The new competition structures which have been devised in conjunction with the Ligue Nationale de Rugby, Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship signal a modified return to a tried and tested multi-pool format.
This year’s competition will consist of 18 competing teams that have been split into three pools of six teams. Each team will play four group games either home or away.
The initial phase will include eight representatives from the URC, six from the French TOP14, two from the Gallagher Premiership, plus two invited clubs which include the Toyota Cheetah’s and Black Lion – the first Georgian club to compete in one of EPCR’s main professional competitions.
Clubs from the dame URC Shield and from the English Premiership, as well as the two invitees have been kept apart during the complex draw.
The top four sides in each pool will then qualify for the last-16 stage of the tournament. They will be joined by four sides dropping down from Europe’s premier competition the Champions Cup which consists of the leading eight clubs from each of the three leagues. These will be the fifth-ranked clubs from each of the pools.
The last-16 will be drawn with all clubs ranked in descending order based firstly on their ranking in their pool and subsequently on the number of match points they have accumulated, to create an overall ranking from one to 16 where teams ranked one-eight given home advantage in a one-off tie.
The pool winners will be ranked one to three, the second-placed clubs will be ranked four to six, the two highest-ranked third-placed clubs will be ranked seven and eight, the qualifying Champions Cup clubs will be ranked nine to 12, the remaining third-placed club will be ranked 13, and the fourth-placed clubs will be ranked 14 to 16, with the highest ranked facing the lowest and therefore after.
Both the Champions Cup and the EPCR Challenge Cup will be played over eight weekends with four pool stage rounds and four knockout stage rounds culminating in the London 2024 finals of both competitions which will be staged at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Friday the 24th and Saturday 25th May 2024.
Who have the Ospreys drawn?
The Ospreys have been placed in Pool 2 where they kick-off in the tournament against Italian side Benetton at the Swansea.com Stadium on Saturday evening.
Booth’s side will then travel next weekend to France to face Montpellier, before playing their final two pool matches in the second and third weeks of January.
The second French side in the Pool, USA Perpignan will travel to South Wales on Friday 12th January in round three, with the Ospreys conclusion of pool action coming against South African region Emirates Lions. The match will be played at the Emirates Airline Park (formerly known as Ellis Park Stadium) in the city of Johannesburg the following weekend.
The final team in the pool is Newcastle Falcons, but with the new format of the competition, the Ospreys will avoid facing the English side.
How will points be scored and what happens if teams are level at the end of the group?
Four match points will be awarded for a win, and two match points will be awarded for a draw during the pool stage. A bonus point will be awarded to a club scoring four or more tries and to a club losing by seven points or fewer.
If two or more clubs are equal on match points at the end of the pool stage their ranking will be determined as follows:
The best aggregate points difference from the pool stage or if equal, the number of tries scored in the pool stage. If that cannot be separated, the club with the fewest number of players suspended for disciplinary incidents in the pool stage will progress to the last-16.
[Lead image: ECP Rugby]
