Heavyweight clashes, Boks' European bow and much more - Lots to look forward to in new Champions Cup campaign

Don't be fooled into thinking the romance of this competition is waning.

KICK-OFF: Hugo Keenan’s Leinster face Racing 92 in the Heineken Champions Cup on Saturday. Pic: Billy Stickland/Inpho

THERE may well be plenty for the naysayers as a new Heineken Champions Cup campaign gets underway this weekend but do not be fooled into thinking the romance of this competition is waning.

There remains a cumbersome and difficult-to-follow qualification system featuring two pools of 12 after organisers EPCR lost a weekend from their slate and had to reduce the round-robin phase from six rounds to four. Yet it does not detract from the quality of the fixtures.