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2015–16 European Rugby Champions–Challenge Cup play-offs

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2015–16 European Rugby Champions–Challenge Cup play-offs
EventEuropean Rugby Champions Cup Qualification Play-off
Date23 and 30 May 2015

The 2015–16 European Rugby Champions Cup-Challenge Cup play-off was the second play-off for entry into the top-level competition of European Club rugby union, the European Rugby Champions Cup.

Format

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Following the two-team play-off in 2014–15, an expanded, four-team format was due to be used. However, on 24 September 2014, it was announced this would instead be a three-team play-off, with the highest placed non-qualifying team taking part.[1]

To accommodate the longer season in the French Top 14, the format was announced as follows:

  • One team each would qualify from the Premiership and the Pro12, with each league being represented by the highest placed team not already qualified. These two teams would play in the first game, with home advantage in the match would be decided by a coin toss. In the event that the 2014–15 European Rugby Challenge Cup winner was a Premiership club, and it had not automatically qualified for the Champions Cup, it would take the place allocated to a Premiership team.[2]
  • The winner of the first game would host the 7th placed team in the French Top 14. The winner of that game would qualify for the Champions Cup.[citation needed]

Gloucester became the first team to qualify for the play-off, taking the place allocated to the Premiership, when they beat Edinburgh 19–13 in the Challenge Cup final on 1 May 2015. This result meant that the 7th place team in the 2014–15 Premiership will no longer take part in the play-off, and will compete in the Challenge Cup. Connacht qualified next, when the finished seventh in the 2014–15 Pro12 with 50 points, narrowly edging Edinburgh who had 48 points. Bordeaux Bègles qualified for the play-off on 23 May 2015.[citation needed]

Connacht played Gloucester away at Gloucester's Kingsholm Stadium on Sunday 24 May 2015,[3] with the venue having been decided earlier by a coin toss.[4] It was decided that, in the event of a Gloucester win, the second play-off match would be played at Sixways Stadium in Worcester, to avoid a clash of fixtures with a Madness concert.[citation needed]

Teams

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League Team Coach Stadium
Premiership Gloucester Ireland David Humphreys Kingsholm Stadium
Pro12 Connacht Samoa Pat Lam Galway Sportsgrounds
Top 14 Bordeaux Bègles France Raphaël Ibañez Stade André Moga

Matches

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Match 1

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24 May 2015
15:30 GMT
Gloucester England40−32
(a.e.t.)
Ireland Connacht
Try: Moriarty 1' c
Sharples 26' m
Meakes 80' c
Dawidiuk 95' m
May 98' c
Con: Laidlaw (3/5) 1', 80', 98'
Pen: Laidlaw (2/3) 19', 43'
Hook (1/1) 92'
Report[5]Try: J. Cooney 8' c
Carty 29' c
Healy (2) 60' m, 92' c
Con: Carty (3/4) 9', 30', 92'
Pen: Carty (2/3) 7', 79'
Kingsholm Stadium, Gloucester
Attendance: 7,633
Referee: Romain Poite (FFR)
FB 15 England Charlie Sharples downward-facing red arrow 64'
RW 14 England Jonny May
OC 13 Australia Bill Meakes
IC 12 England Billy Twelvetrees (c)
LW 11 England Henry Purdy downward-facing red arrow 50'
FH 10 Wales James Hook
SH 9 Scotland Greig Laidlaw
N8 8 England Ross Moriarty downward-facing red arrow 71' upward-facing green arrow 88'
OF 7 Wales Dan Thomas downward-facing red arrow 33' upward-facing green arrow 44' downward-facing red arrow 65'
BF 6 England Jacob Rowan
RL 5 England Tom Palmer
LL 4 England Tom Savage
TP 3 New Zealand John Afoa yellow card 33' to 43' downward-facing red arrow 88'
HK 2 Wales Richard Hibbard downward-facing red arrow 59'
LP 1 England Nick Wood downward-facing red arrow 65'
Replacements:
HK 16 England Darren Dawidiuk upward-facing green arrow 59'
PR 17 England Yann Thomas upward-facing green arrow 65'
PR 18 England Shaun Knight upward-facing green arrow 33' downward-facing red arrow 44' upward-facing green arrow 88'
LK 19 England Elliott Stooke upward-facing green arrow 71'
FL 20 England Lewis Ludlow upward-facing green arrow 65' downward-facing red arrow 88'
SH 21 England Dan Robson upward-facing green arrow 64'
FH 22 England Billy Burns
FB 23 England Rob Cook upward-facing green arrow 50'
Coach:
Ireland David Humphreys
FB 15 Ireland Tiernan O'Halloran downward-facing red arrow 65'
RW 14 Ireland Fionn Carr downward-facing red arrow 75'
OC 13 Ireland Robbie Henshaw
IC 12 New Zealand Bundee Aki
LW 11 Ireland Matt Healy
FH 10 Ireland Jack Carty
SH 9 Ireland John Cooney downward-facing red arrow 64'
N8 8 Ireland Eoin McKeon downward-facing red arrow 71'
OF 7 Scotland Eoghan Masterson yellow card 55' to 65' downward-facing red arrow 33' upward-facing green arrow 44'
BF 6 Ireland John Muldoon (c)
RL 5 England Aly Muldowney
LL 4 New Zealand George Naoupu downward-facing red arrow 54'
TP 3 Ireland Rodney Ah You downward-facing red arrow 54'
HK 2 New Zealand Tom McCartney downward-facing red arrow 70' upward-facing green arrow 79' downward-facing red arrow 90'
LP 1 Ireland Denis Buckley yellow card 33' to 43'
Replacements:
HK 16 Ireland Dave Heffernan yellow card 94' to 100' upward-facing green arrow 70' red cross icon 79' to 90'
PR 17 Ireland JP Cooney upward-facing green arrow 33' downward-facing red arrow 44'
PR 18 Ireland Finlay Bealham upward-facing green arrow 54'
LK 19 Ireland Andrew Browne upward-facing green arrow 54'
FL 20 Ireland James Connolly upward-facing green arrow 71'
SH 21 Ireland Ian Porter upward-facing green arrow 64'
FH 22 New Zealand Miah Nikora upward-facing green arrow 75'
CE 23 Canada Shane O'Leary upward-facing green arrow 65'
Coach:
Samoa Pat Lam

Match 2

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31 May 2015
17:00 GMT
Gloucester England22−23France Bordeaux Bègles
Try: Purdy 15' c
Con: Laidlaw (1/1) 16'
Pen: Laidlaw (5/6) 2', 10', 24', 32', 70'
Report[6]Try: Talebula (2) 37' c, 56' c
Con: Bernard (2/2) 39', 58'
Pen: Bernard (2/2) 28', 35'
Drop: Bernard (1/1) 80'
Sixways Stadium, Worcester
Attendance: 5,447
Referee: Leighton Hodges (WRU)
FB 15 England Rob Cook
RW 14 England Charlie Sharples
OC 13 Australia Bill Meakes downward-facing red arrow 66'
IC 12 England Billy Twelvetrees (c)
LW 11 England Henry Purdy
FH 10 Wales James Hook
SH 9 Scotland Greig Laidlaw
N8 8 England Ross Moriarty
OF 7 England Jacob Rowan downward-facing red arrow 58'
BF 6 Tonga Sione Kalamafoni downward-facing red arrow 45' upward-facing green arrow 56' downward-facing red arrow 71'
RL 5 England Tom Palmer
LL 4 England Tom Savage
TP 3 New Zealand John Afoa yellow card 45' to 55'
HK 2 Wales Richard Hibbard downward-facing red arrow 59'
LP 1 England Nick Wood downward-facing red arrow 58'
Replacements:
HK 16 England Darren Dawidiuk upward-facing green arrow 59'
PR 17 England Yann Thomas upward-facing green arrow 58'
PR 18 England Shaun Knight upward-facing green arrow 45' downward-facing red arrow 56'
LK 19 England Elliott Stooke upward-facing green arrow 71'
N8 20 England Dan Thomas upward-facing green arrow 58'
SH 21 England Callum Braley
FH 22 England Billy Burns
FB 23 Scotland Steve McColl upward-facing green arrow 66'
Coach:
Ireland David Humphreys
FB 15 France Lionel Beauxis downward-facing red arrow 46'
RW 14 Fiji Metuisela Talebula
OC 13 France Félix Le Bourhis
IC 12 France Julien Rey
LW 11 Australia Blair Connor
FH 10 France Pierre Bernard
SH 9 South Africa Heini Adams downward-facing red arrow 56'
N8 8 New Zealand Peter Saili
OF 7 New Zealand Hugh Chalmers downward-facing red arrow 45' upward-facing green arrow 56'
BF 6 France Louis-Benoît Madaule (c) downward-facing red arrow 56'
RL 5 South Africa Berend Botha downward-facing red arrow 36'
LL 4 South Africa Jandré Marais
TP 3 New Zealand Patrick Toetu downward-facing red arrow 40'
HK 2 Samoa Ole Avei downward-facing red arrow 69'
LP 1 France Jefferson Poirot yellow card 45' to 55' downward-facing red arrow 56' upward-facing green arrow 71'
Replacements:
HK 16 France Clément Maynadier upward-facing green arrow 69'
PR 17 France Jean-Baptiste Poux upward-facing green arrow 45' downward-facing red arrow 71'
PR 18 Argentina Francisco Gómez Kodela upward-facing green arrow 40'
LK 19 France Adam Jaulhac upward-facing green arrow 36'
N8 20 New Zealand Matthew Clarkin upward-facing green arrow 56'
SH 21 France Yann Lesgourgues upward-facing green arrow 56'
CE 22 New Zealand Jayden Spence
FB 23 France Baptiste Serin upward-facing green arrow 46'
Coach:
France Raphaël Ibañez

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  2. ^ "European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR)". epcrugby.com. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  3. ^ "Connacht lose but make Champions Cup play-off". RTÉ. 16 May 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2015. Connacht will now play Gloucester away at Kingsholm next Sunday, with the winner of that tie playing the French Top 14 seventh-placed side for a spot in next year's Champions Cup.
  4. ^ Mike Brown (2 May 2015). "Gloucester's Champions Cup play-off home advantage to be settled by Twickenham coin toss". Gloucester Citizen. Archived from the original on 6 May 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2015. The coin toss will take place during coverage of the Champions Cup final between Clermont Auvergne and Toulon at Twickenham.
  5. ^ "Champions Cup play-off: Gloucester 40-32 Connacht". 24 May 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via www.bbc.com.
  6. ^ "European Rugby Champions Cup: Gloucester 22-23 Bordeaux-Begles". 31 May 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via www.bbc.com.