From Paris to Belfast, there were remarkable results across Europe as The British & Irish Lions 2017 Tour selection battle turned up a notch during this weekend’s European Rugby Champions Cup and Challenge Cup action.
Munster’s 38-0 victory over Leicester Tigers saw Conor Murray steal a march on Ben Youngs as Rassie Erasmus’s side became the first in 13 years to nil Leicester in Europe, condemning them to their heaviest ever European defeat in the process.
Glasgow Warriors boosted their Champions Cup qualification hopes with a thunderous 23-14 win over Top 14 champions and last year’s finalists Racing 92 in Paris as Jonny Gray made 19 tackles without missing any and Finn Russell was man of the match against All Black legend Dan Carter.
Paddy Jackson and Iain Henderson were inspirational for Ulster as they emerged victorious 39-32 in a nine-try thriller with Clermont Auvergne.
Reigning champions Saracens gave a huge show of strength in comprehensively outplaying Sale Sharks 50-3 where Maro Itoje was man of the match and Sean Maitland scored two tries.
Leinster too marked their return to form in the Champions Cup by dominating Northampton Saints on Friday night, Wasps grabbed a bonus point against Guinness PRO12 champions Connacht and Alun Wyn Jones reached a landmark against Grenoble.
Brian O’Driscoll can hardly believe his eyes after Munster's big win:
38-ZERO. Wow
— Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) December 10, 2016
Man of the match CJ Stander reflects on a big few weeks:
Its been an incredible few weeks… thank you for everyone's continued support!
Roll on next week! #munsterrugby #SUAF pic.twitter.com/jmyaVfrohE— C J Stander (@CJStander) December 11, 2016
Paddy Jackson magic:
This superb try by @paddyjackson10 puts Ulster ahead at HT #ULSvCLE 22-18! SS2 NOW or blog: https://t.co/GZwg9Eakg3 https://t.co/F45biJPEUm
— Sky Sports Rugby ? (@SkySportsRugby) December 10, 2016
Man of the match Iain Henderson:
Superb performance from #Ulster, impressive win. Iain Henderson was huge for them, backline excellent with Paddy Jackson in control.
— Murray Kinsella (@Murray_Kinsella) December 10, 2016
Glasgow Warriors were so good John Beattie had to watch them twice:
Just watching @GlasgowWarriors game again great pressure on Dan Carter
— John Beattie (@BBCJohnBeattie) December 11, 2016
High praise from Andy Nicol:
Well played @finn_russell you just out 'Dan Cartered' Dan Carter today! Outstanding controlled performance!! #class #warriornation
— Andy Nicol (@AndyNic9) December 10, 2016
Unrivalled success:
The @EdinburghRugby win now makes it 8 for @PRO12rugby teams over clubs from other leagues this weekend, equaling their best ever!
— Stuart Farmer (@Stu_Farmer) December 10, 2016
Halfpenny contends with waterboy:
DON'T MIND ME… Scarlets waterboy gets in the way of Leigh Halfpenny taking a penalty! WATCH HERE: https://t.co/Dhfc8zqpxs pic.twitter.com/5Dz6IiEDWp
— Sky Sports Rugby ? (@SkySportsRugby) December 11, 2016
Itoje glad to be back:
Great to be back playing at Allianz Park playing for this top team! Thanks for the support! Looking forward to this week!! pic.twitter.com/Ax8GSAvV2T
— Maro Itoje (@maroitoje) December 11, 2016
AWJ shows his class after becoming most prolific Ospreys forward in history:
Lovely touch from AWJ finding and thanking fans who stayed out for the rearranged game. One fan said "I can die happy now" as he walked away pic.twitter.com/3y5NxhNmRp
— Ben Evans (@_ben_evans) December 9, 2016
