State of Euro cups: Sharks are SA's best hope
Yesterday at 05:28 AM
The Sharks have full control of their playoff hopes going into the final round of pool fixtures in the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup this week.
John Plumtree’s charges, along with the Stormers, are still in the race to the Champions Cup last 16 spots, but the Vodacom Bulls' hopes of advancing to the knockouts were dashed as they suffered their third straight defeat in the competition.
The Stormers delivered the goods against Sale Sharks to register an emphatic 40-0 victory in Cape Town – which marked their first win in the competition this season – but it was a case of bitter disappointment for the Sharks and Bulls, who went down 20-8 against Toulouse in Durban and 49-10 against Castres in France, respectively.
These results saw the Stormers hop into fourth place in Pool 4 on five points – tied with Harlequins and Sale. The Sharks are also in fourth place in Pool 1 on five log points, while the Bulls are at the foot of Pool 3 with no points after three rounds.
CLICK HERE for all the Champions Cup standings and results
Meanwhile, the Cheetahs and Lions managed to keep alive their aspirations of reaching the Challenge Cup round of 16.
The Cheetahs picked up their first victory as they snatched a late 22-18 win against Zebre Parma in Amsterdam, but it proved to be a disappointing round for the Lions, who went down 28-5 against Montpellier in France.
The Cheetahs' win saw them finish the penultimate pool round in fifth place tied on six points with fourth-placed Perpignan, while the Lions are also in fifth place in their group level on five points with the fourth-placed Dragons.
CLICK HERE for all the Challenge Cup standings and results
In the Sharks’ pool, they cannot reel in any of the top three teams, leaders Bordeaux, Toulouse or Leicester Tigers. The Durbanites have a five log-point lead over Ulster and Exeter, the two teams below them who face off this week – the result of which will be common knowledge to the Sharks by the time they kick off on Sunday.
The Sharks have a better points-difference than both teams, which means that a loss in Bordeaux – even without a losing bonus point – may not be enough of an opportunity for Ulster or Exeter to overtake them. In the worst case, the Sharks will slip to fifth in the pool, which would relegate them to the Challenge Cup playoffs as defending champions.
Harlequins, the Stormers and Sale are even on log points in Pool 4 (5) but the London club has a +14 points-difference, while the Stormers (-7) and Sale (-37) defer on the tie-breaker.
Sale’s hopes of negating this disadvantage are hindered by this week’s showdown with Top 14 heavyweights Toulon, while Quins battle Glasgow. In contrast, the Stormers travel to Paris to battle Racing 92, who are ninth in the Top 14 and haven’t won any of their last five matches.
It’s possible that a Stormers loss ejects them from all EPCR playoff contention, but if Quins, Sale and Racing lose, the Cape contenders could finish third in the pool, with a win in the French capital.
The Bulls’ only chance of keeping alive their 2024-25 European cup campaign is to beat Stade Francais at Loftus Versfeld by at least 22 points, without conceding a bonus point to their French visitors.
Round 4 Champions Cup
Saturday 18 January
Bulls vs Stade Francais, 3pm, Pretoria
Racing 92 vs Stormers, 10pm, Paris
Sunday, 19 January
Bordeaux-Begles vs Sharks, 3pm, Bordeaux
Round 4 Challenge Cup
Saturday 18 January
Lions vs Dragons, 5:15pm, Johannesburg
Lyon vs Cheetahs, 7.30pm, Lyon
Photo: Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images/Getty Images
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