Lucu helps Bordeaux brush aside Bath to set up final showdown with Leinster

Semi-final: Bordeaux Bègles 38-26 Bath Maxime Lucu scores 18 points for holders Bath had hoped that a return to Bordeaux might rekindle fond memories of their Champions Cup triumph in the city in 1998. Sadly for their cautiously optimistic supporters it was not to be as their hosts moved a big step closer to retaining the trophy they secured at Northampton’s expense in Cardiff last year. Bordeaux Bègles will face Leinster in the final in Bilbao in three weeks’ time, propelled there by the familiar trio of their brilliant half-backs Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert and their star wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who scored one of his side’s five tries. Will Muir scored a brace in response and the contest was never less than gripping but England’s domestic champions could ultimately have few complaints. Continue reading...

Bath had hoped that a return to Bordeaux might rekindle fond memories of their Champions Cup triumph in the city in 1998. Sadly for their cautiously optimistic supporters it was not to be as their hosts moved a big step closer to retaining the trophy they secured at Northampton’s expense in Cardiff last year. Bordeaux Bègles will face Leinster in the final in Bilbao in three weeks’ time, propelled there by the familiar trio of their brilliant half-backs Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert and their star wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who scored one of his side’s five tries. Will Muir scored a brace in response and the contest was never less than gripping but England’s domestic champions could ultimately have few complaints. In pretty much every area Bath were valiant and competitive without ever being the total masters of their own destiny.

And against a Bordeaux side who are tough to break down through the middle and exceptionally fleet of foot when the game breaks up, Bath were left to play catch-up on the scoreboard from start to finish. Which left the scrum. Ben Spencer is so important to the way Bath operate and here was another prime example. On this occasion, though, Bath had their own lethal weapon out wide. It was as good as it got for Bath for the rest of the first half.

One little knock-on was all Bordeaux needed to start wresting back the initiative, first by cranking up the pressure with a scrum penalty and then by trusting their dagger-sharp half-backs. Bath, though, started the second-half the stronger side, dragging Bordeaux through multiple close-range phases before, finally, the ball came right and the highly promising Louie Hennessey stretched over to score. But Bath were also struggling to keep their composure: first a promising lineout deep in opposition territory went astray before Ollie Lawrence collapsed a maul when Bath had looked set to win possession. Eventually it was disallowed but, with Charlie Ewels in the sin-bin for collapsing the maul, Bordeaux soon scored their fourth try anyway through the famously big Ben Tameifuna. Explore more on these topics Share Reuse this content Semi-final: Bordeaux Bègles 38-26 Bath Maxime Lucu scores 18 points for holders Bath had hoped that a return to Bordeaux might rekindle fond memories of their Champions Cup triumph in the city in 1998.

Sadly for their cautiously optimistic supporters it was not to be as their hosts moved a big step closer to retaining the trophy they secured at Northampton’s expense in Cardiff last year. Bordeaux Bègles will face Leinster in the final in Bilbao in three weeks’ time, propelled there by the familiar trio of their brilliant half-backs Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert and their star wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who scored one of his side’s five tries. Will Muir scored a brace in response and the contest was never less than gripping but England’s domestic champions could ultimately have few complaints. Continue reading... Lucu helps Bordeaux brush aside Bath to set up final showdown with Leinster