Weekend Results
Bath 43–41 Northampton Saints: Try-fest at The Rec. An instant classic.
Glasgow Warriors 19–22 Toulon: Toulon professional on the road.
Leinster 43–13 Sale Sharks: Ruthless. Leinster mean business.
Bordeaux-Bègles 30–15 Toulouse: The shock of the competition. At Toulouse.
Brumbies 14–10 Highlanders: Luke Reimer seals it late in Dunedin.
Chiefs 62–17 Moana Pasifika: McKenzie breaks all-time try record.
Fijian Drua 24–22 Western Force: Dramatic late win in Lautoka.
Reds 31–26 Crusaders: Reds end 15-year Suncorp hoodoo.
Hurricanes 42–19 Blues: Dominant Canes cement top-of-table form.
Investec Champions Cup — Quarter-Finals
Bath 43–41 Northampton Saints: The match of the season. An 84-point thriller at The Rec on Friday night. Northampton played with everything they had and still lost by two points. Bath's attacking system under their current coaching setup is as good as anything in European club rugby right now. That result alone would have been the story of the week — then Sunday happened.
Bordeaux-Bègles 30–15 Toulouse: This is the result of the European season. Bordeaux beat Toulouse at home in front of their own crowd — a 15-point demolition of the reigning champions. Bordeaux were physically dominant, tactically sharp, and played with a freedom that was genuinely exciting to watch.
Leinster 43–13 Sale Sharks: Clinical. Efficient. Merciless. Leinster did what Leinster do in knockout rugby — they showed up and won at a canter. 43–13 sends a message to every other semi-finalist.
Glasgow Warriors 19–22 Toulon: Toulon did the professional away job. Glasgow will be frustrated — they had chances — but Toulon's resilience showed.
LIPPY'S COACHING TAKEAWAY
Maintaining composure under significant pressure is a critical element for any team. The way in which Bath sustained their composure — even when going down multiple times by as much as three tries and with their lineouts misfiring — is a testament to them being coached to keep a blue head and stay on task without allowing the scoreboard to dictate their execution. "Next job" mentality allowed them to just stay in the fight and play without fear, with total confidence in their game plan, abilities and teammates. This is probably one of the hardest things to coach, and the difference between champion sides and the rest.
LIPPY'S VIEW — BATH V NORTHAMPTON
What an absolute spectacle. I genuinely cannot remember watching a game like this in a long, long time — 61 points in the first half and Bath's lineout was a complete mess the entire way through, which makes what they managed to produce even more extraordinary.
Finn Russell's try off the missed Bath lineout was Lionel Messi-level stuff — pure instinct, world class. This is exactly the kind of game that could turn a casual sports fan into a rugby obsessive, and honestly, this is what it's going to take to make rugby the most popular sport in the world. I can't understand why Alfie Barbeary keeps winning Player of the Match and still can't get a crack at the England squad. The man is 25 years old and 256 pounds and overshadowing the other England back rowers every time he plays.
LIPPY'S VIEW — GLASGOW WARRIORS V TOULON
That goal-line stand between the 48th and 56th minute by Glasgow was one of the most gripping eight minutes of rugby you'll see all season — pure desire, fitness, and grit on full display. Unfortunately just not enough against a resilient Toulon side. Stafford McDowall's current form at centre bodes extremely well for Scotland's future. But the result? Toulon sitting 11th in the Top 14 coming in and beating Glasgow, the second seed and favourites for the URC title — at Glasgow. That's a massive upset. Both teams played themselves to absolute exhaustion and Nacho Brex's individual try was the difference. Toulon just wanted it more on the day.
LIPPY'S VIEW — SALE V LEINSTER
The first half was not fun to watch but close — scrum after scrum, kick after kick, and proof once again that constant kicking does not score tries. Tommy O'Brien reminds me of Brian O'Driscoll — mercurial, X-factor, the real deal — and Dan Sheehan is just a try-scoring machine. The way he scores and just calmly walks back, totally composed, juxtaposed against all the chest-thumping from the younger players — love that about him. Leinster opened things up in the second half and it became a track meet, but not the showcase that the preceding matches were.
LIPPY'S VIEW — TOULOUSE V BORDEAUX
The try just before halftime was unbelievable — Toulouse with a man down, one player short, and the skill execution and handling to still get Teddy Tomas over the line was world class interplay. Staying in the game for 30 minutes a man down and still finding a way — that is Toulouse. Jack Willis again showed he is the best 7 in the world right now, even though Maxime Lucu won player of the match. He is a huge loss for the England team. The atmosphere was electric and this was another window into what rugby should and can be at its very best. Exhausting to watch and definitely play in, in the greatest possible way.
Super Rugby Pacific — Round 9
Chiefs 62–17 Moana Pasifika: Damian McKenzie wrote himself into Chiefs folklore by becoming the franchise's all-time leading try-scorer in a complete demolition of Moana Pasifika. 62 points. 9 tries. Clinical.
Hurricanes 42–19 Blues: The Wellington–Auckland rivalry was no contest on the night. The Hurricanes were dominant from the first whistle. This is a team building genuine finals momentum.
Reds 31–26 Crusaders: The Reds ended a 15-year hoodoo at Suncorp Stadium against the Crusaders. A massive result for Queensland rugby. Filipo Daugunu scored on his 100th Super Rugby appearance.
Brumbies 14–10 Highlanders: Luke Reimer scoring five minutes from time to seal a gritty away win in Dunedin. The Brumbies are a finals contender and this is exactly the kind of result they need.
Fijian Drua 24–22 Western Force: A dramatic local battle sealed in the final minutes in Lautoka. The Drua keep their finals hopes alive after a tumultuous week off the pitch following Cyclone Vaianu.
LIPPY'S VIEW
Cam Roigard is a truly special player and I continue wondering what the last World Cup final result would have been had he been played instead of Aaron Smith. The Ruben Love versus Beauden Barrett matchup was a fascinating one to watch develop — Ruben is clearly talented but he needs the ability for the reps with the All Blacks. This is how you grow a player — throw him into moments like these and let him find his feet against the best. Super Rugby really living up to its competitive promise as each week is a story unto itself. Just when we think the non-Kiwi teams are done they come back and beat the New Zealand teams. Big weekend with wins over the Highlanders and Crusaders.
Super Rugby Pacific — Standings After Round 9
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hurricanes | 7 | 6 | 1 | +189 | 30 |
| 2 | Chiefs | 8 | 6 | 2 | +104 | 27 |
| 3 | Blues | 8 | 5 | 3 | +72 | 25 |
| 4 | Brumbies | 8 | 5 | 3 | +54 | 24 |
| 5 | Queensland Reds | 8 | 5 | 3 | -36 | 22 |
| 6 | Crusaders | 8 | 4 | 4 | +44 | 20 |
| 7 | Highlanders | 8 | 3 | 5 | -48 | 15 |
| 8 | Waratahs | 7 | 3 | 4 | -43 | 14 |
| 9 | Fijian Drua | 8 | 3 | 5 | -98 | 12 |
| 10 | Western Force | 8 | 2 | 6 | -31 | 10 |
| 11 | Moana Pasifika | 8 | 1 | 7 | -207 | 4 |
Top 6 qualify for finals series.
Champions Cup Semi-Finals — Confirmed
Leinster vs RC Toulon — Friday, May 2, 2026 | Aviva Stadium, Dublin (Capacity: 51,700)
Bordeaux-Bègles vs Bath — Saturday, May 3, 2026 | Stade Atlantique Bordeaux Métropole, Bordeaux (Capacity: 42,100)
Final: San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao — Saturday, May 23, 2026
Leinster vs Toulon (Aviva, Dublin): Leinster at home at the Aviva is one of the most formidable settings in European rugby. Toulon did a professional job on Glasgow but face a completely different test here. Leinster's 43–13 demolition of Sale showed exactly how clinical they are in knockout rugby. Toulon will need to be at their very best to stay in this.
Bordeaux-Bègles vs Bath (Bordeaux): The form team of the competition hosting the team that just played the match of the season. Bordeaux beat Toulouse in Bordeaux — now they host Bath at the same venue. Bath are riding the wave of that 43–41 thriller but travelling to a raucous Bordeaux home crowd is a completely different prospect. This is the tie of the round.
Munster — Financial Crisis
Reports have emerged this week that Munster Rugby are facing severe financial difficulties, with sources suggesting the province could be at risk of entering administration if a funding resolution is not reached within weeks.
The IRFU have reportedly been in emergency talks with Munster's board and provincial backers since mid-March. The issues stem from a combination of post-pandemic debt that was never fully resolved, rising player salary commitments, a shortfall in commercial revenue versus projections, and the costs associated with the province's stadium development ambitions.
To be clear — Munster are not in administration yet. But the fact this story is in the public domain at all suggests the situation is serious. If the IRFU provides a rescue package (the most likely outcome), conditions will almost certainly be attached: wage reductions, squad cuts, and potentially losing key players at the end of this season. That has material implications for Irish rugby depth and the URC ecosystem.
LIPPY'S VIEW
This is another canary in the mine for the health of the game. With storied clubs like Munster not being able to sustain themselves, and in the aftermath of three other long-standing clubs in the Premiership folding, there are definitely foundational challenges that the sport will have to contend with. If this continues as a sport that has to be propped up by wealthy benefactors or constant bail-outs, it will never be able to live up to its promise. After watching some of the best ever rugby this weekend, that would be a pity.