The most attractive team of the moment can already qualify for the round of 16 of the Champions Cup. UBB hosts Saracens in the Chaban-Delmas arena this Sunday (6:30 p.m.). The Girondins, first in their group and second in the Top 14, are sure of their strength. But still wary of an English team that is still formidable. “The last time was in the Champions Cup final with Racing. Almost all the players on this team have played with the national team. We will have to play rugby at a very high level. But we also have incredible players. It’s going to be great, especially in Chaban where so far everything is going well for us,” enthused Maxime Lucu before the match.
Yannick Bru’s men started the competition perfectly. Expected on the European scene after the ambitions displayed around the recruitment of Damian Penaud, the Union Bordeaux-Bègles took 10 points out of… 10 possible. By first crushing Connacht (5-41) then Bristol at home (36-17), despite a difficult end to the match. Only Toulouse and Bath (Northampton counting an additional match) have the same number of points after two days. Offensively, Maxime Lucu’s teammates are on fire with 407 points scored in 14 matches, the best total for a French team, Champions Cup and Top 14 combined.
For this meeting, Bru and his men will not be able to count on Cyril Cazeaux, Jandre Marais, Connor Sa, Lekso Kaulashvili, Sipili Falatea, Yann Lesgourgues, Ben Tapuai, Tevita Tatafu or even Nans Ducuing. But the team lined up is undoubtedly one of the best possible. In addition to the XXL three-quarter line organized around the Lucu-Jalibert hinge, the pair of Moefana-Depoortère centers, the twirling Bielle-Biarrey and Penaud and the attractive Buros, the UBB is not left out in front. Australian international Pete Samu will start in the 8 position while the giants Petti and Coleman will form the second line behind the powerful Tameifuna. It promises.
Saracens’ long period of domination in the European Cup and the Premiership (English top division) seems distant. The English club, winner of three editions (2016, 2017 and 2019) is no longer the team that crushed the competition. Is the fault of an aging team? Besides, Mako and Billy Vunipola are still there. Itoje, Farrell, Maitland, Daly and Goode remain indisputable starters. Only 6th in the league, the Sarries had a sluggish start to the Champions Cup with an opening defeat against the Bulls (27-16) and a victory against Connacht (55-36) at the end of a crazy match.
But the UBB must be wary. Having come close to a cold shower last weekend against Bayonne (24-23), the Girondins will face a team that is scrapping, especially in these winter times. Scorer Owen Farrell won’t let anything slip. Incomings Vunipola, Gonzalez and Segun could bring power and speed late in the game. The third line, made up of the English Isiekwe and Earl as well as the Scot Christie, will be to follow. Bru’s men will therefore pass a real test of character.
