By Charlie Elliott
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The Challenge Cup returned last weekend for the round of 16 stage, as the best in European rugby’s second-tier competition battled it out for a place in the quarters.
With a much more balanced set of fixtures that led to much closer games than the Champions Cup, an argument could be made that it is the more entertaining of the two competitions.
English teams did much better, with two Premiership representatives qualifying for the quarters.
Fans don’t have long to wait, with the next round taking place this weekend.
Here is a rundown of the round of 16, as well as a full fixture list for the last eight.
Edinburgh 24-12 Lions
A dominant attacking performance from Edinburgh saw them fight off their South African opponents Lions, with a late fightback from the visitors not enough to claw their way back into the game.
The hard work was done in the first half, as they went into the break with a 17-0 lead.
Defensive solidity was clearly the aim for the hosts, who sacrificed their scintillating attack for a more reserved approach, which impacted the game and led to a fragmented affair.
They held on with no real resistance from the South Africans and have confirmed a home quarter-final against Lions’ compatriots, the Bulls.
Section Paloise 24-49 Bath
Premiership leaders Bath stormed to a big victory away in Pau with some outstanding attacking rugby that confirmed their status as taking this competition seriously.
A red card for Sam Underhill three-quarters of the way through the match was too little, too late for Pau, who were already dead and buried by that point.
The French side did mount a slight comeback and made the scoreline a bit more respectable, but Bath will be happy with how they acquitted themselves.
Johann van Graan’s Blue, Black and Whites have an all-Premiership quarter final to look forward to, hosting Gloucester at The Rec.
Bayonne 22-32 Bulls
An entertaining, back-and-forth game at the Stade Jean-Dauger saw a valiant Bayonne side pushing for parity but never quite getting close enough.
Bulls had the lead for most of the game thanks to some powerful and quick attacking play, but kept letting their French hosts get within a few points, just as their leads looked comfortable.
By the end, the quality showed, and a 10-point win was about fair based on the balance of play.
Bulls will have to travel to Edinburgh next in what will be a difficult game at the Hive Stadium.
Montpellier 17-24 Gloucester
A slow Gloucester start, which saw them 14-0 down after just over ten minutes, was cancelled out by some typically quick rugby, as well as a more physical side to their game, which saw them edge the game out as seven-point winners.
Santi Carreras’ last-gasp penalty secured the points and sent the visiting Cherry and Whites fans into raptures.
Winning in France is no mean feat, and it will give them confidence for the rest of the tournament and for their Premiership top-four push.
They will face Bath at The Rec next.
Connacht 35- 20 Cardiff
Connacht edged out a scrappy contest in which they had to survive a yellow card from Mack Hansen in the first half to give themselves a platform to work off in the second.
The turning point came just before the break when the Irish side kicked for the corner instead of taking the points and were rewarded with a try and a Cardiff yellow, which they never really looked back from.
In the second period, it was fairly straightforward for the hosts, who avoided what would have been a pretty big shock.
Racing 92 awaits at the Dexcom Stadium, another game where Connacht will consider themselves favourites.
Perpignan 18-24 Racing 92
The tightest and most attritional game by both scoreline and nature, Perpignan and Racing probed at each other across the 80 minutes, with the visitors from Paris eventually getting the elusive winner.
Racing’s Wame Naituvi’s jinking run through the defence in the 67th minute was the final score, and his side defended for their lives to stop a strong USAP team from scoring what could have proved to be the winner.
Things don’t get easier for Les Ciel et Blanc, who must travel to the west of Ireland to face Connacht in the quarters.
Lyon 34-21 Sharks
Unsurprisingly, Lyon saw off a weakened Sharks side that was missing most of their Springboks talent.
The South Africans struck first with the first try of the match but were blown out of the water after that point, falling to a 34-7 deficit at one point.
A couple of late tries made the scoreline a bit more respectable, but the damage had been done and Lyon will take plenty of confidence into the next round.
Ospreys away is next on the agenda for Le LOU.
Ospreys 36-14 Scarlets
An all-Wales battle between two rivals was always going to be a good game, and it lived up to the hype.
Despite winning last week against the same opposition, Scarlets failed to live up to expectations and were well beaten by the better team on the day.
Some outstanding rugby at lightning quick speed was played by the hosts as they romped to what ended up as a very convincing win.
Bursts from the West Walians kept things interesting, but came to no avail in the end.
Ospreys have a home game against Lyon up next.
READ MORE: Champions Cup Quarter-Finals – Fixtures, Where to Watch and Previews
Full quarter final fixture list
Edinburgh v Bulls (Saturday, 12:30 pm )
Ospreys v Lyon (Saturday, 17:30 pm)
Connacht v Racing 92 (Saturday, 20:00 pm)
Bath v Gloucester (Sunday, 17:30 pm)
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