Champions Cup, Round One - Teams and Predictions

PREVIEW: The Lions will be honouring Hyron Andrews in the best way possible by running out on the field at Stade Marcel-Deflandre and facing Stade Rochelais.

The 31-year-old lock was found dead at his team’s hotel in France on Friday, on the eve of their first-ever Champions Cup match.

A moment’s silence will be held ahead of all Champions Cup and second-tier Challenge Cup matches this weekend in memory of Andrews.

The tragedy comes exactly 10 years to the day since the sudden death of former Munster coach Anthony Foley, who died in his sleep aged 42 due to a heart rhythm disorder just hours before his team were due to play against Racing 92 in Paris in the same competition.

Stade Rochelais coach Ronan O’Gara was a member of the Racing staff when Foley, a former Ireland international teammate, passed away in October 2016.

The other South African teams in the tournament are the Bulls and the Stormers. They will kick off their campaigns on home soil.

The Bulls will be up against Stade Francais at Loftus Versfeld, while the Stormers will face Bristol Bears at DHL Stadium.

A different chapter

The Lions arrived in France with two wins out of three matches in their URC campaign so far.

Meanwhile, Stade Rochelais have been fighting fit in the Top 14, winning four of their six matches, which has placed them fourth in the standings.

The former champions from France come off two successive victories in the Top 14 – form they will want to build on – while they have won two of their three home matches to date, with their only defeat being against Racing 92, who are currently ranked third-last on the standings – a factor that will certainly inspire the visitors from Gauteng.

The Loftus showdown

The Bulls will enter their match against Stade Francais with confidence following their emphatic 57-15 victory against the Lions last weekend, and with two wins and a narrow defeat away from home in the Vodacom URC in the last few weeks, they will be determined to come out on top to give themselves the best possible chance to improve on their Round of 16 finish last year.

They will, however, be wary of the Frenchmen, who have won three of their six games in the Top 14, and will be desperate to make up for their disappointing away form, which has seen them win only one of their three games on the road in the competition.

Spicing up the clash, the last time the teams met was in the 2024/25 season in a repeat of this fixture, with the men from Pretoria registering a comprehensive 48-7 victory – a result the hosts will want to replicate, and one the visitors will want to avenge.

Bear warning

The Stormers will be equally confident going into their clash against the Bristol Bears after their magnificent all-round display against the Sharks in Cape Town last week, which earned them a rewarding 39-22 victory, and the fact that they have also only suffered one defeat in the URC will undoubtedly add to their confidence.

But the Capetonians will be wary of the Bristol Bears, who also come off two wins in three Gallagher PREM matches, and who will be heavily determined to bounce back from their heavy 7-30 defeat against Saracens last weekend.

Spicing things up, both teams advanced to the Round of 16 last season and will be determined to improve on that finish in this campaign.

See below for Round One’s teams and predictions!

Friday, October 16

Gloucester v Union Bordeaux-Bègles
(Kingsholm Stadium, Gloucester – Kick-off: 20.00 BST; 21.00 CEST; 19.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Union Bordeaux-Bègles by 12 points.

Teams:

Gloucester: 15 George Barton, 14 Will Joseph, 13 Max Llewellyn, 12 Seb Atkinson, 11 Ben Loader, 10 Charlie Atkinson, 9 Dan Robson, 8 Jack Clement, 7 Jac Morgan, 6 Deain Gwynne, 5 Arthur Clark, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Ciaran Knight, 2 Dewi Lake (captain), 1 Dian Bleuler.
Replacements: 16 Seb Blake, 17 Val Rapava Ruskin, 18 Eliot Salt, 19 Freddie Thomas, 20 Will Trenholm, 21 Lewis Ludlow, 22 Caolan Englefield, 23 Will Knight.

Bordeaux-Bègles: 15 Salesi Rayasi, 14 Pablo Uberti, 13 Nicolas Depoortere, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Maxime Lucu (captain), 9 Martin Page-Relo, 8 Tom Willis, 7 Temo Matiu, 6 Marko Gazzotti, 5 Ben Tameifuna, 4 Cameron Woki, 3 Sipili Falatea, 2 Maxime Lamothe, 1 Jefferson Poirot.
Replacements: 16 Connor Sa, 17 Matis Perchaud, 18 Lasha Pkhakadze, 19 Adam Zapedowski, 20 Pierre Bochaton, 21 Elyjah Ibsaiene, 22 Xan Mousques, 23 Romain Buros.

Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
Assistant referees: Franco Rosella (Italy), Dario Merli (Italy)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (Italy)

Saturday, October 17:

Sale Sharks v Glasgow Warriors
(CorpAcq Stadium, Manchester – Kick-off: 13.00 BST; 12.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Glasgow Warriors by five points.

Teams:

Sale Sharks: 15 Joe Carpenter, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Rekeiti Ma’asi-White, 11 Arron Reed, 10 George Ford, 9 Gus Warr, 8 Elia Canakaivata, 7 Ben Curry, 6 Courtney Lawes, 5 Ben Bamber, 4 Ernst van Rhyn (captain), 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Nicky Smith.
Replacements: 16 Nathan Jibulu, 17 Si McIntyre, 18 Asher Opoku-Fordjour, 19 Christ Tshiunza, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Dom Hanson, 22 Alex Lozowski, 23 Ponipati Loganimasi.

Glasgow Warriors: 15 Kyle Rowe, 14 Kyle Steyn (captain), 13 Stafford McDowall, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Jamie Dobie, 10 Dan Lancaster, 9 George Horne, 8 Ruwald van der Merwe, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Euan Ferrie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Seb Stephen, 1 Nathan McBeth.
Replacements: 16 Gregor Hiddleston, 17 Patrick Schickerling, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Jare Oguntibeju, 20 Gregor Brown, 21 Ally Miller, 22 Callum Reidy, 23 Ollie Smith.

Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant referees: Gareth Newman (Wales), Lucas Yendle (Wales)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)

Bulls v Stade Français
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 14.00 SAST; 14.00 CEST; 12.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Bulls by 18 points.

Teams:

Bulls: 15 Luan Giliomee, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Sango Xamlashe, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Cheswill Jooste, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Elrigh Louw (captain), 6 Marco van Staden, 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Khutha Mchunu, 2 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 1 Alu Tshakweni.
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Jaco Grobbelaar, 20 Jeandre Rudolph, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Stravino Jacobs, 23 Willie le Roux.

Stade Français: 15 Leo Monin, 14 Aisake Nawaqadrua, 13 Freddy Duguivalu, 12 Julien Delbouis, 11 Lester Etien, 10 Ihaia West, 9 Martin Blum, 8 Juan-Martin Scelzo (captain), 7 Mathieu Hirigoyen, 6 Pierre Huguet, 5 Fabrice Metz, 4 Jacques Botha, 3 Moses Alo-Emile, 2 Alvaro Garcia Albo, 1 Thomas Bue.
Replacements: 16 Ethan Tia, 17 Sergo Abramishvili, 18 Braxton Asi, 19 Petero Mailulu, 20 Setareki Turagacoke, 21 Louis Foursans-Bourdette, 22 Samuel Ezeala, 23 Rufus McLean.

Referee: Christoph Ridley (England)
Assistant referees: George Selwood (England), Jamie Parr (England)
TMO: Aled Griffiths (Wales)

ASM Clermont Auvergne v Leinster
(Stade Marcel-Michelin, Clermont – Kick-off: 16.15 CEST; 15.15 IST; 14.15 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Leinster by nine points.

Teams:

Clermont: 15 Justin Bouraux, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 AJ Lam, 12 Léon Darricarrere, 11 Joris Jurand, 10 Harry Plummer, 9 Baptiste Jauneau, 8 Kevin Noah, 7 Anthime Hemery, 6 Killian Tixeront, 5 Darcy Swain, 4 Thibaud Lanen, 3 Nohem Ez Zahouany, 2 Barnabe Massa, 1 Giorgi Akhaladze.
Replacements: 16 Peniami Narisia, 17 Sacha Lotrian, 18 Matheo Frisach, 19 Leo Michaux Vargas, 20 Antoine Chalus-Cercy, 21 Louis Vermeulen, 22 Baptiste Germain, 23 Mathys Belaubre.

Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Fintan Gunne, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Ryan Baird, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan (captain), 1 Andrew Porter.
Replacements: 16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Alex Usanov, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 Conor O’Tighearnaigh, 20 Scott Penny, 21 Oliver Coffey, 22 Joey Carbery, 23 Jamie Osborne.

Referee: Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant referees: Hamish Smales (England), Jonathan Healy (England)
TMO: Andrew Jackson (England)

Stormers v Bristol Bears
(DHL Stadium, Cape Town – Kick-off: 16.15 SAST; 15.15 BST; 14.15 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Stormers by 10 points.

Teams:

Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Seabelo Senatla, 13 Ruhan Nel (captain), 12 Jonathan Roche, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 JJ Kotzé, 1 Vernon Matongo.
Replacements: 16 André-Hugo Venter, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Riley Norton, 21 Deon Fourie, 22 Haashim Pead, 23 Warrick Gelant.

Bristol Bears: 15 Tobi Wilson, 14 Max Pepper, 13 Matias Moroni, 12 Jack Bates, 11 Aidan Boshoff, 10 Sam Worsley, 9 Kieran Marmion (captain), 8 Luka Ivanishvili, 7 Kenzie Jenkins, 6 Joe Owen, 5 Josh Caulfield, 4 Pedro Rubiolo, 3 Jimmy Halliwell, 2 Tomas Gwilliam, 1 Jake Woolmore.
Replacements: 16 Sol Moody, 17 Andrew Turner, 18 Sam Scott, 19 Harry Wells, 20 Paddy Pearce, 21 Ollie Harris, 22 James Williams, 23 Victor Worsnip.

Referee: Kevin Bralley (France)
Assistant referees: Vincent Blasco Baque (France), Flavien Hourquet (France)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)

Connacht v Saracens
(Dexcom Stadium, Galway – Kick-off: 17.30 IST; 17.30 BST; 16.30 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Saracens by nine points.

Teams:

Connacht: 15 Sam Gilbert, 14 Finn Treacy, 13 Cathal Forde, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Shane Jennings, 10 Ciaran Frawley, 9 Colm Reilly, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Cian Prendergast (captain), 5 Josh Murphy, 4 Darragh Murray, 3 Sam Illo, 2 Matthew Victory, 1 Francois van Wyk.
Replacements: 16 Eoin de Buitlear, 17 Billy Bohan, 18 Thomas Connolly, 19 Niall Murray, 20 Sean O’Brien, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Josh Ioane, 23 Daniel Ryan.

Saracens: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Noah Caluori, 13 Nick Tompkins, 12 Sione Vaenuku, 11 Rotimi Segun, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Toby Knight, 6 Maro Itoje (captain), 5 Hugh Tizard, 4 Olamide Sodeke, 3 Marcus Street, 2 Jamie George, 1 Eroni Mawi.
Replacements: 16 Eoghan Clarke, 17 Phil Brantingham, 18 Corne Weilbach, 19 Nick Isiekwe, 20 Nathan Michelow, 21 Alfie Barbeary, 22 Tom James, 23 Fergus Burke.

Referee: Pierre Brousset (France)
Assistant referees: Luc Ramos (France), Julien Caulier (France)
TMO: Tual Trainini (France)

Stade Rochelais v Lions
(Stade Marcel Deflandre, La Rochelle – Kick-off: 18.30 CEST; 18.30 SAST, 16.30 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Stade Rochelais by 24 points.

Teams:

Stade Rochelais: 15 Sacha Elissalde, 14 Tevita Ofaz 13 Semi Lagivala, 12 Jules Favre, 11 Davit Niniashvili, 10 Antoine Hastoy, 9 Valentin Bouju, 8 Gregory Alldritt, 7 Oscar Jegou, 6 Theo McFarland, 5 Watisoni Waqanisaravi, 4 Charles Kante Samba, 3 Karl Sorin, 2 Pierre Bourgarit, 1 Alexandre Kaddouri
Replacements: 16 Tolu Latu, 17 Louis Penverne, 18 Aleksandre Kuntelia, 19 Salmaan Moerat, 20 Paul Boudehent, 21 Matthias Haddad, 22 Dillyn Leyds, 23 Avakuki Niusalelekitoka

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Kelly Mpeku, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Erich Cronje, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Siba Qoma, 6 Siba Mahashe, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, Conraad van Vuuren, 2 Morne Brandon, 1 Boan Venter
Replacements: 16 Tiaan Lange, 17 SJ Kotze, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Dylan Sjoblom, 20 Batho Hlekani, 21 Nico Steyn, 22 Richard Kriel, 23 Boeta Chamberlain

Referee: Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Johnny Mackenzie (Scotland), Rob McDowell (Scotland)
TMO: Dave Sutherland (Scotland)

Munster v Racing 92
(SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork – Kick-off: 20.00 IST; 21.00 CEST; 19.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Munster by three points.

Teams:

Munster: 15 Ben O’Connor, 14 Shay McCarthy, 13 Alex Nankivell, 12 Dan Kelly, 11 Sean O’Brien, 10 Charlie O’Shea, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Brian Gleeson, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Sean Edogbo, 5 Tadhg Beirne (captain), 4 Tom Ahern, 3 Jack Aungier, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Jeremy Loughman.
Replacements: 16 Max Clein, 17 Josh Wycherley, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Fineen Wycherley, 20 Gavin Coombes, 21 Ben O’Donovan, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 Jack O’Donoghue.

Racing 92: 15 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 14 Wilfried Hulleu, 13 Vinaya Habosi, 12 Joey Manu, 11 Sione Tupou, 10 Antoine Gibert, 9 Antoine Latrasse, 8 Maxime Baudonne (captain), 7 Nicolas Martins, 6 Lekima Tagitagivalu, 5 Jordan Joseph, 4 Thomas Lainault, 3 Gia Kharaishvili, 2 Diego Escobar, 1 Edouard Jabea Njocke.
Replacements: 16 Yanis Basse, 17 Lehopoame Leota, 18 Demba Bamba, 19 Nathan Hughes, 20 Soumaila Camara, 21 Maxime Machenaud, 22 Sam James, 23 Arthur Roche.

Referee: Karl Dickson (England)
Assistant referees: Joe James (England), Richard Gordon (England)
TMO: Dean Richards (England)

Bath v Montpellier
(Recreation Ground, Bath – Kick-off: 20.00 BST; 21.00 CEST; 19.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Bath by 14 points.

Teams:

Bath: 15 Santi Carreras, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Max Ojomoh, 11 Charlie Griffin, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben Spencer (captain), 8 Arthur Green, 7 Guy Pepper, 6 Ted Hill, 5 Charlie Ewels, 4 Will Jeanes, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Beno Obano.
Replacements: 16 Dan Frost, 17 Scott Kirk, 18 Archie Griffin, 19 Ewan Richards, 20 Josh Bayliss, 21 Bernard van der Linde, 22 Cameron Redpath, 23 Kepueli Tuipulotu.

Montpellier: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Dimitri Delibes, 13 Lennox Anyanwu, 12 Justo Piccardo, 11 Donovan Taofifenua, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Lenni Nouchi (captain), 7 Alex Becognee, 6 Yacouba Camara, 5 Bastien Chalureau, 4 Ruben van Heerden, 3 Wilfrid Hounkpatin, 2 Lyam Akrab, 1 Reda Wardi.
Replacements: 16 Ricky Riccitelli, 17 Luca Tabarot, 18 Valentin Welsch, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Tyler DuGuid, 21 Billy Vunipola, 22 Sebastien Bezy, 23 Jon Echegaray.

Referee: Andrea Piardi (Italy)
Assistant referees: Filippo Russo (Italy), Alberto Favaro (Italy)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (Italy)

Sunday, October 18:

Section Paloise v Leicester Tigers
(Stade du Hameau, Pau – Kick-off: 14.00 CEST; 13.00 BST; 12.00 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Leicester Tigers by six points.

Teams:

Section Paloise: 15 Theo Attissogbe, 14 Clement Laporte, 13 Rodrigo Marta, 12 Fabien Brau-Boirie, 11 Aaron Grandidier Nkanang, 10 Axel Desperes, 9 Thomas Souverbie, 8 Bastien Vergnes-Taillefer, 7 Loic Credoz, 6 Sacha Zegueur, 5 Mickael Capelli, 4 Thomas Jolmes, 3 Jon Zabala, 2 Youri Delhommel, 1 Alexandre Etchebehere.
Replacements: 16 Yon Caperaa, 17 Hugo Parrou, 18 Guram Papidze, 19 Remi Picquette, 20 Santiago Grondona, 21 Facundo Isa, 22 Gonzalo Garcia, 23 Quentin Valentino.

Leicester Tigers: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Will Wand, 12 Orlando Bailey, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 Billy Searle, 9 Tom Whiteley, 8 Olly Cracknell, 7 Joaquin Moro, 6 Aaron Wainwright, 5 Ollie Chessum (captain), 4 Cameron Henderson, 3 Joel Sclavi, 2 Jamie Blamire, 1 Archie van der Flier.
Replacements: 16 Sam Moli, 17 Mako Vunipola, 18 Will Hurd, 19 James Thompson, 20 Finn Carnduff, 21 Jack van Poortvliet, 22 Joseph Woodward, 23 Gabriel Hamer-Webb.

Referee: Eoghan Cross (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Robbie Jenkinson (Ireland), Andrew Cole (Ireland)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)

Stade Toulousain v Exeter Chiefs
(Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse – Kick-off: 16.15 CEST; 15.15 BST; 14.15 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Stade Toulousain by 25 points.

Teams:

Stade Toulousain: 15 Matias Remue, 14 Teddy Thomas, 13 Kalvin Gourgues, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 11 Ange Capuozzo, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont (captain), 8 Théo Ntamack, 7 Efrain Elias, 6 François Cros, 5 Joel Merkler, 4 Joshua Brennan, 3 Dorian Aldegheri, 2 Thomas Lacombre, 1 Rodrigue Neti.
Replacements: 16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Benjamin Bertrand, 18 Georges-Henri Colombe, 19 Romeo Bonnard Martin, 20 Anthony Jelonch, 21 Marc-Elie Kouassi, 22 Paul Graou, 23 Tommaso Menoncello.

Exeter Chiefs: 15 Sam Harris, 14 Zack Wimbush, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Will Butt, 11 Tom Wyatt, 10 Harvey Skinner, 9 Stephen Varney, 8 Greg Fisilau, 7 Ross Vintcent, 6 Ethan Roots, 5 Dafydd Jenkins (captain), 4 Tom Hooper, 3 Josh Iosefa-Scott, 2 Jack Yeandle, 1 Will Goodrick-Clarke.
Replacements: 16 Louie Gulley, 17 Ethan Burger, 18 Jimmy Roots, 19 Harry Wilson, 20 Kane James, 21 Sam Wolstenholme, 22 Will Haydon-Wood, 23 Ben Hammersley.

Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Rob McDowell (Scotland), Finlay Brown (Scotland)
TMO: Dave Sutherland (Scotland)

Northampton Saints v Cardiff
(Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton – Kick-off: 17.30 BST; 16.30 GMT)

Prediction

Rugby365: Northampton Saints by 20 points.

Teams:

Northampton Saints: 15 James Pater, 14 Ollie Sleightholme, 13 Rory Hutchinson, 12 Toby Thame, 11 George Hendy, 10 Anthony Belleau, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Callum Chick (captain), 7 Josh Taylor, 6 Josh Kemeny, 5 JJ Van Der Mescht, 4 Tom Lockett, 3 Cleopas Kundiona, 2 Robbie Smith, 1 Danilo Fischetti.
Replacements: 16 Curtis Langdon, 17 Jordan Els, 18 Ion Neculai, 19 Ed Prowse, 20 Charlie Ulcoq, 21 Archie McParland, 22 Fin Smith, 23 Fraser Dingwall.

Cardiff: 15 Matty Young, 14 Mason Grady, 13 Harri Millard, 12 Steff Emanuel, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Jarrod Evans, 9 Aled Davies, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Dan Thomas, 6 Semisi Paea, 5 Rory Thornton, 4 Tom Manz, 3 Sam Wainwright, 2 Dafydd Hughes (c), 1 Danny Southworth.
Replacements: 16 Evan Lloyd, 17 Rhys Barratt, 18 Joe Cowell, 19 Josh McNally, 20 Lucas de la Rua, 21 Johan Mulder, 22 Callum Sheedy, 23 Josh Adams.

Referee: Jeremy Rozier (France)
Assistant referees: Thomas Charabas (France), Cyrille Boulay (France)
TMO: Julien Castaignede (France)