Ospreys
The Ospreys were Wales’ only Welsh representative in the Heineken Champions Cup for the 2019/20 season after beating local rivals the Scarlets for the final spot in the tournament at the back end of last season. It wouldn’t have been harsh to say that the Ospreys’ Champions Cup campaign was over before it started.
The Ospreys have been on their worst run of form since their inception in 2003 having only won one game all season, at home to Treviso in the Guinness Pro14. With a plethora of injuries along with off field crisis, being pooled alongside European giants Munster, Saracens and Racing 92 looked a recipe for disaster.
The Ospreys finished bottom of their group with just 2 match points, losing all 6 games and conceding more than 30 points in all but one game. Despite a weakened Saracens team being reduced to 14 men at the Liberty Stadium after 4 minutes, the Ospreys were still unable to get an elusive win which sums up their campaign. A season in the Challenge Cup looks inevitable for the Ospreys next season who will look to rebuild over the next few months.
Scarlets
The Scarlets missed out on qualification for the Champions Cup and played Challenge Cup rugby for the first time in their proud history. They were pooled alongside French giants, Toulon, Bayonne and newly promoted Gallagher Premiership side, London Irish.
The Scarlets started their campaign well with a hard fought win at home to London Irish, before coming close to sneaking a remarkable win away at Toulon where they played the majority of the game with 14 men after Tevita Ratuva’s first half red card before succumbing to a 87th minute converted try which saw them defeated 17-16. The Scarlets picked up 2 wins in the back to back games against Bayonne in December which put them in a great position to qualify from the group going into the final two games.
However, a disappointing defeat 27-15 to Toulon at Parc Y Scarlets meant that going into the final round of games, the men from West Wales needed a bonus point win in Reading against London Irish and for results to go their way if they had any chance of qualifying. Fortunately for the Scarlets, results went their way and the boys in red put on a phenomenal show for their vocal travelling support, winning the game 33-14 and getting the desired bonus point victory to see them into the knockout stages.
They now face the unenviable task of facing tournament favourites Toulon away in the Quarter Finals at the beginning of April.
Cardiff Blues
The Blues were back in the Challenge Cup for the 2019/20 after falling just short in their attempt for Champions Cup rugby. The Blues were pooled alongside Leicester Tigers, Pau, and Italian part timers Calvisano.
The Blues began with an expected comfortable win away to Calvisano before facing a weakened Leicester side at the Arms Park. Despite the weakened opposition, the Blues fell short, losing 14-11 against the English giants, which proved a major blow in their attempt to qualify.
The Blues got back on track in December with an outstanding bonus point win against big spending French club, Pau, but were unable to repeat the feat in France going down 34-29 in the reverse fixture.
Having lost 2/4, the Blues knew a win at Welford Road against Leicester was a necessity if they were to have any chance of qualifying. Unfortunately for the Welsh side, they went down 30-20 at Welford Road, all but ending their hopes of qualification.
A ten try, 64-3 drubbing of Calvisano, saw the Blues end their campaign on a high but it wasn’t enough to qualify, finishing 3rd in their group, and missing out on the chance of adding to their 2010 & 2018 Challenge Cup successes.
Dragons
After being Wales’ least successful region for a number of years, the Dragons, under the stewardship of Dean Ryan were looking to make a statement in the 2019/20 Challenge Cup. Pooled alongside Worcester Warriors, Castres Olympique and Russian side Enisei STM, the ever improving Dragons would have been quietly confident of qualifying.
In the opening game, the Dragons put in a vintage performance at home to Castres, winning 31-17 and picking up a try bonus point. The Dragons then made the long trip to Krasnador where they faced Siberian based Enisei STM, the Dragons again picked up a bonus point win, winning 49-22, putting themselves on 10 points out of a possible 10 after the opening 2 rounds.
The Dragons then took on Worcester in the back to back games in December, winning at home, but losing away. Despite the loss away from home, the Dragons were still in a great position to qualify from their group.
Their ambitions took a hit in Round 5 however, when Castres put them to the sword 42-14. The Dragons went into Round 6 knowing they needed a bonus point win and results to go their way to qualify. The Dragons got their bonus point win, winning 47-5 at home to Enisei and Castres victory at Worcester saw the Dragons qualify in 2nd place.
The Dragons will now take on Bristol away in the Quarter finals, in a game that promises to be a mouth watering encounter between 2 Anglo-Welsh rivals.
