We look back on another riveting weekend of Champions and Challenge Cup rugby that produced some positively cracking encounters.
Champions Cup R2: Stormers triumph, Bulls fall short in thrillers
The Stormers beat back-to-back Champions Cup winners La Rochelle 21-20 thanks to a last-gasp Manie Libbok touchline conversion in Cape Town on Saturday.
The French outfit had led for the duration of the game thanks to tries from Tawera Kerr-Barlow and Yoan Tanga, but Andre Hugo-Venter’s 78th-minute touchdown allowed Libbok the chance to show his BMT and slot a very difficult effort from out wide.
The win is just the Capetonians’ second in their seven matches in all comps, a record which they will be eager to improve upon in the weeks ahead.
In another topsy-turvy encounter at the Matmut Stadium on Saturday, Lyon edged a brave Bulls outfit 29-28. The tie could have gone either way, with Jake White’s men leading twice but ultimately failing to come up with the goods.
Meanwhile, Toulouse flexed their muscles at the Stoop, condemning a daring Harlequins side to a 19-47 defeat, Exeter Chiefs came back from a 24-13 final quarter deficit to beat reigning URC champs Munster 32-24 at Sandy Park, Leicester’s second-stringers claimed a 27-24 win at Stade Francais and Ulster breezed past Siya Kolisi’s Racing 31-15 in Belfast.
Remaining results from an electrifying rugby weekend:
- Bayonne 11-12 Glasgow Warriors
- Northampton Saints 22-19 Toulon
- Saracens 55-36 Connacht
- Bordeaux 36-17 Bristol Bears
- Leinster 37-27 Sale Sharks
- Cardiff 32-39 Bath
🎯 What a moment for Manie Libbok. Bet that felt good. #STOvSR pic.twitter.com/vJcenrJmwy
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) December 16, 2023
Challenge Cup R2: Cheetahs pip Sharks, Lions brush off Falcons
The Cheetahs condemned the Sharks to a 32-29 defeat in Bloemfontein in a Challenge Cup match that spawned as many as eight tries. In a free-flowing contest in the Free State, it was Hawies Fourie’s hosts that triumphed in the end thanks to Cohen Jasper’s later five-pointer that puts them top of Pool 1 heading into the new year.
For the Durbanites, the result marks the latest in a line of disappointments that makes this season look increasingly like a write-off.
In Johannesburg, the Lions scored five times against Newcastle Falcons in an eventual 35-13 win that places them second in Pool 2. The Gallagher Premiership outfit stood little chance on the highveld as Ivan van Rooyen’s charges completed their duties for the year in encouraging fashion.
Remaining results from round two:
• Scarlets 7-23 Black Lion
• Gloucester 28-17 Clermont
• Oyonnax 14-21 Zebre
• Edinburgh 34-21 Castres
• Benetton 29-7 Perpignan
• Pau 24-21 Dragons
• Montpellier 38-5 Ospreys
🟠 THE CHEETAHS HAVE DONE IT! WHAT A VICTORY OVER THE SHARKS IN BLOEMFONTEIN! #ChallengeCupRugby pic.twitter.com/vMfuwOakPH
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) December 17, 2023
