Bath Rugby underlined their Investec Champions Cup intent with a six try statement away to Castres on Friday, while Edinburgh roared back from a 13 point halftime deficit to stun Gloucester and keep Pool 2 wide open going into the final round.<\/p>\n
Bath won 43 – 20 at Stade Pierre Fabre, running in tries through Cameron Redpath, Tom Dunn, Beno Obano, Ted Hill, Will Muir and Tom Carr Smith to move to two wins from three in pool play. After leading 21 – 17 at the break in heavy conditions, Johann van Graan\u2019s side tightened its grip after halftime, leaning on forward power and territory before the finishing kick arrived late. The win steadied Bath after last month\u2019s setback at Toulon and showed they can travel in Europe.<\/p>\n
Edinburgh, also in Pool 2, boosted its qualification push by beating Gloucester 26 – 24 at Hive Stadium. Gloucester led 18 – 5 at halftime after tries from Josh Hathaway and Charlie Atkinson, but Edinburgh controlled the third quarter and finally cracked the visitors when hooker Ewan Ashman forced his way through. Liam McConnell\u2019s try under the posts dragged Edinburgh within striking distance, and a late penalty try swung the contest as the home side produced 14 unanswered points after the break.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere in the Champions Cup, Leinster continued its run of narrow escapes by edging La Rochelle 25 – 24 in Dublin. Leinster\u2019s composure in the closing moments again proved decisive, delivering a third straight win that keeps its momentum rolling into Round 4. In Pool 1, Sale handled the Sharks 26 – 10, while Glasgow stayed unbeaten by winning 33 – 21 away to Clermont. In Pool 4, Bristol outlasted the Bulls in a wild 110 point shootout, winning 61 – 49 in Pretoria, and Pau earned its first win with a 47 – 38 victory at Scarlets.<\/p>\n
Sunday\u2019s headline acts came with heavyweight name value and a clear sense of consequence. Saracens beat Toulouse 20 – 14 in London, defending for long spells to hand the six time champions a second defeat and keep Pool 1 tense. Union Bordeaux B\u00e8gles delivered a reminder of its ceiling, beating Northampton Saints 50 – 28 with eight tries in a performance that looked every bit like a knockout rehearsal. Harlequins produced the most emphatic scoreline of the weekend, smashing the previously unbeaten Stormers 61 – 10 as the London club piled on nine tries. Toulon then held off Munster 27 – 25 at Stade Mayol in a finish that swung late with a controversial penalty and left the pool math even more crowded.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The EPCR Challenge Cup delivered its own shakeups, particularly in Pool 2, where the Emirates Lions edged Lyon 42 – 33 and Newcastle Red Bulls beat Perpignan 26 – 19. Benetton posted one of the scores of the weekend across both competitions, routing Dragons 74 – 21.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Pool 1, Montpellier nipped Connacht 33 – 31 and Zebre beat Ospreys 23 – 19, while in Pool 3, Ulster were awarded a 28 – 0 victory over the Cheetahs due to the South African side’s Dutch ‘home stadium’ being deemed unplayable. Closing out the action Stade Francais beat Exeter 27 – 25 in a titanic tussle.<\/p>\n
Japan Rugby League One resumed after the New Year break with another weekend that underscored why the competition remains a tricky fit for global comparisons.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Urayasu D Rocks earned a 28 – 22 win over Yokohama Canon Eagles, Saitama Wild Knights pulled away to beat Shizuoka BlueRevs 37 – 22, and Kubota Spears stayed unbeaten with a 45 – 21 win over Mie Honda Heat. Kobe Steelers snatched a late 22 – 20 win over Tokyo Sungoliath, Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo beat Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars 47 – 22, and BlackRams Tokyo rallied to beat Toyota Verblitz 37 – 29 after trailing at halftime.<\/p>\n
Power rankings reflect all of it. Big European away wins and Champions Cup results tend to move the needle more than domestic games, while blowouts get capped so one freak scoreline cannot break the system. That context matters when Japanese clubs climb quickly early in the season on a low match count, even with strong results.<\/p>\n
Power rankings model breakdown\u00a0<\/p>\n
This power rankings system uses a single global Elo rating. Every team starts on the same baseline, and each finished match adjusts the two teams up or down based on the expected result.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Home advantage is built in, so away wins earn a bigger reward than home wins, and home losses are punished more. The size of the rating change is driven by a K value that is higher early in a team\u2019s season and gradually decreases as the sample grows.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Each competition also has a weight, so results in stronger competitions carry more value than those in weaker ones. Margin of victory matters, but it is capped so a 60 point blowout does not create unrealistic jumps. Finally, \u201cupsets\u201d matter. If the underdog wins based on pre match ratings, the rating swing increases. The goal is a system that reacts to results but stays stable over time.<\/p>\n
Full rankings1 Bristol Bears 1652
2 Glasgow Warriors 1644
3 DHL Stormers 1639
4 Leinster 1626
5 Northampton Saints 1620
6 Bath 1601
7 Saitama Wild Knights 1582
8 Ulster 1580
9 Bordeaux B\u00e8gles 1580
10 Kubota Spears 1575
11 Toulon 1562
12 Stade Francais 1560
13 Exeter Chiefs 1558
14 Pau 1557
15 Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 1548
16 Kobelco Kobe Steelers 1548
17 Racing 92 1546
18 Edinburgh 1544
19 Toulouse 1540
20 Urayasu D Rocks 1537
21 Leicester Tigers 1528
22 Cardiff Rugby 1524
23 La Rochelle 1523
24 Saracens 1521
25 Munster 1519
26 Sale Sharks 1518
27 Emirates Lions 1500
28 Black Rams Tokyo 1504
29 Benetton 1499
30 Montpellier 1499
31 Tokyo Sungoliath 1495
32 Harlequins 1492
33 Castres 1482
34 Ospreys 1481
35 Bayonne 1480
36 Newcastle Red Bulls 1473
37 Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars 1459
38 Black Lion 1458
39 Toyota Verblitz 1447
40 ASM Clermont Auvergne 1447
41 Shizuoka BlueRevs 1438
42 Hollywoodbets Sharks 1433
43 Zebre 1433
44 Lyon 1399
45 Dragons 1421
46 Yokohama Canon Eagles 1420
47 Vodacom Bulls 1417
48 MIE Honda Heat 1412
49 Connacht 1410
50 Scarlets 1401
51 Cheetahs 1390
52 Gloucester Rugby 1389
53 Perpignan 1387
54 Montauban 1294How To Watch Investec Champions Cup Round 3 Matches<\/p>\n
All Investec Champions Cup matches stream live on FloRugby and the FloSports app.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Investec Champions Cup Round 3 FixturesFriday, Jan. 93 p.m. ET: Castres Olympique vs. Bath Rugby, Stade Pierre-Fabre3 p.m. ET: Edinburgh Rugby vs. Gloucester Rugby, TBDSaturday, Jan. 108 a.m. ET: Vodacom Bulls vs. Bristol Bears, Loftus Versfeld10:15 a.m. ET: Clermont Auvergne vs. Glasgow Warriors, Stade Marcel-Michelin12:30 p.m. ET: Leinster Rugby vs. La Rochelle, TBD12:30 p.m. ET: Sale Sharks vs. Hollywoodbets Sharks, Salford Community Stadium3 p.m. ET: Scarlets vs. Pau, Parc y Scarlets3 p.m. ET: Leicester Tigers vs. Bayonne, Mattioli Woods Welford RoadSunday, Jan. 118 a.m. ET: Harlequins vs. DHL Stormers, Twickenham Stoop8 a.m. ET: Toulon vs. Munster Rugby, Stade F\u00e9lix Mayol10:15 a.m. ET: Bordeaux-B\u00e8gles vs. Northampton Saints, Stade Chaban-Delmas12:30 p.m. ET: Saracens vs. Toulouse, StoneX StadiumInvestec Champions Cup Round 4 FixturesFriday, Jan. 163 p.m. ET: Pau vs. Vodacom Bulls, Stade du Hameau3 p.m. ET: Bath Rugby vs. Edinburgh Rugby, The RecSaturday, Jan. 178 a.m. ET: Hollywoodbets Sharks vs. Clermont Auvergne, Hollywoodbets Kings Park10:15 a.m. ET: Bayonne vs. Leinster Rugby, Stade Jean Dauger10:15 a.m. ET: DHL Stormers vs. Leicester Tigers, DHL Stadium12:30 p.m. ET: Toulouse vs. Sale Sharks, Stade Ernest Wallon12:30 p.m. ET: Munster Rugby vs. Castres Olympique, Thomond Park3 p.m. ET: Gloucester Rugby vs. Toulon, KingsholmSunday, Jan. 188 a.m. ET: Bristol Bears vs. Bordeaux-B\u00e8gles, Ashton Gate10:15 a.m. ET: Northampton Saints vs. Scarlets, cinch Stadium @ Franklin\u2019s Gardens10:15 a.m. ET: La Rochelle vs. Harlequins, Stade Marcel Deflandre12:30 p.m. ET: Glasgow Warriors vs. Saracens, Scotstoun StadiumHow To Watch Investec Champions Cup Round 3 Matches<\/p>\n
All EPCR Challenge Cup matches stream live on FloRugby and the FloSports app.\u00a0<\/p>\n
EPCR Challenge Cup Round 3 FixturesSat, Jan. 10, 20267 a.m. ET: Stade Fran\u00e7ais Paris vs. Exeter Chiefs, Stade Jean Bouin7 a.m. ET: US Montauban vs. Black Lion, Stade Sapiac7 a.m. ET: Newcastle Red Bulls vs. Perpignan, Kingston Park9:15 a.m. ET: Lions vs. Lyon O.U., Ellis Park9:15 a.m. ET: Cardiff Rugby vs. Racing 92, Cardiff Arms Park11:30 a.m. ET: Benetton Rugby vs. Dragons RFC, Stadio MonigoSun, Jan. 11, 20267 a.m. ET: Montpellier H\u00e9rault Rugby vs. Connacht Rugby, Septeo Stadium7 a.m. ET: Zebre Parma vs. Ospreys, Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi9:15 a.m. ET: Toyota Cheetahs vs. Ulster Rugby, NRCA StadiumEPCR Challenge Cup Round 4 FixturesFri, Jan. 16, 20262 p.m. ET: Dragons RFC vs. Newcastle Red Bulls, Rodney ParadeSat, Jan. 17, 20267 a.m. ET: Ulster Rugby vs. Stade Fran\u00e7ais Paris, Affidea Stadium7 a.m. ET: Black Lion vs. Zebre Parma, Mikheil Meskhi Stadium11:30 a.m. ET: Perpignan vs. Lions, Stade Aim\u00e9 Giral2 p.m. ET: Connacht Rugby vs. US Montauban, Dexcom Stadium2 p.m. ET: Ospreys vs. Montpellier H\u00e9rault Rugby, Dunraven Brewery FieldSun, Jan. 18, 20267 a.m. ET: Exeter Chiefs vs. Cardiff Rugby, Sandy Park7 a.m. ET: Lyon O.U. vs. Benetton Rugby, Matmut Stadium de Gerland11:30 a.m. ET: Racing 92 vs. Toyota Cheetahs, Paris La D\u00e9fense ArenaHow To Watch Rugby Matches In The United States On FloRugby<\/p>\n
The URC will stream all its matches on FloRugby and the FloSports app in the United States. FloRugby and FloSports also are the U.S. home to:\u00a0<\/p>\n
FloRugby also is home to match archives and match replays.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Join The Rugby Conversation On FloRugby Social<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Bath Rugby underlined their Investec Champions Cup intent with a six try statement away to Castres on Friday,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":412639,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-412638","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-rugby","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=412638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412638\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/412639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=412638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=412638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=412638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}