaux Bègles Raphaël Ibañez Hugh Chalmers Stade Chaban-Delmas 34,694 Top 14 top 7 (7th)
Castres Christophe Urios Rodrigo Capo Ortega Stade Pierre-Antoine 11,500 Top 14 top 7 (6th) (QF)
Clermont Franck Azéma Damien Chouly Stade Marcel-Michelin 19,022 Top 14 top 7 (1st) (SF)
Connacht Pat Lam John Muldoon Galway Sportsgrounds 8,100 Pro12 top 7 (2nd) (CH)
Exeter Chiefs Rob Baxter Jack Yeandle Sandy Park 12,600 Aviva Premiership top 6 (2nd) (RU)
Glasgow Warriors Gregor Townsend Jonny Gray Scotstoun Stadium 7,351 Pro 12 top Scottish team (3rd) (SF)
Leicester Tigers Aaron Mauger (For
Richard Cockerill) [lower-alpha 1]		 Tom Youngs Welford Road 25,800 Aviva Premiership top 6 (4th) (SF)
Leinster Leo Cullen Isa Nacewa RDS Arena
Aviva Stadium		 18,500
51,700		 Pro 12 top Irish team (1st) (RU)
Montpellier Jake White Fulgence Ouedraogo Altrad Stadium 14,700 Challenge Cup winner, Top 14 top 7 (3rd) (SF)
Munster Rassie Erasmus Peter O'Mahony Thomond Park 25,600 Pro12 top 7 (6th)
Northampton Saints Jim Mallinder Tom Wood Franklin's Gardens 15,500 Aviva Premiership top 6 (5th)
Racing 92 Laurent Labit
Laurent Travers		 Dimitri Szarzewski Stade Yves-du-Manoir 14,400 Top 14 top 7 (4th) (CH)
Sale Sharks Steve Diamond Josh Beaumont AJ Bell Stadium 12,000 Aviva Premiership top 6 (6th)
Saracens Mark McCall Brad Barritt Allianz Park 10,000 Aviva Premiership top 6 (1st) (CH)
Scarlets Wayne Pivac Ken Owens Parc y Scarlets 14,870 Pro 12 top Welsh team (5th)
Toulon Mike Ford (For
Diego Domínguez) [lower-alpha 2]		 Juan Smith Stade Mayol 15,820 Top 14 top 7 (2nd) (RU)
Toulouse Ugo Mola Thierry Dusautoir Stade Ernest-Wallon 19,500 Top 14 top 7 (5th) (QF)
Ulster Les Kiss Andrew Trimble Kingspan Stadium 18,196 Pro12 top 7 (4th) (SF)
Wasps Dai Young Joe Launchbury Ricoh Arena 32,609 Aviva Premiership top 6 (3rd) (SF)
Zebre Víctor Jiménez (For
Gianluca Guidi)[lower-alpha 3]		 George Biagi Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi 5,000 Pro 12 top Italian team (11th)

Seeding

The 20 competing teams are seeded and split into four tiers, each containing 5 teams.

For the purpose of creating the tiers, clubs are ranked based on their domestic league performances and on their qualification for the knockout phases of their championships, so a losing quarter-finalist in the Top 14 would be seeded below a losing semi-finalist, even if they finished above them in the regular season.[10]

Rank Top 14 Premiership Pro 12
1 Racing 92 Saracens Connacht
2 Toulon Exeter Chiefs Leinster
3 Clermont Wasps Glasgow Warriors
4 Montpellier Leicester Tigers Ulster
5 Toulouse Northampton Saints Scarlets
6 Castres Sale Sharks Munster
7 Bordeaux Bègles Zebre

Based on these seedings, teams are placed into one of the four tiers, with the top seed clubs being put in Tier 1. The nature of the tier system means that a draw is needed to allocate two of the three second seed clubs to Tier 1. Exeter Chiefs and Leinster were drawn into Tier 1, meaning the remaining side - Toulon went into Tier 2. As a result of this draw, Montpellier also entered Tier 2, as the fourth seed from the league of the second seed placed in Tier 2. The other two fourth-ranked sides fell into Tier 3.[11]

The tiers are shown below. Brackets show each team's seeding and their league (for example, 1 Top 14 indicates the team was seeded 1st from the Top 14).

Tier 1 Saracens (1 AP) Connacht (1 Pro12) Racing 92 (1 Top 14) Exeter Chiefs (2 AP) Leinster (2 Pro12)
Tier 2 Toulon (2 Top 14) Wasps (3 AP) Glasgow Warriors (3 Pro12) Clermont (3 Top 14) Montpellier (4 Top 14)
Tier 3 Leicester Tigers (4 AP) Ulster (4 Pro12) Northampton Saints (5 AP) Scarlets (5 Pro12) Toulouse (5 Top 14)
Tier 4 Sale Sharks (6 AP) Munster (6 Pro12) Castres (6 Top 14) Zebre (7 Pro12) Bordeaux Bègles (7 Top 14)

The following restrictions will apply to the draw:[11]

  • Each pool will consist of four clubs, one from each Tier in the draw.
  • Each pool must have one from each league drawn from Tier 1,2 or 3. No pool will have a second team from the same league until the allocation of Tier 4 takes place.
  • Where two PRO12 clubs compete in the same pool, they must be from different countries.

Pool stage
Main article: 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup pool stage

The draw took place on 29 June 2016, in Neuchâtel, Switzerland.

Teams will play each other twice, both at home and away, in the group stage, that will begin on weekend of 14/15/16 October 2016, and continue through to 20/21/22 January 2017, before the pool winners and three best runners-up progressed to the quarter finals.

Teams will be awarded competition points, based on match result. Teams receive 4 points for a win, 2 points for a draw, 1 attacking bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match and 1 defensive bonus point for losing a match by seven points or fewer.[12]

In the event of a tie between two or more teams, the following tie-breakers will be used, as directed by EPCR:

  1. Where teams have played each other
    1. The club with the greater number of competition points from only matches involving tied teams.
    2. If equal, the club with the best aggregate points difference from those matches.
    3. If equal, the club that scored the most tries in those matches.
  2. Where teams remain tied and/or have not played each other in the competition (i.e. are from different pools)
    1. The club with the best aggregate points difference from the pool stage.
    2. If equal, the club that scored the most tries in the pool stage.
    3. If equal, the club with the fewest players suspended in the pool stage.
    4. If equal, the drawing of lots will determine a club's ranking.
Key to colours
     Winner of each pool, advance to quarter-finals.
     Three highest-scoring second-place teams advance to quarter-finals.

Pool 1
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
Munster (2) 650116064+961843124
Glasgow Warriors (6) 640216086+7418102119
Leicester Tigers 620461190–129323008
Racing 92 610589130–411214105

Pool 2
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
Wasps (5) 6411210112+9828133122
Toulouse (7) 631216491+7322102218
Connacht 6402188118+7026152018
Zebre 600690331−2411149000

Pool 3
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
Saracens (3) 651018187+942062024
Toulon (8) 6303120100+2012102216
Scarlets 6213141154–1311150111
Sale Sharks 610566167–101719004

Pool 4
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
Leinster (4) 641122787+14031104123
Montpellier 6303120149–2915152216
Castres 6213144147–315201112
Northampton Saints 620491199−1081026109

Pool 5
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
Clermont (1) 6501211131+8026185126
Bordeaux Bègles 6303118120–211131114
Exeter Chiefs 6204110146–3613162212
Ulster 6204131173–4216191110

Ranking of pool leaders and runners-up
Rank Pool Leaders Pts Diff TF
1 Clermont26+8026
2 Munster24+9618
3 Saracens24+9420
4 Leinster23+14031
5 Wasps22+9828
Rank Pool Runners–up Pts Diff TF
6 Glasgow Warriors19+7418
7 Toulouse18+7320
8 Toulon16+2012
9 Montpellier16–2915
10 Bordeaux Bègles14–211

Knock-out stage

Format

The eight qualifiers are ranked according to their performance in the pool stage and compete in the quarter-finals which will be held on the weekend of 31 March, 1/2 April 2017. The four top teams will host the quarter-finals against the four lower teams in a 1v8, 2v7, 3v6 and 4v5 format.

The semi-finals will played on the weekend of 22/23 April 2017. In lieu of the draw that used to determine the semi-final pairing, EPCR announced that a fixed semi-final bracket would be set in advance, and that the home team would be designated based on "performances by clubs during the pool stages as well as the achievement of a winning a quarter-final match away from home". Semi-final matches must be played at a neutral ground in the designated home team's country.

Home country advantage will be awarded as follows:[12]

The winners of the semi-finals will contest the final, at Murrayfield, on 13 May 2017.[3]

Bracket
Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
         
3 Saracens 38
6 Glasgow Warriors 13
Saracens 26
Munster 10
2 Munster 41
7 Toulouse 16
Saracens 28
Clermont 17
1 Clermont 29
8 Toulon 9
Clermont 27
Leinster 22
4 Leinster 32
5 Wasps 17

Quarter-finals
1 April 2017
15:15
Leinster (4) 32–17 (5) Wasps
Try: Nacewa 14' m
Conan 33' c
Henshaw 40' c
McFadden 73' c
Con: Sexton (3/4) 34', 40', 75'
Pen: Sexton (2/2) 6', 48'
 Report[13] Try: Wade 52' c
Gopperth 59' c
Con: Gopperth (2/2) 53', 61'
Pen: Gopperth (1/1) 31'
Aviva Stadium
Attendance: 50,266
Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)
1 April 2017
17:45
Munster (2) 41–16 (7) Toulouse
Try: J. Ryan 4' c
Stander 47' m
Sweetnam 75' c
Conway 79' c
Con: Bleyendaal (3/4) 4', 77', 80'
Pen: Bleyendaal (5/5) 9', 26', 42', 52', 74'
 Report[14] Try: Perez 54' c
Con: Doussain (1/1) 55'
Pen: Doussain (3/3) 19', 31', 40'
Thomond Park
Attendance: 26,200
Referee: JP Doyle (RFU)
2 April 2017
13:00
Saracens (3) 38–13 (6) Glasgow Warriors
Try: Ashton (2) 31' m, 78' c
Bosch 59' c
Barritt 73' c
Con: Farrell (3/4) 59', 73', 78'
Pen: Farrell (4/4) 9', 15', 27', 70'
 Report[15] Try: Jones 48' m
Wilson 80' m
Pen: Russell (1/1) 11'
Allianz Park
Attendance: 15,000[a 1]
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (FFR)
2 April 2017
16:15
Clermont (1) 29–9 (8) Toulon
Try: Nakaitaci 61' c
Penaud 80' c
Con: Parra (2/2) 61', 80'
Pen: Parra (4/4) 5', 29', 45', 78'
Drop: Lopez (1/1) 71'
 Report[17] Pen: Halfpenny (3/3) 21', 34', 58'
  1. Due to European Rugby rules regarding minimum capacity for knockout matches, Saracens home ground Allianz Park was expanded from 10,000 to 15,000 using temporary seating to enable them to host their quarter final fixture.[16]

Semi-finals
22 April 2017
15:15
Munster 10–26 Saracens
Try: Stander 80' c
Con: Keatley (1/1) 80'
Pen: Bleyendaal (1/2) 7'
 Report[18] Try: M. Vunipola 54' c
Wyles 70' c
Con: Farrell (2/2) 55', 72'
Pen: Farrell (4/4) 17', 35', 64', 75'
Aviva Stadium
Attendance: 51,300
Referee: Romain Poite (FFR)
23 April 2017
16:00
Clermont 27–22 Leinster
Try: Yato 4' c
Strettle 15' m
Con: Parra (1/2) 6'
Pen: Parra (2/3) 10', 57'
Lopez (1/1) 72'
Drop: Lopez (2/2) 64', 76'
 Report[19] Try: Ringrose 68' c
Con: Sexton (1/1) 69'
Pen: Sexton (5/5) 41'+3, 44', 49', 54', 79'
Matmut Stadium de Gerland
Attendance: 40,024
Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)

Final
Main article: 2017 European Rugby Champions Cup Final
13 May 2017
17:00
Saracens 28–17 Clermont
Try: Ashton 12' m
Kruis 21' c
Goode 72' c
Con: Farrell (2/3) 22', 73'
Pen: Farrell (3/3) 50', 57', 78'
 Report[20] Try: Lamerat 26' c
Abendanon 51' c
Con: Parra (2/2) 27', 53'
Pen: Parra (1/1) 60'
Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Attendance: 55,272
Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)

Attendances
  • Does not include final as they are played at a neutral venue.
Club Home
Games		 Total Average Highest Lowest % Capacity
Bordeaux Bègles363,39921,13321,19621,07161%
Castres323,7457,9158,4057,04069%
Clermont[lower-alpha 4]5112,80222,56040,02417,20195%
Connacht321,7887,2638,0915,60790%
Exeter Chiefs329,6939,89810,6719,14379%
Glasgow Warriors322,0537,3517,3517,351100%
Leicester Tigers362,60620,86924,21319,04881%
Leinster4120,32530,08150,26613,89085%
Montpellier326,8398,94611,26010,67961%
Munster[lower-alpha 5]5154,90030,98051,30025,600100%
Northampton Saints342,89514,29815,15113,64592%
Racing 92323,5547,8519,2335,44956%
Sale Sharks319,8356,6129,4024,27555%
Saracens442,83010,70815,0008,74695%
Scarlets322,5917,5308,5796,52151%
Toulon338,39612,79914,10311,97881%
Toulouse336,60712,20214,20610,37847%
Ulster348,08316,02816,84314,92488%
Wasps341,31313,77117,24810,70142%
Zebre38,5002,8333,0002,50057%

[21]

See also

Notes
  1. Richard Cockerill began the tournament as Leicester Tigers head coach, but was replaced with Aaron Mauger on 2 January 2017 after Cockerill was sacked by the Tigers.[7]
  2. Diego Domínguez began the tournament as Toulon's head coach, but was replaced with Mike Ford on 24 October 2016.[8]
  3. Gianluca Guidi began the tournament as Zebre head coach, but on mutual agreement with the club and himself, left his post as head coach on 17 January 2017. He was replaced with Víctor Jiménez.[9]
  4. Figures include semi-final 'home game' played at the Matmut Stadium de Gerland in Lyon.
  5. Figures include semi-final 'home game' played at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

References
  1. Inaugural EPCR finals set for London Archived 2014-08-13 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Key 2016/17 European club rugby dates". epcrugby.com.
  3. "Lyon to host 2016 Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals with Edinburgh chosen for 2017". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-08-13. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  4. "Clermont Auvergne 17-28 Saracens: European Champions Cup final – as it happened". Guardian. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  5. "Saracens 28-17 Clermont: Sarries win thriller to retain Champions Cup". Daily Telegraph. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  6. "Key 2015/16 EPCR dates and Champions Cup play-offs". epcrugby.com.
  7. "Richard Cockerill: Leicester Tigers sack director of rugby". Planet Rugby. 2 January 2016. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
  8. "Mike Ford: Ex-Bath head coach named Toulon boss". Planet Rugby. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  9. "RESCISSO CONSENSUALMENTE IL CONTRATTO TRA LE ZEBRE RUGBY E L'HEAD COACH GIANLUCA GUIDI" [Press Release Zebre]. Zebre (in Italian). Zebre Rugby srl. 21 February 2015. Archived from the original on 20 January 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
  10. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-10-31. Retrieved 2014-06-08.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) ERCRugby.com. Accessed 8 June 2014
  11. European Rugby Pool Draws for 2015/16 season - EPCRugby.com
  12. "Champions Cup Rules". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2015-05-04. Retrieved 2016-04-17.
  13. "European Rugby Champions Cup (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-09. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  14. "European Rugby Champions Cup (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-09. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  15. "European Rugby Champions Cup (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-06-11. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  16. "Saracens hope to stage Champions Cup quarter-final at Allianz Park - Mark McCall". Belfast Telegraph. 16 January 2017.
  17. "European Rugby Champions Cup (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-09. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  18. "REPORT: Saracens march on to BT Murrayfield". www.epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-27. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  19. "PREVIEW: Leinster chasing Champions Cup history". www.epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-24. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  20. "REPORT: Saracens claim Champions Cup glory in thriller". www.epcrugby.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-23. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  21. "European Rugby Champions Cup 16/17 Home attendance". Rugby Statbunker. 23 April 2017.
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