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Owen Farrell is Saracens' leading point-scorer in this season's Heineken Champions Cup with 35
Saracens head to reigning champions Stade Rochelais in a monumental Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final at Stade Marcel Deflandre on Sunday afternoon.
The Gallagher Premiership side are three-time winners of EPCR’s elite competition themselves, but La Rochelle have been a leading force in recent seasons, reaching back-to-back Heineken Champions Cup finals and lifting the trophy in Marseille last year.
Saracens, who have never faced La Rochelle in the Heineken Champions Cup, finished fourth Pool A after winning three games from four before defeating Ospreys 35-20 in the Round of 16 at StoneX Stadium.
Meanwhile, La Rochelle topped Pool B with four wins from four but needed a last-gasp Teddy Thomas try to see off Gloucester Rugby 29-26 at home in the Round of 16.
The game kicks off at 15:00 (UK & Irish time) and is available to watch on France TV, beIN SPORTS, BT Sport, ITV, SuperSport and FloRugby.
Key quote
Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall: “There will be another battle, which is very exciting because we’ve never been to La Rochelle before and they’re the reigning champions. Gloucester might have poked the bear a little bit.”
What a weekend we've got in store 😍
Which games are you watching?
Catch the #HeinekenChampionsCup QFs on @RTErugby, @ITVRugby, @francetvsport, @btsportrugby, @beinsports_FR, @SuperSportTV & @FloRugby 📺 pic.twitter.com/fMBVxM8Vmk
— Heineken Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) April 5, 2023
Stade Rochelais
- Antoine Hastoy is the leading points-scorer in the Heineken Champions Cup with 59. He has attempted more shots at goal than any other player (30), currently operating with a success rate of 77%.
- From his 82 carries – 37 of which have been pick-and-gos – Grégory Alldritt has made the joint-most contact metres in the competition (100).
- La Rochelle have set up a tournament-high five mauls which have travelled 10 metres or further. They have made the second-highest total maul metres (130).
- The 2022 champions have the highest rate of scrum success this season (97%). They have also won the most penalties on their own feed (13).
Saracens
- Ben Earl made the most metres in contact in the Round of 16 (32).
- Nick Tompkins made more offloads than any other player who qualified last weekend, a total of four.
- Saracens have scored as many maul tries as any other team.
- They also have the highest rate of carry dominance of the sides remaining in the tournament (29%).
La Rochelle scrum-half Tawera Kerr Barlow crossed twice against Saracens
Saracens couldn’t match a masterful Stade Rochelais performance in the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals as they went down 24-10 at the Stade Marcel Deflandre on Sunday.
Tawera Kerr Barlow dotted down in either half for the reigning champions, who were superb defensively, while Antoine Hastoy kicked 14 points. The TOP 14 outfit’s win sees them set up a semi-final at home to Exeter Chiefs on April 30.
Three-time champions Saracens struggled to cope with La Rochelle’s physicality but got over through Eroni Mawi midway through the second half.
La Rochelle made an electric start to the contest in front of a boisterous home crowd and their aggression at the breakdown allowed fly-half Hastoy to kick two penalties inside the first five minutes.
Perfect hands from Alldritt 👌
Space found from Kerr Barlow 👏Sensational try from the reigning champs, @StadeRochelais 💛#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/T5mhamAa23
— Heineken Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) April 9, 2023
Despite struggling at the breakdown, Saracens spent plenty of time in the La Rochelle 22 during the course of the first half, fly-half Owen Farrell putting the visitors on the board with a penalty from in front of the posts on 21 minutes.
But Saracens failed to make their pressure count amid robust La Rochelle defence, and after Hastoy restored the hosts’ six-point lead from the tee, scrum-half Kerr Barlow finished off a terrific score on 33 minutes as he ran a loop off Grégory Alldritt to dot down next to the posts.
Saracens were met with more stern La Rochelle resistance after the break, failing to convert another lengthy stay in their 22 into points.
In attack, La Rochelle’s giant forwards continued to punch holes in Saracens’ defence and flanker Levani Botia, who was superb at the breakdown all day, streaked through and teed up Kerr Barlow for his second score on 58 minutes.
💛 @StadeRochelais strike again 🔥
A second for Kerr Barlow and Les Maritimes extender their lead, is it too late for a Saracens resurgence?#HeinekenChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/c81vvd1CAY
— Heineken Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) April 9, 2023
Saracens kept their semi-final hopes alive when prop Mawi burrowed over from a metre out with a quarter of an hour to play, Farrell’s conversion reducing the gap to 11 points.
But La Rochelle’s breakdown supremacy earned them another penalty on 68 minutes, Hastoy slotting from range to bolster their position.
There was an eventful finish to the contest as Saracens were twice held up over the whitewash and La Rochelle had a score chalked off by the TMO.
La Rochelle full-back Brice Dulin was sin-binned with eight minutes to play as Saracens pushed for a second try, but there was no way through the home team’s rearguard and their hopes were further dashed when replacement hooker Tom Woolstencroft was also shown a yellow card.
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