Peter Jackson: All-Ireland duel looms on Champions Cup horizon

Accounting for as much as one-quarter of the qualifiers made it highly unlikely that all four could be kept apart. Success brings its own kind of penalty and from now on, Irish teams will be obliged to bump each other off

Caolin Blade of Connacht is tackled by James Hall of Stade Francais Paris during the Heineken Champions Cup Pool A match. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

Irish rugby has had its problems in Europe over the decades but never one like this - too many contenders and too little room to keep them apart.

While standing alone as the one country to see every contender safely through to the last 16 of the Champions’ Cup has never been done before, flooding the final stages increases the danger of the four ancient provinces knocking each other out.