2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup

The 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup is the seventh edition of the European Rugby Challenge Cup, an annual second-tier rugby union competition for professional clubs. Including the predecessor competition, the original European Challenge Cup, this was the 25th edition of European club rugby's second-tier competition.

2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup
Tournament details
Countries England
 France
 Ireland
 Italy
 Scotland
 Wales
Tournament format(s)Round-robin and knockout
Tournament statistics
Teams14+8
Matches played27
Attendance12,000 (444 per match)
Highest attendance10,000
Final
VenueTwickenham Stadium
Attendance10,000
Champions Montpellier (2nd title)
Runners-up Leicester Tigers

The tournament began in December 2020.[1] The final, originally scheduled to be held at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille,[2] took place on 21 May 2021 at Twickenham Stadium.[3]

On 11 January 2021 EPRC announced the competition was suspended temporarily due to new restrictions surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] A revised format to finish the tournament was announced on 24 February 2021.[5]

Teams

Fourteen teams will qualified for the 2020–21 European Challenge Cup from Premiership Rugby, the Pro14 and the Top 14, as a direct result of their domestic league performance having not qualified for the Heineken Champions Cup. Although, the two South African Pro14 teams are not eligible.[6]

The distribution of teams was:

  • England: four teams
    • Any teams finishing between 9th and 11th position in the Premiership Rugby that do not qualify for the 2020–21 European Champions Cup
    • The champion of the RFU Championship
  • France: six teams
    • Any teams finishing between 9th and 14th position in the Top 14 that do not qualify for the 2020–21 European Champions Cup
  • Ireland, Italy, Scotland, Wales: four teams
    • Four teams from the Pro14, excluding the South African teams, that do not qualify for the 2020–21 European Champions Cup
Round Premiership Top 14 Pro14
England France Ireland Italy Scotland Wales
Preliminary stage
Knockout stage

Team details

Below is the list of coaches, captain and stadiums with their method of qualification for each team.

Team Coach /
Director of Rugby		 Captain Stadium Capacity Method of qualification
Entering at Preliminary Stage
Agen Christophe Laussucq
Rémi Vaquin		 Antoine Erbani Stade Armandie 14,000 Top 14 bottom 6 (13th)
Bayonne Yannick Bru Antoine Battut Stade Jean Dauger 16,934 Top 14 bottom 6 (11th)
Benetton Kieran Crowley Dewaldt Duvenage Stadio Comunale di Monigo 6,700 Pro14 Conference B (5th)
Brive Jeremy Davidson Saïd Hireche Stade Amédée-Domenech 13,979 Top 14 bottom 6 (10th)
Cardiff Blues John Mulvihill Ellis Jenkins Cardiff Arms Park 12,125 Pro14 Conference B (6th)
Castres Mauricio Reggiardo Mathieu Babillot Stade Pierre-Fabre 12,500 Top 14 bottom 6 (9th)
Leicester Tigers Steve Borthwick Tom Youngs Welford Road Stadium 25,849 Premiership 9th–11th (11th)
London Irish Declan Kidney Blair Cowan
Paddy Jackson
Nick Phipps
Matt Rogerson		 Brentford Community Stadium 17,250 Premiership 9th–11th (10th)
Newcastle Falcons Dean Richards Mark Wilson Kingston Park 10,200 RFU Championship champions
Ospreys Toby Booth Justin Tipuric Liberty Stadium 20,827 Pro14 Conference A (7th)
Pau Nicolas Godignon
Frédéric Manca		 Quentin Lespiaucq-Brettes Stade du Hameau 18,324 Top 14 bottom 6 (12th)
Stade Français Laurent Sempéré
Julien Arias		 Yoann Maestri Stade Jean-Bouin 20,000 Top 14 bottom 6 (14th)
Zebre Michael Bradley Tommaso Castello Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi 5,000 Pro14 Conference A (6th)
Worcester Warriors Alan Solomons Ted Hill[lower-alpha 1] Sixways Stadium 11,499 Premiership 9th–11th (9th)
Entering at Knockout Stage (transferred from Champions Cup)
Bath Stuart Hooper Charlie Ewels The Recreation Ground 14,509 Champions Cup Pool A 9th–12th (10th)
Connacht Andy Friend Jarrad Butler Galway Sportsgrounds 8,129 Champions Cup Pool B 9th–12th (10th)
Dragons Dean Ryan Rhodri Williams Rodney Parade 8,700 Champions Cup Pool A 9th–12th (12th)
Glasgow Warriors Danny Wilson Fraser Brown
Ryan Wilson		 Scotstoun Stadium 7,351 Champions Cup Pool B 9th–12th (12th)
Harlequins Billy Millard Stephan Lewies Twickenham Stoop 14,800 Champions Cup Pool B 9th–12th (11th)
Montpellier Xavier Garbajosa Fulgence Ouedraogo Altrad Stadium 15,697 Champions Cup Pool A 9th–12th (11th)
Northampton Saints Chris Boyd Lewis Ludlam
Alex Waller		 Franklin's Gardens 15,200 Champions Cup Pool A 9th–12th (9th)
Ulster Dan McFarland Iain Henderson Ravenhill Stadium 18,196 Champions Cup Pool B 9th–12th (9th)

Preliminary stage
[[File:
Locations
|1300px|alt=Locations of teams of the European Rugby Challenge Cup.
Red: Competed in pool stage; Green: Entered from Champions Cup.]]
Locations of teams of the European Rugby Challenge Cup.
Red: Competed in pool stage; Green: Entered from Champions Cup.
Main article: 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup preliminary stage

Teams were placed into one of the two tiers, with the higher ranked clubs being put in Tier 1. The nature of the tier system meant that no draw was needed this year. Brackets show each team's ranking and their league. e.g. 9 Top 14 indicates the team was the ninth placed team from the Top 14.

Tier 1 Bayonne (11 Top 14) Benetton (9 Pro14) Brive (10 Top 14) Cardiff Blues (10 Pro14) Castres (9 Top 14) London Irish (10 Prem) Worcester Warriors (9 Prem)
Tier 2 Agen (13 Top 14) Leicester Tigers (11 Prem) Newcastle Falcons (12 Prem) Ospreys (12 Pro14) Pau (12 Top 14) Stade Français (14 Top 14) Zebre (11 Top 14)

The preliminary stage would consist of a single pool of 14 teams. No team would play a team in the same tier and no club would play another club from the same league. Each team was scheduled to play four matches with the top eight teams advancing to the knockout stage. The top eight teams were due to be joined in the round of 16 by the teams finishing between 5th and 8th in each pool of the 2020–21 European Rugby Champions Cup pool stage.

The revised format announced in February 2021 would see the top 8 teams after 2 pool games advance to the round of 16 along with the eight teams placed between 9th and 12th in each pool of the Champions Cup.[5]

Key to colours
     Top 8 advance to round of 16      Eliminated after preliminary stage
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
London Irish 22006025+35932010
Ospreys 22007744+33962010
Cardiff Blues 22006120+4172109
Leicester Tigers 22006737+3073109
Zebre 21104341+254006
Agen 21013634+255105
Benetton 21014448−477105
Newcastle Falcons 21014650−456004
Pau 21014146−556004
Bayonne 20114553−856002
Worcester Warriors 20024962−1367112
Brive 20023357−2426011
Castres 20023265−3358000
Stade Français 20022072−52311000

Last 16 rankings
Key to colours
     Top 8 in Challenge Cup      Champions Cup 17th-24th
Team
 P W D L PF PA Diff TF TA TB LB Pts
London Irish 22006025+35932010
Ospreys 22007744+33962010
Cardiff Blues 22006120+4172109
Leicester Tigers 22006737+3073109
Zebre 21104341+254006
Agen 21013634+255105
Benetton 21014448−477105
Newcastle Falcons 21014650−456004
Ulster 20025667−1179123
Connacht 20024053−1358011
Northampton Saints 20023151−2035011
Bath 20021951−3226011
Montpellier 20022868−40310000
Dragons 20021671−55211000
Harlequins 20021470−5629000
Glasgow Warriors 2002070−70010000

Knockout stage

The knockout stage commenced with a round of 16 consisting of the top 8 ranked teams from the preliminary stage and the teams placed between 9th and 12th in each Champions Cup pool. Due to the truncation of the preliminary stage, a draw was used to determine matches in both round of 16 and quarter-finals but no team would face a team from the same league in the round of 16. Teams which won both their matches and were not awarded points due to COVID cancellations would be guaranteed home advantage. Therefore, Leicester Tigers, London Irish and Ospreys received home advantage.[5]

The draw for the round of 16 and quarter-finals took place on 9 March 2021 in Lausanne, Switzerland.[7]

Bracket
Round of 16 Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
        
Leicester Tigers 48
Connacht 32
Leicester Tigers 39
Newcastle Falcons 15
Ospreys 24
Newcastle Falcons 28
Leicester Tigers 33
Ulster 24
Dragons 39
Northampton Saints 43
Northampton Saints 27
Ulster 35
Harlequins 21
Ulster 57
Leicester Tigers 17
Montpellier 18
Zebre 27
Bath 35
Bath 26
London Irish 13
London Irish 41
Cardiff Blues 35
Bath 10
Montpellier 19
Montpellier 26
Glasgow Warriors 21
Montpellier 31
Benetton 25
Benetton 29
Agen 16

Round of 16

Fixtures were announced on 16 March 2021.[8]

2 April 2021
16:00 CET
Zebre 27–35 Bath
Try: Bruno 2' c, 9' c, 22' c
Con: Canna (3/3) 3', 10', 23'
Pen: Pescetto (2/3) 67', 71'
 Report Try: Cokanasiga 14' c
Stuart 40' c
Obano 45' c
Watson 61' c
du Toit 78' c
Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
Attendance: 0
Referee: Pierre Brousset (France)
2 April 2021
17:30 BST
London Irish 41–35 Cardiff Blues
Try: Loader 30' c
Hassell-Collins (2) 49' c, 74' c
Hepetema 71' c
Rona 79' c
Con: Jackson (5/5) 31', 49', 72', 76', 80'
Pen: Jackson (2/3) 13', 39'
 Report Try: Dacey 16' c
Adams 20' c
Harries 57' m
L. Williams 64' c
Con: Evans (3/4) 17', 20', 65'
Pen: Evans (2/3) 27', 46'
Drop: Evans 77'
Brentford Community Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
2 April 2021
21:00 CET
Montpellier 26–21 Glasgow Warriors
Try: Guirado 38' c
Bouthier 43' c
Con: Lozowski (2/2) 40', 44'
Pen: Lozowski (4/6) 14', 24', 58', 71'
 Report Pen: Hastings (5/5) 1', 16', 27', 55', 62'
Thompson (2/2) 70', 73'
GGL Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Karl Dickson (England)
3 April 2021
16:00 CET
Benetton 29–16 Agen
Try: Duvenage 20' m
Ioane 45' m
Brex 62' m
Padovani 73' m
Pen: Garbisi (3/3) 12', 29', 39'
 Report Try: Hayes 1' c
Con: Verdu (1/1) 2'
Pen: Verdu (3/3) 18', 50', 55'
Stadio Comunale di Monigo
Attendance: 0
Referee: Christophe Ridley (England)
3 April 2021
15:00 BST
Ospreys 24–28 Newcastle Falcons
Try: K. Williams 8' c
D. Evans 12' c
Botha 70' c
Con: Price (3/3) 9', 13', 71'
Pen: Price (1/1) 56'
 Report Try: Davison 33' c
Penalty try 38'
Robinson 41' c
McGuigan 64' m
van der Walt 66' c
Con: Connon (3/4) 34', 42', 67'
Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)
3 April 2021
17:30 BST
Dragons 39–43 Northampton Saints
Try: Hewitt (2) 11' c, 33' m
Screech 26' c
S. Davies 50' c
Brown 60' c
Con: S. Davies (4/5) 12', 26', 51', 60'
Pen: S. Davies (2/2) 6', 43'
 Report Try: Naiyaravoro (2) 36' c, 73' c
Sleightholme 41' c
Mitchell 54' c
Harrison 62' m
Collins 74' c
Con: Grayson (5/6) 37', 41, 55', 73' 75'
Pen: Grayson (1/1) 24'
Rodney Parade
Attendance: 0
Referee: Alexandre Ruiz (France)
3 April 2021
20:00 BST
Leicester Tigers 48–32 Connacht
Try: Clare (2) 11' m, 65' c
Porter 14' c
Moroni 27' m
Henry 31' c
Wells 73' c
Wiese 78' c
Con: Henry (2/4) 15', 32'
McPhillips (3/3) 66', 74', 79'
Pen: McPhillips (1/1) 57'
 Report Try: Marmion 6' m
E. Masterson 43' c
Wootton 56' c
Boyle 71' c
Con: Carty (2/3) 44', 59'
C. Fitzgerald (1/1) 71'
Pen: Carty (2/3) 23', 40+5'
Mattioli Woods Welford Road
Attendance: 0
Referee: Adam Jones (Wales)[lower-alpha 2]
4 April 2021
20:00 BST
Harlequins 21–57 Ulster
Try: Lawday 31' c
Kenningham 64' c
Els 77' c
Con: Herron (3/3) 32', 64', 78'
 Report Try: McCloskey 7' c
Herring (2) 21' c, 55' c
Reidy (2) 26' c, 69' c
Lowry 33' m
Burns 59' c
Mathewson 65' c
Con: Cooney (5/6) 8', 23', 27', 57', 60'
Madigan (2/2) 66', 70'
Pen: Cooney (1/1) 12'
Twickenham Stoop
Attendance: 0
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

Quarter-finals
9 April 2021
20:00 BST
Bath 26–13 London Irish
Try: McNally 8' c
Stuart (2) 23' c, 31' m
Mercer 67' c
Con: Spencer (3/4) 9', 24', 68'
 Report Try: Creevy 5' c
Con: Jackson (1/1) 6'
Pen: Jackson (2/2) 40', 63'
Recreation Ground
Attendance: 0
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
10 April 2021
12:30 BST
Leicester Tigers 39–15 Newcastle Falcons
Try: Potter (2) 4' m, 80' c
Penalty try (2) 13', 75'
Moroni 46' c
Con: McPhillips (1/2) 47'
Ford (1/1) 80+1'
Pen: McPhillips (1/1) 17'
Ford (1/1) 56'
 Report Try: Wacokecoke 32' m
Penny 48' c
Con: Connon (1/2) 50'
Pen: Connon (1/1) 9'
10 April 2021
20:00 BST
Northampton Saints 27–35 Ulster
Try: Mitchell 4' c
Freeman (2) 32' m, 34' c
Sleightholme 58' m
Con: Francis (2/4) 6', 35'
Pen: Francis (1/1) 16'
 Report Try: Penalty try 11'
Herring 24' c
M. Moore 46' c
Cooney 61' c
Stockdale 72' c
Con: Cooney (4/4) 25', 47', 62', 73'
10 April 2021
21:00 CET
Montpellier 31–25 Benetton
Try: Paillaugue (2) 11' m, 54' c
Willemse 36' c
Con: Paillaugue (2/3) 37', 55'
Pen: Paillaugue (3/3) 4', 29', 60'
Drop: Bouthier 24'
 Report Try: Garbisi 45' c
Con: Garbisi (1/1) 46'
Pen: Garbisi (5/6) 1', 6', 14', 27', 31'
Allan (1/1) 65'
GGL Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Karl Dickson (England)

Semi-finals

The draw for the semi-finals took place on 11 April 2021 at BT Sport's studios in London.[2]

30 April 2021
20:00 BST
Leicester Tigers 33–24 Ulster
Try: Wiese 44' c
Genge 52' c
Porter 73' c
Con: Ford (3/3) 44', 54', 75'
Pen: Ford (3/4) 6', 19', 49'
Drop: Ford 58'
 Report Try: Henderson 15' c
Burns 21' c
Timoney 67' c
Con: Cooney (2/2) 16', 22'
Lowry (1/1) 68'
Pen: Cooney (1/1) 9'
1 May 2021
20:00 BST
Bath 10–19 Montpellier
Try: Dunn 2' c
Con: B. Spencer (1/1) 3'
Pen: B. Spencer (1/2) 26'
 Report Try: Camara 22' c
Con: Paillaugue (1/1) 23'
Pen: Paillaugue (3/5) 19', 31', 36'
Pollard (1/1) 79'
Recreation Ground
Attendance: 0
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)

Final
21 May 2021
20:00
Leicester Tigers 17–18 Montpellier
Try: Wells 32' c
Wiese 46' c
Con: Ford (2/2) 34', 47'
Pen: Ford (1/2) 8'
 Report Try: Rattez 13' c
Goosen 57' m
Con: Paillaugue (1/2) 14'
Pen: Paillaugue (2/3) 16', 50'
FB15 Freddie Steward
RW14 Guy Porter 19'
OC13 Matías Moroni
IC12 Dan Kelly
LW11 Nemani Nadolo 68'
FH10 George Ford
SH9 Richard Wigglesworth 45'
N88 Jasper Wiese
OF7 Cyle Brink 29'
BF6 Hanro Liebenberg
RL5 Calum Green 77'
LL4 Harry Wells 60'
TP3 Dan Cole 52'
HK2 Tom Youngs (c) 52'
LP1 Ellis Genge 65'
Substitutions:
HK16 Charlie Clare 52'
PR17 Luan de Bruin 65'
PR18 Joe Heyes 52'
LK19 Cameron Henderson 77'
FL20 Tommy Reffell 29'
SH21 Ben Youngs 45'
FH22 Zack Henry 68'
WG23 Kini Murimurivalu 19'
Coach:
Steve Borthwick
FB15 Anthony Bouthier
RW14 Arthur Vincent 43'
OC13 Johan Goosen
IC12 Jan Serfontein 63'
LW11 Vincent Rattez
FH10 Alex Lozowski
SH9 Benoît Paillaugue 62'
N88 Alexandre Bécognée 29' to 40' 52' 55'
OF7 Yacouba Camara
BF6 Fulgence Ouedraogo 25'
RL5 Paul Willemse 77'
LL4 Florian Verhaeghe 67'
TP3 Mohamed Haouas 65'
HK2 Guilhem Guirado (c) 44' to 54' 65'
LP1 Enzo Forletta
Substitutions:
HK16 Bismarck du Plessis 52' 55' 65'
PR17 Robert Rodgers
PR18 Titi Lamositele 65'
LK19 Tyler Duguid 77'
FL20 Jacques du Plessis 25'
SH21 Cobus Reinach 62'
FH22 Handré Pollard 63'
CE23 Gabriel N'Gandebe 43'
Coach:
Philippe Saint-André

See also

Notes
  1. Hill was named as Worcester's club captain in July 2020, with Matt Moulds serving as team captain.
  2. Replaces Pascal Gaüzère who was originally appointed to the fixture but changed to Jones on 26 March
  3. Capacity limited to 10,000 due to national restrictions surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

References
  1. "New EPCR dates for 2019/20 announced". European Professional Club Rugby. 25 June 2020. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  2. "EPCR statement – 2021 Marseille finals and semi-final matches". European Professional Club Rugby. 31 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  3. "Twickenham Stadium to host 2021 EPCR finals". European Professional Club Rugby. 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  4. "EPCR tournaments temporarily suspended". European Professional Club Rugby. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  5. "Revised EPCR tournament formats for 2020/21 season announced". European Professional Club Rugby. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  6. "New EPCR tournament formats agreed for 2020/21 season". European Professional Club Rugby. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  7. "All you need to know about the European Rugby Challenge Cup knockout stage draws". European Professional Club Rugby. 8 March 2021. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
  8. "Challenge Cup Round of 16 fixture dates announced". European Professional Club Rugby. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
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