Heineken Cup Thoughts

[Dai Perk]

Well, that was a great first weekend of matchups...

I think I noticed something, but tell me if I'm wrong:

With these Euro Cup matches, teams seem a lot more willing to come up with a detailed scheme to execute, and are more willing to throw in the whole kitchen sink. I think it's because A. they don't play each other as often as they play the squads in their own leagues, and B. because there's the added element of national pride, they really seem to want to give it their absolute all.

This first weekend seemed a lot more tense and exciting than a regular, say, Bath v Bristol kinda game, maybe I didn't imagine it?

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

It was a good weekend. It's probably because the English clubs have no fear of relegation in the European Cup and can throw it around.

 

[dullonien]

Imo it's because of how competative the tournament is. It's incredibly difficult to get out of your pool, let alone win the thing! It's probably the most competative rugby competition there is, more so than even the World Cup.

As such there's a massive amount riding on every game. A poor start, even just losing the first home game can prove fatal, and as such every team give their all.