The Hollywoodbets Sharks beat Gloucester to claim an historic EPCR Challenge Cup title while Toulouse saw off Leinster in extra-time of a gargantuan Champions Cup final on the weekend.
EPCR Challenge Cup: Hollywoodbets Sharks make history in London
The Hollywoodbets Sharks’ 36-22 win over Gloucester at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Friday saw them become the first South African franchise to win a European Professional Club Rugby title. John Plumtree’s men were on top for the majority of the contest, with a comprehensive scrummaging and kicking performance propelling them to a famous victory and a place in next season’s Champions Cup.
While tries to Phepsi Buthelezi, Aphelele Fassi and Makazole Mapimpi, as well as Siya Masuku’s 21-point haul did the damage on the scoreboard, the tone was set by the side’s all-Bok front-row. Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi and Man of the Match Vincent Koch were in another league and terrorised the Cherry and Whites all evening, winning a stonking six scrum penalties.
The men in black and white will look to end their season on a high when they host the Bulls in Durban in the URC this weekend.
Phepsi Buthelezi with an AUDACIOUS dummy in the Final for @SharksRugby 🤩#ChallengeCupRugby pic.twitter.com/EcnD9Sh52X
— EPCR Challenge Cup (@ChallengeCup_) May 24, 2024
Champions Cup: Toulouse down Leinster in all-time classic final
Despite being reduced to 14 men in extra-time, Toulouse outlasted Leinster 31-22 in the Champions Cup final at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday to achieve an incredible sixth title. The Irish outfit, playing in their third final in a row, just couldn’t take their chances inside the Toulouse red zone, even after replacement second-row Richie Arnold saw red for a dangerous hit, which ultimately cost them what would have been a fifth championship crown.
In a game oozing quality from both ends, Antoine Dupont showed once again why he is regarded by some as the greatest ever to pull on a rugby jersey. Whether it was making last-ditch try-saving tackles, kicking outrageous 50:22s or effecting crucial turnover steals, everybody’s favourite diminutive French general did all that and more.
Happy to be corrected but don't think Leinster can be much better here from a positional standpoint. They make the window for a 50:22 tiny. Antoine Dupont just nails it. Alien.
— Charlie Morgan (@CharlieFelix) May 26, 2024
(Watch him scanning at the start of the clip, in the knowledge that the ruck is inside halfway) pic.twitter.com/lBABH1RBXA
