Champions Cup

Gutsy Stormers outclassed by Clermont

The DHL Stormers surrendered an 11-point half-time lead under siege by a resurgent Clermont side in their first Champions Cup match on Saturday night.

EDITORS NOTE: Graphic content / Montpellier's South African scrum-half Cobus Reinach (C) runs with the ball during the European Rugby Champions Cup pool B rugby union match between London Irish and Montpellier Herault at the Gtech Community Stadium in Brentford, north London, on December 9, 2022.

Reinach stars in magnificent Montpellier comeback

Cobus Reinach dotted down as Montpellier recovered from an 18-point deficit to beat London Irish on the opening night of the Champions Cup on Friday.

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA - FEBRUARY 05: Morne Steyn of the Vodacom Blue Bulls in action during the United Rugby Championship match between Vodacom Bulls and Emirates Lions at Loftus Versveld Stadium on February 05, 2022 in Pretoria, South Africa.

Jake springs Bulls surprise for Champs Cup opener

Morne Steyn will lead a heavily changed Vodacom Bulls team featuring only three other capped Springboks in their Champions Cup debut against Lyon in Pretoria on Saturday.

Record-equaling Kitshoff to lead Stormers in Clermont

Steven Kitshoff will captain the DHL Stormers in their historic Champions Cup debut match against ASM Clermont Auvergne at the Stade Marcel Michelin on Saturday.

Stormers captain Steven Kitshoff celebrates winning the Vodacom United Rugby Championship during the United Rugby Championship 2021/22 Grand Final between Stormers and Bulls held at Cape Town Stadium in Cape Town, South Africa on 18 June 2022

Kitshoff hitting the front for Stormers

Steven Kitshoff will go level with his front-row partner Frans Malherbe as the most-capped players in DHL Stormers’ history when he runs out to face Clermont in their Champions Cup clash on Saturday.

Make SA a Champions Cup fortress

The South African teams must be ruthless when hosting the English and French to go the distance in their debut season in the Champions and Challenge cups, writes MARK KEOHANE.

epa09836853 France's Antoine Dupont looks on during the Six Nations rugby match between France and England in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, France, 19 March 2022.

Dupont lashes out at Saffas in Champions Cup

Antoine Dupont, the 2021 World Player of the Year, hit out at the inclusion of South African teams in the new-look Champions Cup, saying it was “no longer the European Cup”.

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Courtnall Skosan of Northampton Saints avoids a tackle from Freddie Burns of Leicester Tigers during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Northampton Saints and Leicester Tigers at Franklin's Gardens on October 30, 2021 in Northampton, England. (Photo by Henry Browne/Getty Images)

Bok wing backs Saints’ Champs Cup charge

Courtnall Skosan has welcomed the inclusion of South African teams into the Champions Cup, but believes his Northampton Saints side will go all the way this season.

Ox Nche of the Sharks during the United Rugby Championship 2021/22 match between the Sharks and Stormers held at Kings Park in Durban on 29 January 2021 ©Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix

Nche fired up for rematch with Quins’ Bok

The Sharks will make their Champions Cup bow at home to a Harlequins outfit featuring a couple of familiar faces, which has Ox Nche pumped for the scrum battle on Saturday.

(13647711d) DHL Stormers vs Dragons RFC. DHL Stormers line up before the game BKT United Rugby Championship, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth, South Africa - 03 Dec 2022

Stormers working to solve second-half slump

The DHL Stormers are expecting to make their Champions Cup debut in minus temperatures in France, but are more concerned over a worrying pattern that has emerged in their last two games.