Stormers to face Bulls in URC quarters
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The eight teams who will compete in the United Rugby Championship Play-Offs have confirmed their places in the quarterfinals as the race to become the 2022/23 champions kick into gear.
As the top-four ranked sides Leinster (1), Ulster (2), Stormers (3) and Glasgow Warriors (4) have all earned the right to host home quarterfinals on the weekend of May 5 and 6.
Their opponents are the teams ranked from fifth position to eighth – Munster, Bulls, Connacht and Sharks.
Quarterfinal fixtures:
Quarterfinal One: Leinster (1) v Sharks (8)
Quarterfinal Two: Ulster (2) v Connacht (7)
Quarterfinal Three: Stormers (3) v Bulls (6)
Quarterfinal Four: Glasgow Warriors (4) v Munster (5)
Kick-off times for the Quarter-Finals will be confirmed on Monday, April 24.
Semifinal Path
In the Semifinals, to be played the weekend of May 12, the winner of quarterfinal one will play the winner of quarterfinal four and the winner of quarterfinal two will play the winner of quarterfinal three.
In a change to last season’s rules, the teams with the highest seeding in each Semifinal will have home venue rights. Previously, the winners of quarterfinal one and quarterfinal two were guaranteed home draws no matter their ranking.
Semifinal one: Leinster (1) / Sharks (8) v Glasgow Warriors (4) / Munster (5)
Semifinal two: Ulster (2) / Connacht (7) v Stormers (3) v Bulls (6)
The Semifinal winners will meet on Saturday, May 27 at the venue of the highest-ranked team to have qualified for the United Rugby Championship Grand Final.
EPCR Qualification
A total of eight teams from the Vodacom URC will qualify for next season’s Heineken Champions Cup. The four Shield winners will qualify automatically.
Irish Shield: Leinster (1)
SA Shield: Stormers (3)
Scottish/Italian: Glasgow Warriors (4)
Welsh Shield: Cardiff (10)
The next four Champions Cup places from the URC will be filled by the highest-ranked teams who did not win their Shields:
Ulster (2)
Munster (5)
Bulls (6)
Connacht (7)
However, should a team (Benetton or Scarlets) from the URC that has not qualified for the Champions Cup win the EPCR Challenge Cup, they will take the place of the lowest-ranked non-Shield winner (Connacht) in next season’s Champions Cup.
Should the Sharks (8) win the URC then they will be awarded a Champions Cup place ahead of the lowest-ranked non-Shield winner (Connacht).
In the event that the EPCR Challenge Cup winner is a URC team (Benetton or Scarlets) and the Sharks win the URC, then only Ulster and Munster will join the Shield winners in next season’s Champions Cup.
