Wind in Connacht sails for French voyage

They head to France next Saturday to take on Montpellier with a Challenge Cup semi-final place up for grabs.

Connacht's Finlay Bealham celebrates after the win over Sharks. Pic: ©INPHO/Ben Brady

The last time Connacht won six games in a row they went on to lift the only silverware the province has won in its history.

The tenth anniversary of that unforgettable Pro12 final win over Leinster at Murrayfield is fast approaching and if Stuart Lancaster gets his way they will mark it by getting to the Challenge Cup final in Bilbao.

They head to France next Saturday with the wind in their sails to take on Montpellier with a Challenge Cup semi-final place up for grabs.

They lost 33-31 in Montpellier in January in the pool stages, blowing a 17-point lead in the closing 14 minutes. It wasn’t the first time this season they made a mess of trying to hold on to a lead, but it was the last time.

Lancaster has turned the Connacht defence around. Teams now earn their scores, while their own attack has a cut to it. Five league wins in a row, including at home to leaders Glasgow Warriors and away to an Ulster side previously unbeaten in Belfast, have given them a shot at qualification in the URC.

And now a 29-12 knockout win over the Sharks, the side that put 45 points and nilled Munster but who couldn’t score a try against Connacht, has Lancaster’s men flying on two fronts.

“I just think momentum is a really important thing, and game battle hardness,” said Lancaster. “We just want to keep playing. I'm not a big fan of weeks off, to be honest.” 

The trip to Montpellier, 53-13 winners over Peroignan at the weekend, is a bit of a logistical nightmare as they fly to South Africa on Monday to take on the Stormers and the Lions.

“Logistically, bearing in mind we're flying to South Africa the Monday after, going to France and back is one thing, but you'd rather be in it, wouldn't you?

“We've got some good players coming back, I think. Hugh Gavin is training this week, Harry West is going to be training this week, Shayne Bolton is already training, Sean Jansen is back soon, Caolin Blade is very close. It's a good position to be in.

“So yeah, we'll definitely fight on two fronts. So we'll go for it (against Montpellier), and then we'll get on the plane to South Africa and see about the Stormers and the Lions,” added Lancaster.

They will fly out to Montpellier on a charter flight on Friday, returning home directly after the game on Saturday for a quick turnaround before heading to Cape Town on Monday.

On Sunday, Wyn Jones’ last-gasp try sent Dragons into the quarter-finals with a 36-31 win over Stade Francais.

At the start of the last 16 clash, Angus O’Brien’s penalty put Dragons ahead and the full-back found their opening try of the match before converting and Brodie Coghlan doubled their advantage after grounding from a maul, with O’Brien adding the extras.

Despite Dragons’ strong start, Stade Francais fought back on the stroke of half-time when Samuel Ezeala went over twice in quick succession, with Louis Foursans-Bourdette converting both tries to close the gap on the visitors, who led 17-14 at the break.

The hosts then went ahead for the first time in the game shortly after the restart when Yoan Tanga crossed and Foursans-Bourdette converted before successfully kicking a penalty minutes later.

Chris Coleman’s try was converted by O’Brien as Dragons drew level, but Ezeala bagged his hat-trick and Zack Henry converted to restore Stade Francais’ advantage.

An entertaining finale saw Elliot Dee ground from the maul, but O’Brien was unable to convert and missed a penalty with four minutes to play before Wyn Jones crossed in the 79th minute, with O’Brien adding the extras to send Dragons into the final eight.