Challenge Cup, Quarterfinal - teams and predictions
PREVIEW: The Bulls are flying the South African flag in the Challenge Cup on Saturday as they stake a claim for a semifinal spot after booking their quarterfinal berth against Edinburgh at the Hive Stadium in the Scottish capital.
The two-time United Rugby Championship finalists are fighting to keep the trophy in South Africa after the Sharks won the title last season.
The team from Pretoria are on a high after their 32-22 victory over Bayonne in France in the Round of 16 last weekend.
“It gives you massive amounts of confidence as a group. The winning feeling is something you can’t bottle,” Jake White, the Bulls’ Director of Rugby, told reporters on Friday morning.
White spoke to the media from the team bus en route to their training field in Scotland after they arrived from Biaritz where the team has been staying.
“The vibe in the group is fantastic. We’ve just arrived in Scotland, spent the week in Biarritz, and arrived in sunny Scotland.
“We know where we are as a group, we could possibly still have three weeks on tour.
“It was a great win and now we have to use that momentum in our favour.”
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White was buoyed by the fact that he could keep a bit of continuity in his team selection and only made two changes to the side, bringing in Ruan Nortje and Cameron Hanekom.
Nortje returns to lead the troops and Marcell Coetzee shifts from No.8 to loose forward to make way for Hanekom.
At the front, the trio of Simphiwe Matanzima, Akker van der Merwe, and Wilco Louw remains unchanged from the Round of 16.
On the bench the Bulls welcome back Springbok Canan Moodie, who has been sidelined since early March due to a head knock and resting protocols.
He is one of 11 Springboks selected by White.
“For the first time in a long time, we’ve got a settled group in terms of guys not getting injured last week.
“We would keep the same backline and made two changes to the forwards and two Springboks have come in.
“What I am looking forward to is a little bit of continuity, a bit of reward for how they played last week.
“We’ve got a bench of six Springboks, which hasn’t happened in a long time,” he explained.
He was especially eager to see Hanekom back, who will be rearing to go after returning from yet another niggling injury.
“It’s a 4G pitch, it will suit him like a glove. He’s an out-and-out athlete, he is fresh because he hasn’t played a lot of rugby.
“He’s a youngster that always wants to be on the field. I’m looking forward to seeing how he goes and hopefully it will be 80 minutes,” White stated.
Ironically Edinburgh coach Sean Everitt also made only two changes to his side.
Both changes are in the front row, with Ewan Ashman and Boan Venter promoted to the starting lineup at hooker and loosehead respectively.
Everitt named an unchanged backline as Wes Goosen – Player of the Match against Lions – continues at fullback alongside wingers Darcy Graham and Ross McCann.
James Lang and Matt Currie continue to form the midfield.
Ross Thompson caps the week he signed a new two-year deal with a start at fly-half, partnering co-captain Ben Vellacott in the halves.
In the pack, Javan Sebastian once again starts at tighthead, alongside Venter and Ashman to complete the front row.
The experienced pairing of Grant Gilchrist and Sam Skinner continues in the second row, the same combination which started against the Sharks in last season’s European Quarter-Final in Durban.
The back-row is formed of a trio of club centurions, with Jamie Ritchie, Hamish Watson, and Magnus Bradbury starting together for consecutive matches.
Everitt opted for four further changes on the bench, with lock Robert Carmichael, tighthead D’arcy Rae, back-row Ben Muncaster, and centre Mosese Tuipulotu coming into the matchday 23.
On the match, Everitt said: “This will be a step up. Bulls are two-time URC finalists, and they had a good away win against Bayonne last weekend to progress to the last eight.
“We spoke last week about getting a home Round of 16 and quarterfinal, and we’ve managed that. Now, if we get through, we get a home semi. We have set ourselves up nicely, but like I say, it’s a difficult challenge ahead of us. One that we’re not afraid of, and one that we certainly are going for.”
#SPOTLIGHT: Edinburgh to spring a ‘surprise’ against Bulls 👇#ChallengeCup #Edinburgh #Bulls #EDIvBUL https://t.co/0b3MrrUPM6
— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) April 10, 2025
*Ospreys host Lyon in Swansea and do so with Jac Morgan captaining the home side on Saturday.
Gareth Thomas starts at loosehead, with Dewi Lake lining up at hooker and Tom Botha completing the front three.
Rhys Davies partners with Adam Beard at lock, Jac Morgan lines up at six, Justin Tipuric takes up the other flank and Morgan Morris starts at eight.
Kieran Hardy starts at scrumhalf with Dan Edwards at No. 10. Keiran Williams partners Evardi Boshoff in the centre.
In the back three, Jack Walsh starts at fullback, with Keelan Giles on one wing and Dan Kasende on the other.
Coach of Ospreys, Mark Jones, said: “We played to a very high level last time out against the Scarlets, but we know we’ll have to improve this week against Lyon. They are a very dynamic team, with a lot of athletic players who can create line-break opportunities on a moment’s notice.
*On Sunday Johann van Graan’s Bath have the chance to lay down a real marker with a hat-trick of titles this season
Having ended their 17-year wait for silverware by lifting the Premiership Cup earlier in the season, Bath will now try to book a place in the semifinals when they host local rivals Gloucester at The Rec on Sunday.
Van Graan has made six changes to his starting XV.
For Gloucester Santi Carreras, Christian Wade, and Jake Morris start in an unchanged back-three, with Will Butler coming into the midfield to join Chris Harris, who is handed the captaincy with regular skipper Lewis Ludlow on the bench.
Gareth Anscombe makes a welcome return from a minor injury to partner Caolan Englefield as the half-backs.
Up front, Ciaran Knight, Jack Singleton, and Kirill Gotovtsev also keep their starting spots, with Freddie Clarke and Cam Jordan packing down behind them.
There are two changes in the back row, with just Ruan Ackermann keeping his spot after last weekend’s Round of 16 victory. Harry Taylor replaces Ludlow and Deian Gwynne starts ahead of Jack Clement.
Saturday, April 12:
Edinburgh v Bulls
(Edinburgh Stadium, Edinburgh – Kick-off: 12.30; 13.30 SAST; 11.30 GMT)
Head-to-Head
Last 4 Meetings
Prediction:
@rugby365: Bulls by 12 points
Teams
Edinburgh: 15 Wes Goosen, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Matt Currie, 12 James Lang, 11 Ross McCann, 10 Ross Thompson, 9 Ben Vellacott (co-captain), 8 Magnus Bradbury, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Grant Gilchrist (co-captain), 4 Sam Skinner, 3 Javan Sebastian, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Boan Venter
Replacements: 16 Cherry, 17 Schoeman, 18 Rae, 19 Carmichael, 20 Muncaster, 21 Price, 22 C Scott, 23 Tuipulotu
Bulls: 15 Devon Williams, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 David Kriel, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Keagan Johannes, 9 Zak Burger, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Jannes Kirsten, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Nortje (c), 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Simphiwe Matanzima.
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Canan Moodie.
Referee: Pierre Brousset (France)
Assistant referees: Luc Ramos (France), Kevin Bralley (France)
TMO: Tual Trainini (France)
Ospreys v Lyon Olympique Universitaire
(Swansea Stadium, Swansea – Kick-off: 17.30; 18.30 CEST; 16.30 GMT)
Prediction:
@rugby365: Lyon by eight points
Teams
Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Dan Kasende, 13 Evardi Boshoff, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Kieran Hardy, 8 Morgan Morris, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Jac Morgan (captain), 5 Adam Beard, 4 Rhys Davies, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 George McGuigan, 17 Garyn Phillips, 18 Ben Warren, 19 James Fender, 20 Morgan Morse, 21 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 22 Owen Williams, 23 Iestyn Hopkins
Lyon: 15 Alexander Tschaptchet, 14 Vincent Rattez, 13 Josiah Maraku, 12 Theo Millet, 11 Ethan Dumortier, 10 Leo Berdeu, 9 Charlie Cassnag, 8 Maxime Gouzou, 7 Beka Shvangiradze, 6 Steeve Blanc-Mappaz, 5 Alban Roussel, 4 Felix Lambey, 3 Hamza Kaabeche, 2 Sam Matavesi, 1 Wayan de Benedtittis
Replacements: 16 Guillaume Marchand, 17 Sébastien Taofifenue, 18 Valentin Simutoga, 19 Mickaël Guiollard, 20 Theo William, 21 Dylan Cretin, 22 Baptiste Couilloud, 23 Alfred Parisien
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Peter Martin (Ireland), Andrew Cole (Ireland)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)
Connacht v Racing 92
(The Sportsground, Galway – Kick-off: 20.00; 21.00 CEST; 19.00 GMT)
Head-to-Head
Last 1 Meeting
Prediction:
@rugby365: Connacht by 15 points
Teams
Connacht: 15 Mack Hansen, 14 Shane Jennings,13 Hugh Gavin, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Finn Treacy, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Ben Murphy, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Cian Prendergast (captain), 5 Joe Joyce, 4 Josh Murphy, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Jack Aungier, 19. Oisín Dowling,
20 Paul Boyle, 21 Matthew Devine, 22 Josh Ioane, 23 Cathal Forde
Racing92: 15 Sam James, 14 Wame Naituvi, 13 Vinaya Habosi, 12 Josua Tuisova, 11 Max Spring (captain), 10 Dan Lancaster, 9 Nolann le Garrec, 8 Jordan Joseph, 7 Junior Kpoku, 6 Maxime Baudonne, 5 Will Rowlands, 4 Boris Palu, 3 Demba Bamba, 2 Diego Escobar, 1 Eddy Ben Arous
Replacements: 16 Robin Couly, 17 Guram Gogichasvili, 18 Leota Lehopame, 19 Tomain Taofifenua, 20 Shinbgirai Manyarara, 21 Donovan Taofifenua, 22 Owen Farrell, 23 Henry Chavancy
Referee: Christophe Ridley (England)
Assistant referees: Jack Makepeace (England), George Selwood (England)
TMO: Aled Griffiths (Wales)
Sunday, April 13:
Bath v Gloucester
(The Recreation Ground, Bath – Kick-off: 17.30; 16.30 GMT)
Head-to-Head
Last 5 Meetings
Prediction:
@rugby365: Bath by seven points
Teams
Bath: 15 Ciaran Donoghue, 14 Tom de Glanville, 13 Cameron Redpath, 12 Will Butt, 11 Will Muir, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben Spencer (captain), 8 Alfie Barbeary, 7 Ethan Staddon, 6 Ted Hill, 5 Ross Molony, 4 Quinn Roux, 3 Archie Griffin, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Beno Obano,
Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Josh Bayliss, 20 Miles Reid, 21 Tom Carr-Smith, 22 Max Ojomoh, 23 Jaco Coetzee
Gloucester: 15 Santi Carreras, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Chris Harris (captain), 12 Will Butler, 11 Jake Morris, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Caolan Englefield, 8 Ruan Ackermann, 7 Harry Taylor, 6 Deian Gwynne, 5 Cam Jordan, 4 Freddie Clarke, 3 Kirill Gotovtsev, 2 Jack Singleton, 1 Ciaran Knight
Replacements: 16 Seb Blake, 17 Val Rapava Ruskin, 18 Afo Fasogbon, 19 Freddie Clarke, 20 Lewis Ludlow, 21 Jack Clement, 22 Tomos Williams, 23 Charlie Atkinson
Referee: Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Hollie Davidson (Scotland), Ludovic Cayre (France)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)
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