Shock in the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup. The double title holders from La Rochelle travel to the Aviva Stadium to face Leinster. The Irish have the opportunity to deprive Stade Rochelais of a new French treble, after Toulon.
Gala poster this Saturday at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin! Leinster hosts the double defending champion of the Champions Cup at 6:30 p.m., Stade Rochelais. A clash between two contenders for final victory, where the biggest stars of European rugby will face each other.
La Rochelle in search of a treble
Double title holders, the Rochelais are aiming for the treble this year in the Champions Cup. Facing Leinster, Uini Atonio travel to Ireland against one of the best teams in European rugby. If successful today, Grégory Alldritt and his teammates would once again find themselves in the last four of the competition. They would then take a big step towards a third final in a row, synonymous with a potential treble, a performance last achieved by another French club, Toulon from 2013 to 2015. “At the moment, no one is talking about a treble, everyone is focused on this quarter. You can’t start thinking about a treble anyway when a team like Leinster is in your way.”, declared prop Uini Atonio to our colleagues at Rugbyrama. For this shock, Ronan O’Gara will not be able to count on the return of Brice Dulin, injured in the meniscus last week against the Stormers, during the round of 16: “His knee can be blocked at any time, putting a 6-2 on the bench you can’t have a player like that close to the field.”, underlined the La Rochelle coach. Dillyn Leyds will play at the back, while Teddy Thomas, who was withdrawn last week, starts on the right wing. Jonathan Danty and UJ Seuteni will once again pair up, while Tawera Kerr-Barlow and Antoine Hastoy will form the hinge.
Leinster facing its black beast
A quarter-final with the feel of a reunion. This year, the two teams faced each other on the first day of group play. At the Marcel-Deflandre stadium, the Irish won 9-16. Before this meeting, La Rochelle had won the first three confrontations: two in the final (2023 and 2022) and one in the semi-final (2021). One of the strong men of the Yellow and Black, Grégory Alldritt returned to this history against the Leinster club to our colleagues at Rugbyrama: “Each time, it was huge, legendary matches against Leinster. We made club history against them. […] It’s not that we don’t like them but we often meet in the final stages and, suddenly, it’s them or us. There is no room for both clubs. This time, there is one who will go to the half and the other who will go home with his head down.”
What time does Leinster – La Rochelle start?
The Champions Cup quarter-final between Leinster and La Rochelle is scheduled to kick off Saturday April 13 at 6:30 p.m. at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin (Ireland). The Englishman Karl Dickson will be on the whistle.
On which channel to watch Leinster – La Rochelle?
Holder of the TV rights to the Champions Cup, BeIn Sports 1 will distribute the poster between Leinster and La Rochelle.
How to follow Leinster – La Rochelle in streaming?
If you want to watch the Champions Cup quarter-final clash between the Irish from Leinster and the Rochelais on your computer, smartphone or tablet, you will need to subscribe to MyCanal or on the site Bein Sports.
What are the lineups for Leinster – La Rochelle?
Leinster: 15. Keenan; 14. Larmour, 13. Henshaw, 12. Osborne, 11. Lowe; 10. Byrne, 9. Gibson-Park; 7. Connors, 8. Doris (cap.), 6. Baird; 5. Jenkins, 4. McCarthy; 3. Furlong, 2. Sheehan, 1. Porter.
La Rochelle: 15. Leids; 14. Thomas, 13. Seuteni, 12. Danty, 11. Nowell; 10. Hastoy, 9. Kerr-Barlow; 7. Botia, 8. Alldritt (cap.), 6. Cancoriet; 5. Skelton, 4. Dillane; 3. Atonio, 2. Latu, 1. Penverne.
What are the predictions for Leinster – La Rochelle?
- Betclic: Leinster: 1.28 / Draw: 22.00 / La Rochelle: 3.60
- Bwin: Leinster: 1.28 / Draw: 16.50 / La Rochelle: 3.25
- France-pari: Leinster: 1.27 / Draw: 23.00 / La Rochelle: 3.60
- Unibet: Leinster: 1.28 / Draw: 24.00 / La Rochelle: 3.62