ERC Rugby who organise the Amlin Challenge Cup have announced the quarter-final dates, venues and kick-off times for the matches scheduled to take place in April.
With a total of 14 European titles among the qualifiers for the knockout stage, the matches in the strongest ever line-up for the Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-finals will kick off on Thursday, 4 April with the Anglo-French clash of Gloucester Rugby and Biarritz Olympique at Kingsholm.
Such is the quality in the last eight that Gloucester, who won the Amlin Challenge Cup in 2006, are the only club who have not yet appeared in a Heineken Cup final.
London Wasps, previous winners of both ERC tournaments, meet last season’s Heineken Cup champions, Leinster Rugby, at Adams Park on Friday, 5 April while French bragging rights will be on the line when Perpignan host Toulouse at Stade Aimé Giral on the same evening following today’s announcement of the quarter-final dates, venues and kick-off times.
All matches will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, with additional live coverage on Eurosport France and France 4, and pool stage No 1 seeds, Bath Rugby, will round off the quarter-final action when they go head-to-head with Stade Francais Paris at the Recreation Ground on Saturday, 6 April.
With 16 clubs in contention for silverware, the Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-finals are part of an extended weekend of top-class European club rugby action which also features the last-eight matches in the Heineken Cup.
FIXTURES
(All kick-offs local time)
Thursday, 4 April
Gloucester Rugby v Biarritz Olympique PB, Kingsholm 20.00
Friday, 5 April
London Wasps v Leinster Rugby, Adams Park 20.00
Perpignan v Toulouse, Stade Aimé Giral 20.00
Saturday, 6 April
Bath Rugby v Stade Francais Paris, Recreation Ground 13.00
AMLIN CHALLENGE CUP SEMI-FINALS
Matches to be played 26/27/28 April
The winner of the first-named quarter-final match in each semi-final pairing will have home venue advantage.
Semi-final 1: Perpignan or Toulouse v Bath Rugby or Stade Francais Paris
Semi-final 2: London Wasps or Leinster Rugby v Gloucester Rugby or Biarritz Olympique PB
Amlin Challenge Cup final: RDS, Dublin; Friday, 17 May 20.00
