Dubliners installed as favorites to regain European club crown

Leinster have been installed as 9/4 ante post favorites ahead of the knockout stages of European club rugby’s premier tournament, the Heineken Cup.

Dublin-based side Leinster, the 2009 champions, go in to the last eight as second seeds, and are due to host two-time winners Leicester when the tournament re-starts in April.

Sunday night’s draw for the semifinals handed the winner of that quarterfinal host nation advantage against the winners of Biarritz vs Toulouse.

European club rugby is notorious for favoring the home team, and defending champions Toulouse blew their chance of a home quarterfinal when they lost on Sunday at London Wasps, where veteran lock forward Simon Shaw led his side’s battling performance to regain some pride.

Biarritz vs Toulouse is a repeat of the 2010 Heineken Cup final in which Toulouse won their fourth European title in a 21-19 thriller. And despite facing a demanding away semi-final if they want to get to the final in Cardiff in May, Toulouse are still rated as 6/1 third favorites for the cup.

Northampton, led by hooker Dylan Hartley and with flying full back Ben Foden in their XV, have been slated as 3/1 second favorites. They will host Ulster in the quarterfinals of the Heineken Cup.

The fourth quarter sees Perpignan taking on Jonny Wilkinson’s Toulon, the Catalans likely to stage the game in Barcelona. Despite having four teams in the quarterfinals, the draw will deny the French any home semi-finals.

Northampton, who won all six of their group games, will have to switch the tie from Franklin’s Gardens to a larger stadium with a minimum 15,000 capacity. Northampton must fancy their chances of beating Perpignan in the semis; Toulon – 12/1 outsiders – look to have the best chance of the teams with away draws for the quarter-finals.

The long hiatus before the competition resumes is because the Six Nations’ tournament, which begins on Friday, takes precedence.

And with so many of the top players involved in the attritional international games, much could happen in the intervening weeks to impact the line-ups of the sides in the quarterfinals.

Wasps defeat of Toulouse sent them into the second-tier Challenge Cup competition, where they will travel to face local rivals Harlequins in the last eight.

Two-time Heineken champions Munster, who failed to qualify for the knock-out stages of the elite tournament for the first time in 13 years, have an away tie in Brive.

The other two matches are all-French affairs, with Stade Francais hosting Montpellier and La Rochelle facing Clermont Auvergne.

The quarterfinals of both competitions will be played April 8-10.

Heineken Cup quarter-finals line-up:

Northampton v Ulster

Leinster v Leicester

Perpignan v Toulon

Biarritz v Toulouse

Heineken Cup semifinals:

Leinster/Leicester v Biarritz/Toulouse

Northampton/Ulster v Perpignan/Toulon

Challenge Cup quarterfinals:

Stade Francais v Montpellier

Brive v Munster

La Rochelle v Clermont Auvergne

Harlequins v Wasps

Challenge Cup semifinals:

Stade Francais/Montpellier v La Rochelle/Clermont Auvergne

Brive/Munster v Harlequins/Wasps

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