By ERC Editor
Leicester Tigers will be up against Beziers - who will be making their debut in the Heineken Cup tournament - Neath and Amatori & Calvisano in Pool 1 when they launch their defence of the Heineken Cup title in the eighth season of Europes leading club competition.
The composition of the six Pools of four teams was announced by ERC (European Rugby Cup Ltd), the tournament organisers, today (Thursday 13 June). The fixtures will be announced in Lyon on Thursday, 27 June, at a meeting of representatives from the 24 competing teams.
This season all the knock-out stages will be played after the conclusion of the Six Nations Championship, starting with the quarter-finals on the second weekend of April and with the final being played on 24 May, 2003.
THE POOLS...
POOL 1:
Leicester Tigers
Amatori & Calvisano
Neath
Beziers
POOL 2:
Viadana
Munster
Gloucester
Perpignan
POOL 3:
Llanelli
Glasgow Rugby
Sale Sharks
Bourgoin
POOL 4:
Leinster
Montferrand
Bristol Shoguns
Swansea
POOL 5:
Edinburgh Rugby
Toulouse
Newport
London Irish
POOL 6:
Biarritz Olympique
Ulster
Cardiff
Northampton Saints
THE DATES -
Round 1: - 11/12/13 October, 2002
Round 2: - 18/19/20 October, 2002
Round 3: - 06/07/08 December, 2002
Round 4: - 13/14/15 December, 2002
Round 5: - 10/11/12 January, 2003
Round 6: - 17/18/19 January, 2003
Quarter-Finals: - 11/12/13 April, 2003
Semi-Finals: - 26/27 April, 2003
HEINEKEN CUP 2003 FINAL: - 24 May, 2003
AND WHAT THEY SAY...
Dean Richards, Leicester Tigers team manager: As usual, the Heineken Cup will extend us all the way. It is the premier club competition in the northern hemisphere, if not the world - and we very much look forward to defending our title.
Beziers may be new to the tournament but we know they will be extremely difficult to beat, especially at home, and Neath are going through a real resurgence. If they play to their full capability, they are able to beat anyone.
Joe Roff, Biarritz Olympique, Australian wing: It was great for the club to win the French Championship last weekend but we were disappointed with our run in the Heineken Cup last season and we all want to improve on that next season.
We will have a good dig at trying to win our Pool, but it is a tough one. There are two former winners of the Heineken Cup title Northampton Saints and Ulster in there with us and Cardiff are also a very fine side. Our season only ended last weekend with the French final but I appreciate that we are going to face some big challenges in the Heineken Cup in October.
Scott Quinnell, Llanelli and Wales No 8 and captain: It is an extremely tough group. But we have done well in the Heineken Cup over the last three years and I like to think we can continue to prove we can compete at the highest level and qualify from our Pool.
However, Sale Sharks proved in winning the PARKER PEN SHIELD that they have a squad of top quality players and we know a thing or two about Bourgoin, having played them in the 1999 / 2000 tournament. French clubs are always difficult to beat, they can be pretty unpredictable, and winning in France is a tall order.
With the Welsh / Scottish League no more, and Glasgow concentrating on the Heineken Cup, they will obviously be up for a big effort in Europe.
Killian Keane, Munster international centre: The away game against Gloucester at Kingsholm just jumps out at you, it will be a massive occasion. Gloucester are a very strong side with some fantastic players and they will have had the boost of winning the English Championship.
Munster and Gloucester have very similar sets of supporters and those games should be wonderful matches. We have never played them in a competitive fixture, just a pre-season friendly, but to clash with them in the Heineken Cup is just great.
And overall it is certainly a far from easy Pool. We played Perpignan in the 1998 / 1999 tournament, the results going with home advantage. Viadana are an unknown quantity but they are the Italian champions and they may well strengthen their squad this summer in preparation for their first season in the Heineken Cup.
Nick Oswald, Chief Executive Edinburgh Rugby: The tournament gets bigger and better and tougher, year by year.
It would be a huge boost to Scottish rugby if one of our teams can get through to the knock-out stages proper for the first time. We have now built up a fair bit of European experience and, with both Todd Blackadder and Scott Murray available for Heineken Cup duty next season, we feel we should be able to make a decent impact.
However, Toulouse are right back in form, Newport are always difficult to beat and, although we have never played London Irish, as the English Cup winners, and from what we have seen of them on TV, they are clearly a fine side.
