Trying Times For Europes Elite

The Big Freeze paralysed much of European club rugby in recent weeks – leaving some clubs looking at the enforced break as a blessing in disguise in enabling them to rest key players or others fretting that the white-out may leave them undercooked for the massive challenges ahead over the next two weekends when Heineken Cup quarter-final qualification will be settled.

With France and Italy hardly affected last weekend – just one match failing to go ahead in the Top 14 while all Super 10 matches were played – it was England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales who have really suffered. Around only half the scheduled matches involving ERC teams survived with the country breakdown of matches that went ahead from their domestic tournaments as follows:

ENGLAND: One from six
FRANCE: Six from seven
IRELAND: Nil from three
ITALY: Five from five
SCOTLAND: One from two
WALES: One from four

Defending Heineken Cup champions Leinster have seen their last two scheduled matches fall victim to the weather and last played back on Boxing Day when they beat Ulster Rugby 15-3 in Dublin. Leinster and London Irish are deadlocked on 15 points apiece at the top of Pool 6 and, although by the time they meet Brive at the RDS on Saturday the champions will have gone three weeks without a match, coach Michael Cheika is not concerned his team may be undercooked for a match they must win to keep their quarter-final qualification hopes alive.

“I am not worried about it,” he said. “In fact, we will take the positives out of the sort of situation we have been in before. “It is a long season and the break has provided the chance for our players to freshen up ahead of two huge Heineken Cup matches.”

Outside of France and Italy, the only ones to beat the freeze were Leinster Tigers and Edinburgh – and both were rewarded with home homes. The Tigers beat London Wasps 34-8 to claim top spot in the Guinness Premiership while Edinburgh beat Cardiff Blues 21-12 to move into the Magners League play-off places.