REPLACEMENTS:

16: Richardt Strauss
17: Cian Healy
18: Jamie Hagan
19: Leo Cullen
20: Shane Jennings
21: John Cooney
22: Andrew Goodman
23: Dave Kearney

that bench is strong, Strauss, Healy and cullen all first choice players.

first time in my life ill say that im disappointed that donkey cullen isnt playing. he's great at getting in the ref's ear, all game long and with nigel owens being the ref, he'd get his way!

Yeah, bad enough BOD and D'Arcy are out which necessitates changes, but they've made a handful in the pack as well. Will be sweating this one out tomorrow.

Its gonna be Squeaky bum time for all Connacht fans

Nervous now!

croket wrote: Go Leinster, Go Connacht, Go Perpignan

Amen to that, sir, maybe we'll draw Perpignan if all goes plan tomorrow night.

Friends, you hope Leinster will win Amlin in order to be qualified in Heineken Cup. I hope too a victory of Leinster, because if Stade Français don't win, Perpignan (my team) will be qualified too, as 7th French
Go Leinster, Go Connacht, Go Perpignan

_nobody_ wrote: Leinster team has been named. No O'Driscoll or Darcy and Healy is rested as well.

Kearney, Conway, McFadden, Madigan, Nacewa, Sexton, Boss, McGrath, Cronin, Ross, Roux, Toner, Ruddock, O'Brien, Heaslip.



I hope they don't mess this up!!!

I'm getting increasingly worried too. I don't watch any French rugby and I didn't catch any of Stade's Amlin games, but I've heard they are well up for this one. Apparently they rested some of their top players for the last 3 weeks in preparation for this. Still, with home advantage I'm hopeful Leinster will do us another favour.

Leinster team has been named. No O'Driscoll or Darcy and Healy is rested as well.

Kearney, Conway, McFadden, Madigan, Nacewa, Sexton, Boss, McGrath, Cronin, Ross, Roux, Toner, Ruddock, O'Brien, Heaslip.



I hope they don't mess this up!!!

salmson wrote: Been looking at who we might get in the HEC year, assuming Leinster sponsor us for a third year....

Tier 1 any one of the big French teams (Toulouse, Clermont, Toulon); likewise Tier 2 we can get anyone of the 6 (Northampton, Quins, Cardiff, Saracens, Leicester, Perpignan) so good chance an English team.

Only Tier with skewed odds (due to France having an extra place and us not being able to draw 2 English teams) is Tier 4.

Odds as follows:

English team (Exeter/Gloucester) 14%
French team (Castres/Racing) 39%
Italian team (Treviso/Zebre) 47%

How stange would it be if we got Castres in the Pool stage considering we play them in a pre season match on Saturday August 10th.
Would also love a return trip to Zebra :evil: :woohoo: :sick:

Been looking at who we might get in the HEC year, assuming Leinster sponsor us for a third year....

Tier 1 any one of the big French teams (Toulouse, Clermont, Toulon); likewise Tier 2 we can get anyone of the 6 (Northampton, Quins, Cardiff, Saracens, Leicester, Perpignan) so good chance an English team.

Only Tier with skewed odds (due to France having an extra place and us not being able to draw 2 English teams) is Tier 4.

Odds as follows:

English team (Exeter/Gloucester) 14%
French team (Castres/Racing) 39%
Italian team (Treviso/Zebre) 47%

www.ercrugby.com/eng/news/21107.php

Guys

Check out the ERC web site. Hope the link above works

Detailed breakdown of who might qualify and picture of the Clan Tec.

CAN YOU SPOT YOURSELF. :woohoo: :woohoo:

ERC Rugby wrote: Qualification, meritocracy and European glory
www.ercrugby.com/eng/news/20916.php?#.UXgTWKKfhd4

With eight leading clubs still in the race for coveted Dublin 2013 Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup final berths, this weekend's European semi-finals will be watched keenly by Bath Rugby, Connacht Rugby and London Wasps among others as their hopes of qualification for the 2013/14 Heineken Cup hang in the balance.

In addition to the qualification quest, approximately €6.7 million (euro) in ERC meritocracy payments will be distributed to the countries of clubs which progress to the Heineken Cup knockout stage, and which reach the Amlin Challenge Cup final.

Since the 2009/10 season, both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup winners qualify automatically for the following season's Heineken Cup and each winner earns an extra Heineken Cup place for their countries - over and above the guaranteed allocations of six clubs for France and England, three for Ireland and Wales and two for Scotland and Italy.

If clubs from the same country win both tournaments, one additional place is earned for that nation with the 24th and final Heineken Cup spot determined by the ERC European rankings.

With the incentive of a third successive season in the Heineken Cup, Connacht will be supporting both Munster Rugby, who take on in-form ASM Clermont Auvergne in a Heineken Cup semi-final in Montpellier on Saturday, and Leinster Rugby, who clash with Biarritz Olympique in the Amlin Challenge Cup semi-final the same day.

Meanwhile, the Basque club could repeat their feat of last season and book a place in the 2013/14 Heineken Cup by winning the Amlin Challenge Cup which would increase the French representation in the tournament to seven.

Should Clermont and Toulon both reach the Heineken Cup final, a French winner would bring seven French clubs into next season's tournament with Perpignan in pole position to benefit based on their current seventh place in the Top 14. However, the Catalan club, who are up against Stade Francais Paris in Friday's Amlin Challenge Cup semi-final, could also guarantee themselves Heineken Cup rugby in 2013/14 by winning the Amlin Challenge Cup.

Bath fans will be getting behind Saracens who meet Toulon in a heavyweight Heineken Cup semi-final at Twickenham Stadium on Sunday. A Saracens triumph in next month's Dublin 2013 final would see Bath qualify for next season's tournament as the current seventh placed club in the Aviva Premiership.

To add to the intrigue, should French clubs wins both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup finals, then London Wasps could make a return to the Heineken Cup next season as the highest-placed, non-qualified club in the ERC European rankings.

ERC European rankings as they stand

Meritocracy

The success of French clubs, with three Heineken Cup quarter-finalists and two semi-finalists, has earned their country in the region of €2.25 million (euro) in meritocracy payments in addition to their share of the ERC's central distribution for 2012/13,

Ireland will receive approximately €1.35 million (euro) in addition to their share of central distribution from Ulster's quarter-final spot and Munster's progression to the semi-finals.

As it stands, England will earn an additional €1.8 million (euro) from three clubs in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals and Saracens' progression to the semi-final.

Each place in the Heineken Cup knockout stage will earn a club's country close to €450,000 (euro) with an estimated €6.3 million (euro) in meritocracy payments shared across the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals of the top-tier tournament.

There is an additional meritocracy payment of €450,000 (euro) to be shared by the nations or nation of the finalists of the Amlin Challenge Cup.


2013/14 Heineken Cup qualification scenarios

• If Biarritz Olympique win their Amlin Challenge Cup semi-final, an all-French final will ensure a seventh Heineken Cup spot for France in 2013/14 including the Amlin Challenge Cup winner.

• If Leinster win their semi-final and the Amlin Challenge Cup final, they will earn an additional fourth Heineken Cup spot for Ireland ensuring Connacht's qualification.

• If Munster win the Heineken Cup, they will earn an additional fourth Heineken Cup spot for Ireland ensuring Connacht's qualification.

• If Leinster win the Amlin Challenge Cup and Munster win the Heineken Cup, Ireland will earn an additional fourth Heineken Cup ensuring Connacht's qualification. As Ireland can only have four clubs per season, the 24th Heineken Cup place will go to the highest-ranked club in the ERC European rankings which is not already qualified for the tournament. Based on the current rankings, Biarritz would earn the 24th place.

• If a French club wins the Heineken Cup, France will have seven clubs in next season's tournament.

• If Saracens win their Heineken Cup semi-final and the final, they will earn an additional seventh spot for England with Bath qualifying based on their current seventh place in the Aviva Premiership.

• If French clubs win both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup finals, France will earn a seventh tournament place next season. As France can only have seven clubs per season, the 24th Heineken Cup place will go to the highest-ranked club in the ERC European rankings which is not already qualified for the tournament. Based on the current rankings, London Wasps would earn the 24th place.

This confuses me but from what I can tell Wasps will pick up the extra spot as the next highest ranked team who didn't qualify?

However, Exeter look pretty much certain to get the final HC spot which should mean by my rough calculations we will be 3rd seeds if we make it again?

actually reading back, that was a bad result for us.

now we need leinster or munster to win either the amlin or heineken cup

edit: pinky ya your right. i got it wrong, weekend and all that

swift4prez wrote:

pinky wrote: I'd almost forgotten about this old rule:

<strong>However, England and France, who have six automatic places, will only be allowed a maximum of seven teams, so if either country wins both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup the second additional spot will pass on to the club with the highest ERC European Ranking who has not already qualified from any of the other five nations.</strong>

So even if Leinster or Munster don't do the business for us, then as long as Sarries don't win the H Cup, the last place will go to the highest ranked non-French team that's not already qualified.

At present that would be Wasps, but if they get into the top 6 in the Premiership (i.e. beat Exeter next weekend), the next highest would be Connacht.

Always handy to know there's a doggie flap in the back door.

exeter won today vs wasps and now is 8 points ahead of wasps with 1 game to go.
so if sarries, leinster and munster get beat in the semi next weekend, we will 100% be in the heineken cup??? i think thats right.

Nope, the two French teams option is a dead duck now due to Exeter winning.
If French teams win both competitions now Wasps get in as the highest ranked unqualified team.

So Connacht need either Leinster or Munster to win.

Good news though is that if that happens, Connacht will definitely be in the third pot in the draw as there are now definitely six teams ranked below them that will qualify.

As it stands if Leinster and Clermont both win, the pots would be:

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Leinster	Northampton	Edinburgh	Gloucester
Toulouse	Harlequins	Ospreys	Bath/Exeter
Clermont	Cardiff	Scarlets	Castres
Toulon	Saracens	Glasgow	Racing
Munster	Leicester	Montpellier	Treviso
Ulster	Perpignan	Connacht	Zebre

If either Leinster winning the Amlin or French teams winning both competitions gets us in, then Leinster don't need to get beat, just Saracens and Munster?

Actually for that matter we just want Sarries out, as any of the other teams gets us in....

So basically if Toulon win at the w/e we're home and hosed?

pinky wrote: I'd almost forgotten about this old rule:

However, England and France, who have six automatic places, will only be allowed a maximum of seven teams, so if either country wins both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup the second additional spot will pass on to the club with the highest ERC European Ranking who has not already qualified from any of the other five nations.

So even if Leinster or Munster don't do the business for us, then as long as Sarries don't win the H Cup, the last place will go to the highest ranked non-French team that's not already qualified.

At present that would be Wasps, but if they get into the top 6 in the Premiership (i.e. beat Exeter next weekend), the next highest would be Connacht.

Always handy to know there's a doggie flap in the back door.

exeter won today vs wasps and now is 8 points ahead of wasps with 1 game to go.
so if sarries, leinster and munster get beat in the semi next weekend, we will 100% be in the heineken cup??? i think thats right.