Challenge Cup

Connacht top Challenge Cup pool with hard-fought win at Cardiff

Western province secure home advantage for last 16 knock-out stage

Connacht know win in Cardiff could ease potential return to Welsh capital for decider

A top-two seeding would leave Pete Wilkins’s side with a potential home run all the way to the Challenge Cup final

Connacht make four changes as they look to seal home European run with win in Cardiff

Ulster head coach Richie Murphy hands son Jack a first Champions Cup start at outhalf against Exeter

Gordon D’Arcy: Leinster need to hone their attack to win titles

Leo Cullen’s men eked out a dogfight win over rivals La Rochelle but struggled to build a consistent attacking shape

Connacht travel to Cardiff with Challenge Cup ambitions

Connacht head coach Pete Wilkins is adamant the Challenge Cup remains a priority this season despite having fallen down the pecking order in the URC

Pete Wilkins calls on Connacht to continue European momentum against Cardiff

After booking a Last 16 spot with a dismantling of Lyon they will now look to secure a home tie with a win in Wales

Champions Cup Round Three: TV details, kick-off time, team news and more

Leinster, Ulster and Munster are in action at the weekend in the next round of the pool stage

Connacht’s Pete Wilkins speaks of ‘frustrating’ events as Mark Sexton departure announced

Head coach says province ‘confident’ ahead of Lyon game while search for Sexton replacement starts

Connacht close in on Challenge Cup knock-out stages after brilliant win in Perpignan

Pete Wilkins’s side pulled away in the final quarter after the French side had got back to within a point

Connacht know away win against Perpignan would put them in strong position to qualify

European Challenge Cup: Perpignan, having drawn 20-20 with Cheetahs in Amsterdam, are still very much in the hunt

Connacht’s Denis Buckley and Joe Joyce return to fitness ahead of trip to Perpignan

Pete Wilkins’ side took a win over Zebre in their Challenge Cup opener on Saturday

Connacht set to blood new players in Challenge Cup home tie against Zebre

Province rotates quartet of first-teamers after Ireland's Autumn Nations Series

Sam Prendergast starts at outhalf for Leinster as Jordie Barrett named on the bench

Champions and Challenge Cup team news: Leo Cullen confirms Hugo Keenan’s wrist injury will keep him out for ‘around four weeks’

Connacht boss Pete Wilkins wants ‘to see a response from the players’ against Zebre

Head coach wants side to make positive Challenge Cup statement after loss to Bulls last time out

Rugby enters new phase as Premier Sports gains blanket coverage of Irish provinces

Channel will offer live coverage of all Champions Cup games involving Leinster, Munster and Ulster, plus Connacht’s Challenge Cup matches

Leinster and Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle meet once again in Champions Cup pool stages

Munster get Northampton and Bulls, Ulster drawn against Toulouse and Leicester

Connacht exit Challenge Cup as they are undone by Benetton’s first-half blitz

Pete Wilkins’s side scored the opening try before home side hit them with four of their own before half-time

Ulster capitulate in the second half as Clermont Auvergne run up half century

Richie Murphy’s side were no match physically for the France Top 14 outfit

Iain Henderson and Steven Kitshoff fit to start as Ulster eye up Challenge Cup semi-final spot

Uplifted Ulster aim to continue their mini-revival under new coach Richie Murphy with a trip to take on Clermont

Jarrad Butler and Shayne Bolton to miss Connacht’s Challenge Cup quarter-final through injury

Butler is undergoing return to play protocols after a head injury while a thigh issue will keep Bolton out of the trip to Benetton

Connacht fight back in Pau to set up Italian job

Pete Wilkins’s side trailed at the break but finished strongly to earn a last-eight date with Benetton

Ulster produce rare result in Europe after Montpellier implosion in second half

Paul Willemse’s red card saw French side reduced to 12 players at one point

Champions Cup and Challenge Cup last 16: TV details, kick-off times, team news and more

Everything you need to know about the Irish provinces and their routes to the finals

Connacht fully locked and loaded for Pau clash

Connacht coach Peter Wilkins adds internationals Bundee Aki and Finlay Bealham to an already vastly experienced starting XV for Challenge Cup clash away to Pau

Challenge Cup team news: Aki and Bealham back for Connacht, Henderson fit for Ulster

Connacht line out against Pau while Ulster also travel to France to take on Montpellier in the round of 16

Ulster’s Iain Henderson says Kitshoff ‘speculation’ will not be a distraction against Montpellier

Ulster prop is set to return to South Africa at the end of the season

‘We have to score tries’ - Connacht to come out firing in Challenge Cup knockouts

Pete Wilkins’ side travels to France to take on Pau who currently sit seventh on the Top 14 table

Gerry Thornley: Repeats and reprises also bring chance for revenge in Champions Cup

The Irish provinces have had a mixed campaign but Leinster and Connacht carry more momentum with them than Munster and Ulster

The Offload: Ultan Dillane plays his part as La Rochelle tear Tigers to shreds

Leinster’s Luke McGrath has racked up 200 caps for Leinster, a milestone he reached when coming on in the 43-7 victory over Stade Francais

Champions Cup and Challenge Cup Q&A: The competition formats explained

European rugby: Your guide to what has changed and what has stayed the same in Europe’s top two club competitions

Leinster hoping for a favour from La Rochelle as new European format unveiled

Champions Cup will consist of four groups of six teams but will still have just four rounds of pool games

Toulon end their Challenge Cup drought in fine style as Glasgow blown away

Three-time Champions Cup winners earn a first Challenge Cup at the fifth time of asking

Toulon hoping it’s third time lucky in Challenge Cup decider against Glasgow Warriors

French side have suffered final defeats in 2020 and last year but have happy memories of the Aviva Stadium

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to host 2024 Champions Cup final

The London venue will also host the final of the Challenge Cup

Connacht boosted for season-defining URC clash with Cardiff as Carty, Bealham and Buckley return

Victory over Welsh side will almost certainly seal place in play-offs for Champions Cup

Connacht make disappointingly tame exit from Challenge Cup as they are thrashed by Benetton

From start to finish the Italians have never delivered such a complete victory over the Irish province

Connacht take no risks in team selection as they head to Italy

Benetton have traditionally made life difficult for Connacht at their home venue

Connacht look to frank Challenge Cup credentials against wounded Newcastle Falcons

Although qualified, province keen to take top-two spot and secure best possible draw for round of 16

Connacht not bothered about Bundee Aki as they prepare for Newcastle

Coaching director Andy Friend says all is going to plan for Ireland centre, who is ‘probably going to be sensational in the Six Nations’

Connacht coach Pete Wilkins insists Bundee Aki ‘absolutely available’ for selection

Coach admits there’s a ‘fair amount of competition’ among talented group of centres

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