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Racing 92 fly-half Finn Russell dives over for a try in the French club's draw at Munster
2018 runners-up Racing 92 can clinch a spot in the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals with a win over Munster Rugby on Sunday at Paris La Defense Arena, topping Pool 4 in the process.
In a repeat of the 2018 semi-final, Munster will have to do without Joey Carbery this weekend who is missing due to injury while former Munster wing Simon Zebo is out for the hosts. The match gets underway at 15:15 GMT and is live on BT Sport. beIN SPORTS and FR2.
Key facts
- Racing 92 are unbeaten in their last three meetings with Munster in the Heineken Champions Cup (W2, D1), after losing four of their initial five fixtures (W1).
- Racing have lost just one of their last 13 pool games (W11, D1), their solitary defeat in that run was by Irish opposition, however, (v Ulster in Round 5 last season).
- If Racing win on Sunday they will book their place in the quarter-finals as Pool 4 winners.
- Munster lost in Round 4 (v Saracens), however, they’ve not lost consecutive matches in the competition since 2015/16 when they lost three in a row.
- Racing have made the most metres (2,048), breaks (65), offloads (45) and beaten the most defenders (130) this season.
- Munster have missed just 64 tackles, fewer than any other side, and as a result have the best tackle success rate in the competition (90%).
- Only Ulster (1) have conceded fewer first half tries than Munster (2), but Racing have scored more (12) than any other side in this period.
- Munster have retained just six of 100 kicks in play, and only Connacht (2/75) have retained fewer. Racing have retained 14/95, the fifth best total in the competition.
Racing 92's Virimi Vakatawa celebrates his try
Three tries in the final nine minutes helped Racing 92 secure a 39-22 win over Munster Rugby on Sunday afternoon in Paris, securing their spot in the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals in the process..
Munster dominated the opening 20 minutes and nudged into a 9-0 lead with a trio of successful penalty kicks from JJ Hanrahan.
Racing responded with a Teddy Iribaren penalty kick and got within a point on the half-hour mark with the opening try.
With penalty advantage, Iribaren launched a stunning pass wide right to Teddy Thomas who was able to beat his man and dot down in the corner, but the conversion was missed to keep Munster ahead.
Oh. My. Pass! 🤯
Just a casual 30 metre backhand miss-pass for Teddy Iribaren🤷♂️#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/QTMRk8FGea
— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) January 12, 2020
Iribaren would put Racing ahead with a three-pointer on 33 minutes but the momentum swung just before the interval.
Racing looked to be going in for a certain try before Andrew Conway intercepted under pressure and ran the length of the pitch to score a stunning try for the visitors, putting Munster 16-11 up at the break.
Three successful penalty kicks from Iribaren and two from Hanrahan in the second half meant Munster led by two points going into the final 10 minutes, despite plenty of Racing pressure.
However, the French side’s dominance eventually told with three tries in the final eight minutes.
"Vakatawaaaa for the quarter-finals!!!"
An outrageous dummy for a man in insane form at the moment 👏#HeinekenChampionsCup 🗣️@andNickMullins pic.twitter.com/Nhy1bO7kzy
— Rugby on BT Sport (@btsportrugby) January 12, 2020
The first came thanks to a delightful cross-field kick with penalty advantage from Finn Russell, allowing the clinical Teddy Thomas to somehow dot down in the corner.
And with just two minutes to play, Virimi Vakatawa started an attacking move with a lovely line break and rounded it off with a step and dummy before strolling through a gap in the Munster line and scoring.
Juan Imhoff added a fourth – bringing up the bonus point – with the clock in the red to nudge the Parisians closer to a home quarter-final.
Racing will travel to face Saracens in Round 6 while Munster host Ospreys needing five points to keep their qualification hopes alive.
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