Five legendary European semi-final upsets: Ronan O'Gara features heavily

We are a few days away from more European drama, as the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup semi-finals are about to go live. But while everyone expects Bordeaux-Bègles and Leinster to be victorious, can an upset be on its way?

European competitions have served up many surprises and shocks over the years, and we recall five semi-finals that ended in upsets.

Racing 92 13-20 La Rochelle – Champions Cup 2021/2022
It might be the entry that ruffles feathers, but for those who were deeply submerged in one of the most dramatic and exhilarating games of that year’s Champions Cup, La Rochelle coming out on top ended up being a kind of stun.

In that season, Racing 92 had viciously defeated every single opponent in the Champions Cup, from their Parisian rivals Stade Français to the Welsh Ospreys. They seemed destined to qualify for another European final until they met ROG’s La Rochelle.

In May of 2021, Les Maritimes had fallen short of claiming the Champions Cup for the first time, where, ultimately, they stumbled against the formidable Toulouse.

Fixture

Investec Champions Cup

Leinster

07:00

2 May 26

Toulon

All Stats and Data

Fast forward to May 15th of 2022, and La Rochelle had another chance to qualify for the final, but for that, they had to overcome the ciel-et-blanc of Paris, Racing 92.

The locals were quite dominant in the opening half, scoring 10 points from Virimi Vakatawa’s hands and Nolann Le Garrec’s kicks. Ihaia West added the visitors’ first points with a few minutes to the break. However, everything changed when Grégory Alldritt found a way to strike to cut his side’s deficit to two points.

With the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense, the Parisians added three more points from Le Garrec’s tee, which weren’t enough to counter a penalty try awarded to the visiting side.

Racing were desperate to find a way to regain the lead, but Ihaia West had other plans, as the full-back scored a try in the game’s final play to clinch a remarkable win at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.
While it isn’t by any means the biggest stun on the list, to be fair, in that season Racing 92 seemed unstoppable and on their way to reach the final until they came across Les Maritimes.

Saracens 16-18 Munster – Heineken Cup 2007/2008
Munster’s 2007/2008 European season will forever be remembered as one of the greatest tales in rugby.

The road to reach the 2008 Heineken Cup final was brutal, insane, but, at the end of the day, spectacular, as Declan Kidney’s side had to overcome Gloucester at Kingsholm before pulling the rug from under Saracens’ feet to reach the final of the competition.

But was it a stunning victory over Saracens who, at the time, hadn’t tasted the sweet flavour of winning the Premiership or a European title? Well, in 2008/2009, Saracens qualified for the knockouts after beating Biarritz Olympique, Glasgow Warriors, and Viadana in the pool stage.

They had earned 24 points and the no.1 seed for the knockout draw, no small feat considering the teams involved in the competition.

As for Munster, they barely survived the pool stages: after six fierce rounds, they were tied with Clermont with 19 points, with Munster advancing on points difference in the head-to-head matches between the two sides.

While Saracens savoured the top seed spot, Munster had to settle for sixth, which meant playing away from home for the entire knockout stage. However, it didn’t deter the masters of Thomond Park from overcoming Gloucester in the quarter-finals, followed by a trip to Coventry.

At the Ricoh Arena, Munster, galvanised by a superhuman performance from Ronan O’Gara, were successful in their bid to defeat Saracens, pulling an 18-16 win after a gruelling 80 minutes.

The hosts jumped to the lead five minutes in, thanks to a formidable finish from Kameli Ratuvou, before ROG devised a superb comeback, following a converted try and a penalty conversion. Sarries still regained the lead briefly, but it all came down to O’Gara, who struck from distance to qualify for the final.

And, 29 days later, O’Gara, Alan Quinlan, Doug Howlett, Denis Leamy and the brave Red Army conquered Toulouse to enjoy Champions Cup glory.

Fixture

Investec Champions Cup

Bordeaux

07:00

3 May 26

Bath

All Stats and Data

Stade Français 28-25 Bath – Challenge Cup 2016/2017
Stade Français are the only team mentioned twice in this list, and they rightly deserve it, as in both instances they overcame the odds to reach the Challenge Cup final.

Let’s set the scene. Bath had been dominant throughout the Challenge Cup, securing five wins and 214 points in the pool stages, while showcasing the second-best defence in the competition. As for the Pink Army, they snatched the last ticket to the knockouts, finishing as the fourth-best second-place side.

While Bath had an easier time dealing with CA Brive in the quarter-finals, the Parisian side had to dig deep to put down the Ospreys in what was a sensational showdown played out at the Millennium Stadium.

While Bath had come up in first place in their pool, the new EPCR rules dictated that the semi-final would be played at the Stade Jean-Bouin, not the Rec, because Stade Français had won their quarter-final as a visiting side.

With all said and done, on April 23, 2017, Europe was graced with a titanic match that was ultimately decided by a moment of genius from Jules Plisson.

The locals were quick to build a hefty lead, scoring two converted tries and a penalty kick to grant them a 12-point lead at the break, with Bath only managing to secure six points.

In the blink of an eye, the English visitors struck three finishes in eight minutes, going froman 18-6 to 18-25 with only seven minutes left on the clock

But contrary to what Bath might have thought, the night would not end in an epic comeback story but rather in an unprecedented tragedy.

In the 78th minute, Hugh Pyle scored a try that allowed Plisson the opportunity to tie the score at 25 all. The French international fly-half didn’t falter and added the two extra points, with fans thinking that extra time would follow.

But Plisson, being Plisson, pulled a monumental 40-metre drop goal to put Stade Français ahead.

The game had already passed the 80th minute, with Bath and George Ford earning a last chance to win… a 22-metre penalty kick. However, unlike Plisson, it wasn’t Ford’s day, as he saw the ball graze the right post, giving Stade Français the win.

They would go on to win the Challenge Cup that year, defeating Gloucester 27-15 to top what had been a sensational feat.

USA Perpignan 22-25 Stade Français – Challenge Cup 2012/2013
While the 2012/2013 journey didn’t have the same happy ending as 2016/2017, Stade Français managed to beat the odds yet again, much to the dismay of Bath and Perpignan supporters.

The Parisians beat the likes of Grenoble, London Welsh and Cavalieri Prato to come out on top of Pool 5. However, like what happened in 2016/2017, they were assigned the eighth seed in the draw.

What did this mean? A trip to the home of the top-seeded side, Bath, who had claimed 29 out of 30 points in the group stage. But that status didn’t mean anything to Stade Français, as they delivered a masterclass at the Rec, defeating the locals 36-20.

Who followed next? USA Perpignan, who had just dispatched Toulouse 30-19.

At the mythical Catalan ground of Stade Aimé Giral, the USAP supporters were dreaming of a memorable evening of European glory that, unfortunately for them, never came.

In a very close and tight contest, both teams threw whatever they could, with the hosts scoring two tries from Guilhem Guirado and James Hook. The Pink Army only managed to find the whitewash once following a behemothian carry from Wallabies legend David Lyons. Still, it was all that was needed as Jérôme Porical would slot in eight kicks from the tee.

The Catalan team did all they could, but their indiscipline opened the door wide for Porical to secure his team a third European final.

Alas, their massive knockout-stage effort ended in disappointment, as Leinster convincingly defeated them in the final, registering a 34-13 win.

Ulster 22-19 Edinburgh – Champions Cup 2011/2012
Although the game we chose was Ulster’s victory over Edinburgh, it’s worth remembering that it was the 2011/2012 season of the Heineken Cup that the Ulstermen recorded a memorable victory at Thomond Park in the quarter-finals, beating rivals Munster 22-16.

With part of this tale already told, let’s rewind to the pool stages and the draw to understand why Ulster booking their place in that year’s final can be classified as a stun.

Among their Pool 4 rivals were the amazing jaunards of Clermont, the nine-time Premiership champions Leicester Tigers and the mysterious Aironi from Italy. After six rounds, Ulster had bagged the same number of points as Clermont, but the French side finished first due to a better points difference.

The draw ultimately dictated that Ulster would have to go for a ‘short’ drive to Thomond Park on April 8th, with the winner of this clash earning the right to face Edinburgh or Toulouse in 20 days.

With Ruan Pienaar pulling the strings, Ulster were victorious, bagging a 22-16 victory and booking a semi-final clash with Edinburgh, who had defeated Toulouse.

At the Aviva Stadium, Edinburgh did all they could to stop Ulster in their tracks, but it wasn’t meant to be, as Pienaar was at it again, securing 17 points from his boot. The Scottish side had vanquished the likes of Racing 92 and Cardiff Blues in the pool phase, and after claiming an all-timer against Toulouse, they were allowed to dream of winning European silverware.

But Brian McLaughlin’s Ulster had other plans, and deservedly won the tussle. The epic tale ended in tears in the final, as Leinster showed why they were the rightful rulers of the Pro12 world.