It’s time for our Monday wrap of who has their name in lights and who is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons after the weekend.
THEY’RE ON FIRE!
RFU finally stand up for referees: It’s taken far too long for a governing body to act, but at least it has happened with Steve Diamond slapped with a six-match suspension after his match official rant following defeat to Exeter Chiefs. Diamond was certainly out of line but he is not the only guilty party. Perhaps this sparks a trend of the governing bodies taking action against the ref bashing as we have already seen a referee decide to step away from the game because of a lack of protection.
Leinster: The Irish province are piping hot as they put URC holders Glasgow Warriors to the sword with an emphatic 52-0, eight-try victory. After the match, Glasgow boss Franco Smith simply conceded that his team were outplayed by a better team and stated that Leinster are the best in the Investec Champions Cup and it’s hard to argue against that. It was a brutal thrashing.
Champions Cup semi-finalists: The Investec Champions Cup has well and truly reached its business end and there can be no arguing that all the weekend’s winners deserve their spots in the semi-finals. The action started with Leinster crushing Glasgow Warriors, before Bordeaux-Begles clinched a 47-29 triumph over Munster and Northampton Saints sealed an emphatic 51-15 win over Castres on Saturday. On Sunday, Toulouse were pushed all the way by French rivals Toulon before a Thomas Ramos penalty at the death saw the defending champions claiming a narrow 21-18 win.
Semi-Finalists Confirmed 🤩 The road to Cardiff is ON! 😤
Register for early access to #InvestecChampionsCup SF tickets here ⬇️
— Investec Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) April 14, 2025
Jordie Barrett: Central to Leinster’s efforts was the world-class All Blacks back who produced a sensational all-court shift at inside centre. Barrett was a huge name signing for this season but he is more than backing up the hype through his form. Leinster needed to make small improvements in their bid to finally get their hands back on the Champions Cup trophy and with Barrett and RG Snyman, their chances are looking amazing.
Record-breaking Damian Penaud: Another round of Champions Cup action and of course another Penaud try as the Frenchman pounced on a stunning kick from Matthieu Jalibert to grab his 12th try of this campaign, breaking Chris Ashton’s record for the most tries scored in a single season. Ashton’s record stood for over a decade, highlighting the insane effort it has taken from Penaud, and with potentially another two games in store, he could extend his special tally.
Challenge Cup semi-finalists: Meanwhile, it was a similar story in the Challenge Cup as the second tier knockout competition’s semi-finalists were also decided over the weekend. While Bath made a statement of intent with a 61-26 thrashing of Gloucester on Sunday, the three other quarter-finals were tightly contested with Edinburgh, Lyon and Racing 92 claiming narrow victories over the Bulls, Ospreys and Connacht respectively.
Crusaders back on top: After a torrid first season under Rob Penney, the Crusaders look to be well and truly back, topping the table after nine rounds of action. The ‘Saders were aided by the Chiefs falling to a defeat against the Waratahs while they claimed a deserved victory over the Hurricanes on Friday to make the initial move.
Bomb Squad’s safety: To Matt Williams’ dismay, World Rugby has confirmed that no changes will be made to the existing laws around the use and make-up of the replacements. That was confirmed by World Rugby chief Alan Gilpin earlier this weekend following scientific and medical research. At Planet Rugby, we appreciate innovation and smart tactics particularly when it is not detrimental to player safety. So long live the Bomb Squad!
Investec Champions Cup 2024-25: Semi-final ties, times and dates revealed
COLD AS ICE!
Champions Cup blowouts: After respected pundits Bernard Jackman and Brian Moore hit out at the lopsided nature of matches during most of the Champions Cup’s round of 16 matches, one would expect the standard to improve in the semi-finals but, unfortunately, that was not the case. Apart from a nail-biting finish between French heavyweights Toulon and Toulouse at Stade Felix Mayol on Sunday, it was concerning that all the other Champions Cup quarter-finals were one-side affairs.
Glasgow Warriors: As the scoreline suggests, Franco Smith’s charges were never at the races against Leinster and were on the receiving end of a huge thrashing. The Warriors could not cope with the intensity of the Irish province’s attacks and battled to build momentum as they eventually conceded a half century of points. Although they were not a full strength, with stars like Sione Tuipulotu, Huw Jones, Zander Fagerson, Scott Cummings, Josh McKay, Rory Sutherland and Jack Dempsey all injured, while Henco Venter was also ruled out due to suspension, more was expected of them but they got what they deserved eventually.
South Africa’s European disappointment: The Bulls’ loss to Edinburgh in their Challenge Cup quarter-final means the last South African team bowed out of the European Professional Club Rugby knockout competitions. After the Sharks won the Challenge Cup last year, there was plenty of optimism amongst the South African teams ahead of this season’s Champions Cup but the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers all failed to reach that competition’s play-offs. The former two sides and the Lions would compete in the Challenge Cup’s round of 16 with only the Bulls advancing to the last eight, but all the South African teams will have to regroup and find a way of being more competitive in both cup competitions next season.
Cardiff in administration: After the country’s underwhelming Six Nations campaign, the game in Wales suffered another massive setback when it was revealed that Cardiff’s legal entity, Cardiff Rugby Limited, was placed temporarily into administration with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) taking over the club. The WRU subsequently revealed that it cost them approximately £780,000 to take charge of the side – a move which has saved an estimated 150 jobs, including that of the players.
Riche Mo’unga and Brave Lupus: In a shock result, the Brave Lupus fell to a 26-56 defeat at the hands of the Blue Revs in Japan this weekend. According to NZ Rugby Database, it is the second heaviest defeat that All Blacks pivot Mo’unga has been involved in, the 14-60 defeat to Wellington during his Canterbury days being his worst. It is yet another standout result for the Blue Revs who are enjoying a stunning season as they handed Mo’unga’s charges just their second defeat.
Munster’s lineout: The Irish province came off second best in their Champions Cup semi-final to Bordeaux-Begles at Stade Chaban-Delmas but their poor overall performance in the lineouts was one of the main reasons for their defeat. The Irish province lost nine out of 21 of their own throw-ins at the set-piece and their interim head coach Ian Costello admitted after the game that their poor efforts in the lineouts was something which they “have to look at in the cold light of day”.
Jasper Wiese injury: The Springboks loose forward’s season with Urayasu D-Rocks in Japan’s Rugby League One competition is over due to a serious neck injury which has required surgery. The 29-year-old’s injury is also a huge setback for South Africa as Wiese was the Boks’ first choice number eight in 2025 and it looks like the world champions will have to find a replacement for their upcoming July internationals against the Barbarians, Italy and Georgia.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/whos-hot-and-whos-not-world-class-jordie-barrett-champions-cup-blowouts-and-springboks-stars-setback
