New year, same old problems.
The third round of the Champions Cup is upon us, with the tournament already predictably - depressingly - ravaged by Covid-19.
Eight fixtures have fallen by the wayside so far, cancelled or postponed through a mixture of case numbers and government restrictions.
Other games have been reduced to non-contests with clubs having to field heavily depleted teams. The whole competition is shrouded in familiar feelings of doom and déjà vu.
But - for now - the show must go on. All four provinces are set to be in action this weekend, and all four already have at least one win under their belt and aspirations of reaching the knockout stages.
Since the last round of European games the Irish sides have been spreading Festive cheer by knocking lumps out of each other in the United Rugby Championship.
Apart from Leinster that is - they haven’t played since the December 11th win over Bath at the Aviva Stadium, after being plagued by positive cases over Christmas.
The continent’s premier club competition has been dragged through the mud recently but - hopefully - the worst will soon be over, and we can concentrate on matters on the pitch.
Here’s everything you need to know as the Champions Cup gets back underway.
What is it?
The third round of the 2021-22 Champions Cup.
When is it?
The fixtures will be played from Friday January 14th to Sunday January 16th.
How can I watch it?
Every fixture is being broadcast live on BT Sport, with the early kick-off on Saturday - Wasps at home to Toulouse - also being shown free-to-air on Virgin Media and Channel 4.
How does it work again?
Seeing as brains are still a bit fuzzy from Christmas indulgence, here’s a refresher on this year’s format:
There are 24 teams - eight each from the Pro14, English Premiership and Top 14 - which have been divided into two pools of 12.
Each side will play four pool matches each, two at home and two away. The eight highest-ranked sides in each pool will progress to a two-legged last-16, followed by quarter-finals, semis and the final.
What are the fixtures and results so far?
All kick-off times Irish. All games live on BT Sport.
Round One
Tuesday December 7th
Bristol Bears 28 Scarlets 0, Ashton Gate, (Scarlets forfeit)
Friday December 10th
Northampton Saints 14 Racing 45, Franklin’s Gardens, 8pm
Saturday December 11th
Cardiff Blues 7 Toulouse 39, Cardiff Arms Park, 1pm (Virgin Media/Channel 4)
Bordeaux-Begles 13 Leicester Tigers 16, Stade Chaban-Delmas, 3.15pm
Leinster 45 Bath 10, Aviva Stadium, 3.15pm
Clermont 23 Ulster 29, Stade Marcel-Michelin, 5.30pm
Exeter Chiefs 42 Montpellier 6, Sandy Park, 8pm
Sunday December 12th
Ospreys 13 Sale Sharks 21, Liberty Stadium, 1pm
Connacht 36 Stade Francais 9, The Sportsground, 1pm
Wasps 14 Munster 35, Ricoh Arena, 3.15pm
La Rochelle 20 Glasgow Warriors 13, Stade Marcel Deflandre, 3.15pm
Castres 18 Harlequins 20, Stade Pierre Fabre, 5.30pm
Round Two
Friday December 17th
Montpellier 28-0 Leinster, GGL Stadium, 8pm (match awarded to Montpellier)
Ulster 27 Northampton Saints 22, Kingspan Stadium, 8pm
Saturday December 18th
Harlequins 43 Cardiff 17, Twickenham Stoop, 1pm (Virgin Media/Channel 4)
Bath 0 La Rochelle 0, The Rec, 1pm (match postponed then cancelled)
Sale Sharks 0 Clermont 0, AJ Bell Stadium, 3.15pm (match postponed then cancelled)
Racing 92 28 Ospreys 0, La Defense Arena, 5.30pm (match awarded to Racing 92)
Glasgow Warriors 22 Exeter Chiefs 7, Scotstoun, 5.30pm
Munster 19 Castres 13, Thomond Park, 8pm
Sunday December 19th
Leicester Tigers 29 Connacht 23, Welford Road, 1pm
Scarlets 0 Bordeaux-Begles 0, Parc Y Scarlets, 1pm (match postponed then cancelled)
Toulouse 0 Wasps 0, Stade Ernest Wallon, 3.15pm (match postponed then cancelled)
Stade Francais 0 Bristol Bears 0, Stade Jean Bouin, 5.30pm (match postponed then cancelled)
Round Three
Friday January 14th
Cardiff v Harlequins, Cardiff Arms Park, 8pm
Castres v Munster, Stade Pierre Fabre, 8pm
Saturday January 15th
Wasps v Toulouse, Ricoh Arena, 1pm (Virgin Media/Channel 4)
Ospreys v Racing 92, Liberty Stadium, 3.15pm
Connacht v Leicester, The Sportsground, 3.15pm
Exeter Chiefs v Glasgow Warriors, 5.30pm
La Rochelle v Bath, Stade Marcel Deflandre, 5.30pm
Bristol Bears v Stade Francais, Ashton Gate, 8pm
Sunday January 16th
Leinster v Montpellier, RDS Arena, 1pm
Northampton Saints v Ulster, Franklin's Gardens, 3.15pm
Bordeaux v Scarlets, Stade Chaban-Delmas, 3.15pm
Clermont v Sale Sharks, Stade Marcel-Michelin, 5.30pm
Round Four
Friday January 21st
Harlequins v Castres, Twickenham Stoop, 8pm
Saturday January 22nd
Bath v Leinster, The Rec, 1pm (Virgin Media/Channel 4)
Toulouse v Cardiff Blues, Stade Ernest Wallon, 1pm
Leicester v Bordeaux-Begles, Welford Road, 3.15pm
Ulster v Clermont, Kingspan Stadium, 5.30pm
Scarlets v Bristol Bears, Parc y Scarlets, 5.30pm
Glasgow Warriors v La Rochelle, Scotstoun, 8pm
Sunday January 23rd
Sale Sharks v Ospreys, AJ Bell Stadium, 1pm
Stade Francais v Connacht, Stade Jean Bouin, 1pm
Racing 92 v Northampton Saints, La Defense Arena, 3.15pm
Munster v Wasps, Thomond Park, 3.15pm
Montpellier v Exeter Chiefs, GGL Stadium, 5.30pm
Knockout dates
April 8th-10th - Last-16 first leg
April 15th-17th - Last-16 second leg
May 6th-8th - Quarter-finals
May 13th-15th - Semi-finals
Friday May 27th - Final
What are the latest pool tables?
Pool A
Pool B
Leinster’s Covid nightmare
The four-time European champions began their pursuit of a fifth title with a comprehensive 45-20 win over Bath in Dublin on December 11th - over a month later and they are yet to take to the field again.
Their scheduled clash with Montpellier on Friday December 17th was then called off, with both provinces struck down with Covid-19 cases. However with Leinster unable to field a side, Montpellier have since been awarded a 28-0 walkover - much to the chagrin of Leo Cullen and his troops.
Leinster’s subsequent URC games over Christmas against Munster and Ulster were also called off. The province are fully intending to return to action against the French this weekend however, despite a fresh case in their camp and new cases within the Montpellier squad.
Why have some teams been handed 0-0 draws?
Earlier this week the EPCR announced five of the postponed fixtures from round two would go down as cancellations. They were - Bath v La Rochelle, Sale v Clermont Auvergne, Scarlets v Bordeaux-Bègles, Toulouse v Wasps and Stade Francais v Bristol Bears.
All of these fixtures have been recorded as 0-0 draws, after being postponed due to the introduction of new travel restrictions between France and the UK.
Because these games were called off due to restrictions rather than positive case numbers, the teams involved have escaped with a draw rather than one team being awarded a 28-0 victory - as happened with Leinster and Montpellier.
Can I go?
With attendances in Ireland still limited to 5,000 or 50 per cent or capacity, tickets are hard to come by and both Connacht’s clash with Leicester in Galway and Leinster against Montpellier at the RDS have sold out.
What’s the weekend betting?
Castres 11-8 Munster 8-15 Draw 20-1 (Munster -4 10-11)
Connacht Evs Leicester 8-11 Draw 20-1 (Leicester -1 10-11)
Northampton 5-4 Ulster 4-7 Draw 20-1 (Ulster -3 10-11)
