EPCR HAS CONFIRMED the dates and kick-off times for this season’s Champions Cup semi-finals.
Saturday 20 April
Saracens v Munster, Ricoh Arena, Coventry [KO 3.15pm, BT Sport]
Sunday 21 April
Leinster v Toulouse, Aviva Stadium, Dublin [KO 3.15pm, Virgin Media/Channel 4/BT]
Defending champions Leinster will have home country advantage over French side Toulouse in their semi-final on Sunday 21 April, having earned a higher seeding with their pool stage performances.
Leinster overcame inter-provincial rivals Ulster on a 21-18 scoreline in an absorbing quarter-final in Dublin yesterday.
Leinster and Toulouse have already battled it out in Pool 1 of this season’s competition, with the French side winning on home soil but Leo Cullen’s men earning a strong victory at the RDS in January.
Leinster and Toulouse have won four Champions Cup titles each, making this a semi-final clash between the two most successful clubs in the competition’s history.
Toulouse’s thrilling victory against Racing 92 in their quarter-final in Paris today underlined the Top 14 outfit’s quality, as they played superb attacking rugby despite going down to 14 men with a red card for out-half Zack Holmes in the 25th minute.
Munster, meanwhile, will be on the road in Coventry the day before as they take on Saracens at the Ricoh Arena on Saturday 20 April.
The Premiership side’s six wins from six in the pool stages mean they have the home country advantage, while their seven-try 56-27 hammering of Glasgow Warriors in yesterday’s quarter-final underlined their quality, even without key man Owen Farrell.
Munster advanced into the semi-finals for the third consecutive season with a dramatic 17-13 win away to Edinburgh at Murrayfield and will be underdogs for the clash in Coventry.
EPCR has also confirmed the broadcaster details for both semi-finals, with Leinster’s game against Toulouse being screened free-to-air on Virgin Media and Channel 4.
The winners of the two semi-finals will meet in the Champions Cup final at St James’ Park in Newcastle at 5pm on Saturday 11 May.
- This article was updated at 6.10pm to clarify that Leinster’s game is free-to-air, rather than Munster’s.
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