There are some finely poised games ahead of the 2021/22 Champions Cup second leg round of 16 ties. Shaun Goosen previews.
Friday 15 April
Leinster 1/50 | Draw 43/1 | Connacht 12/1 (18:30)
Leinster can take a step closer to recording a fifth title when they host Connacht at the Aviva on Friday. Leo Cullen’s outfit beat their neighbours 26-21 in Galway a week ago and will be eager to make it four wins out of four against Connacht in all competitions this season. The Westerners won’t have the firepower to live with their old foes here.
Leinster are tipped to get the job done with minimal fuss in front of their home fairthful.
Bristol 6/10 | Draw 20/1 | Sale 14/10 (21:00)
There won’t be much separating the Bears from the Sharks at Ashton Gate on Friday. Bristol snuck the first leg by a single point in a low-scoring 10-9 encounter at the AJ Bell a week ago, but Sale should hit back hard here after losing a game they believe they should have won in Manchester in the first leg.
Back the away team to get the job done here.
Saturday 16 April
Harlequins 21/100 | Draw 25/1 | Montpellier 36/10 (13:30)
Harlequins tackle Montpellier looking to overturn their deficit from the first leg at The Stoop on Saturday. Quins fell 26-40 at the GGL last week and will need a massive performance if they are to overturn the 14-point deficit against the Top 14 leaders. ‘Quins will surely go all out and play with the shackles off, which should get them over the line here. Whether it’s enough to see them through to the quarterfinals is another matter though.
I’m all over Harlequins to bag the win, but I doubt it’ll be enough to see them through to the quarters.
La Rochelle 1/7 | Draw 33/1 | Bordeaux 46/10 (16:00)
La Rochelle will look to extend their winning margin over Bordeaux at the Stade Marcel Deflandre on Saturday. Ronan O’Gara’s men claimed a big 31-13 in the reverse fixture last week, a result that has surely all but cemented their place in the next round. Last season’s runners-up should bag another W here.
La Rochelle’s last two victories in all competitions have come against Bordeaux. Expect them to complete the hat-trick here.
Munster 51/100 | Draw 20/1 | Exeter 17/10 (16:00)
Munster will be confident of overturning their five-point deficit when they welcome Exeter to Thomond Park on Saturday. The Red Army narrowly fell 8-13 at Sandy Park in the first leg, but will have the electric atmosphere of their home support behind them for this one. The 2020 champions have had something of a season to forget and could bow out here.
I reckon Munster will win well enough to comfortably overturn the four-point deficit from the first leg.
Leicester 1/16 | Draw 38/1 | Clermont 8/1 (18:30)
Leicester should force home their advantage when they host Clermont at Welford Road on Saturday. The Tigers romped to a 29-10 win at the Stade Michelin in the first leg, and they should pick up another win here. A 19-point gap against the Prem table-toppers, in front of their home support, will be too much for an out of sorts Clermont team.
French teams are notoriously poor travellers and should be at the wrong end of a hiding at Welford Road.
Ulster 14/10 | Draw 25/1 | Toulouse 6/10 (21:00)
Toulouse will be out for revenge against Ulster at the Kingspan on Saturday. The defending champions lost 20-26 last week after the sending off of Argentina winger Juan Cruz Mallia approximately 10-minutes into the game and will be keen to make amends here. This could be the game of the weekend and I’m backing the Belfast boys to pull off a huge upset and send Toulouse packing.
Ulster’s URC form coupled with their win in France last week should give them belief to pull off a massive upset over two legs.
Sunday 17 April
Racing 1/25 | Draw 38/1 | Stade Francais 10/1 (16:30)
Racing and Stade Francais clash for the third time in three weeks at La Defense Arena on Sunday. In the first leg, Racing claimed a 22-9 win away from home to give them a massive advantage heading into this one. Stade Francais will have a big job on their hands to avoid losing a third-straight game against their fellow Parisians, but ultimately they should fall short again.
Stade are languishing at the wrong end of the Top 14 table. While they look to be safe from relegation, they’ll desperately want to finish higher up the table. With this in mind, they’ll likely field a weaker side. Take Racing on whichever minus you can find.
