Challenge Cup Round One

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Newcastle Falcons v Montpeiller
Kingston Park
Sunny, 7 Degrees, 17mph W Winds

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Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Vincent Debaty	09. Nick Phipps
02. Jamie George (c)	10. Ian Madigan (k)
03. Matt Stevens
04. Dom Barrow	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Yohan Maestri	12. Tom Stephenson
06. Rhys Ruddock	13. Robbie Freaun
07. Callum Clark	14. Vince Tavae Aso
08. Jack O'Donaghue	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.Dane Coles 17.Matt Mullan 18. Charlie Faumuina 19. Flip Van Der Merwe 20. Kieran Read 21. Dave Lewis 22. Owen Farrell 23. Ben Smith

Take the French on at their own game with a massive power carrying pack, then Phipps to spin the ball out and get Madigan on the front foot where he works best.

Running threats throughout the backline, with electric pace in the back 3.

Solid set piece anchored by George, who will lead the side

Bringing in our All Blacks off the bench to get them back into the swing of things and get us the bonus point late on

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Montpeiller

15 Anthony Floch,, 14 Pierre Berard, 13 Andrew Smith, 12 Robert Ebersohn, 11 Julien Malzieu, 10 Ben Lucas, 9 Cameron Wright, 8 Ben Mowen, 7 Willem du Plessis, 6 Willem Liebenberg, 5 Sitaleki Timani, 4 Tom Donnelly, 3 Patric Cilliers, 2 Mickael Ivaldi, 1 Bees Roux.

Replacements: 16 Thomas Sauveterre, 17 Oleg Ishchenko, 18 Julien Delannoy, 19 Kelian Galletier, 20 Ilian Perraux, 21 Anthony Tuitavake, 22 Jesse Mogg, 23 Jacobus Adriaanse

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Worcester Warriors v La Rochelle
Sixways
Sunny, 9 Degrees, 19mph WSW Winds

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Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Joe Moody	09. Lee Dickson
02. Ross Batty	10. Owen Williams (k)
03. Henry Thomas
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Nehe Milner-Skudder
05. Jacques Potgeiter	12. Cory Allen
06. Mike Williams	13. Huw Jones
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Warren Whiteley	15. Brice Dulin

:-
16. Codie Taylor 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Lucas Noguera Paz 19. Dean Mumm 20. Jackson Wray 21. Rory Kockett 22. Jules Plisson 23. Anton Leniert Brown

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La Rochelle

15 Benjamin Lapeyre, 14 Gabriel Lacroix, 13 Pierre Aguillon, 12 Levani Botia, 11 Alexander Northam, 10 Zack Holmes, 9 Enrico Januarie, 8 Kevin Gourdon, 7 Afaesetiti Amosa, 6 Romain Sazy, 5 Romana Graham, 4 Jason Eaton, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Maxime Gau, 1 Vincent Pelo,

Replacements: 16 Benjamin Geledan, 17 Thomas Synaeghel, 18 Leandro Cedaro, 19 Damien Lagrange, 20 Julien Audy, 21 Fabien Fortassin, 22 Charles Bouldoire, 23 Lekso Kaulashvili

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Exeter Chiefs v Agen
Sandy Park
Light Rain Shower, 11 Degrees, 14mph Winds

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Exeter Chiefs

Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Jack Yeandle	10. Alex Losowski (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Paul O'Connell (c)	11. Andrew Trimble
05. Jake Ball	12. Toby Flood
06. Kane Douglas	13. Sam James
07. Luke Wallace	14. James Lowe
08. Brad Shields	15. James O'Connor

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16. Sean Cronin 17. Wyatt Crockett 18. Vincent Koch 19. Lood De Jäger 20. Joe Edwards 21. Chris Cook 22. Ma'a Nonu 23. Jamie Elliott

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Agen

15 Benoit Sicart, 14 Tamaz Mchedlidze, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Eroni Narumasa, 11 George Tilsley, 10 Burton Francis, 9 Alexis Balès, 8 Marc Giraud, 7 Antoine Erbani, 6 Luke Hamilton, 5 William Demotte, 4 Apisalome Ratuniyarawa, 3 Arthur Joly, 2 Mike Tadjer, 1 Viliamu Afatia.

Replacements: 16 Marc Barthomeuf, 17 David Ryan, 18 Corentin Braendlin, 19 Remi Vaquin, 20 Clement Darbo, 21 Bautista Guemes, 22 Ilaitia Tagotago, 23 Nicolas Chocou.

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Newport Gwent Dragons v Gloucester
Rodney Parade
Sunny, 10 Degrees, 18mph W Winds

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Dragons

15 Carl Meyer, 14 Ashton Hewitt, 13 Adam Hughes, 12 Adam Warren, 11 Nick Scott, 10 Dorian Jones, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Ollie Griffiths, 6 Ed Jackson, 5 Rynard Landman (c), 4 Cory Hill, 3 Shaun Knight, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Boris Stankovich

Replacements: 16 Rhys Buckley, 17 Phil Price, 18 Brok Harris, 19 Matthew Screech, 20 Lewis Evans, 21 Charlie Davies, 22 Jason Tovey, 23 Ross Wardle.

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Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

01. Rob Evans	09. TJ Perenara
02. Joe Grey	10. Johan Goosen
03. Uini Atonio
04. Elliot Stooke	11. Charlie Walker
05. George Robson	12. Matt Scott
06. Tom Croft	13. Juan De Jong
07. Pablo Matera	14. Metuisela Talebula
08. Sam Dickinson	15. Israel Dagg

Subs:
16. Nick Wood 17. LCD 18. Nicholas Mas 19. Tomas Lavinini 20. Ross Moriarty 21. Dan Robson 22. Matt Toomua 23. Grant Hermanus

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Brive v London Wasps
Stade Amédée-Domenech
Sunny Intervals, 18 Degrees, 9mph WSW Winds

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Brive

15 Gaetan Germain, 14 Alfi Mafi, 13 Arnaud Mignardi, 12 Sevanaia Galala, 11 Guillaume Namy, 10 Matthieu Ugalde, 9 Teddy Iribaren, 8 Sisa Koyamaibole, 7 Dominiko Waqaniburotu, 6 Petrus Hauman, 5 Peet Marais, 4 Johan Snyman, 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Guillaume Ribes, 1 Lucas Pointud.

Replacements: 16 Francois Da Ros, 17 Karlen Asieshvili, 18 Wilhem Steenkamp, 19 Arnaud Mela, 20 Fabien Sanconnie, 21 Jean baptiste Pejoine, 22 Thomas Laranjeira, 23 Damien Jourdain

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London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. David Kilcoyne	09. Ben Spencer
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Charlie Hodgson (c, k)
03. James Johnston
04. George Merrick	11. Richard Lane
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. George Moala
06. Carl Fearns	13. Nick Tompkins
07. Sekou Makalou	14. Frank Halai
08. Tom Guest	15. Jesse Mogg

:-
16. Nathan Catt, 17. Scott Spurling, 18. Sekope Kepu,  19. Luke Charteris  , 20 Victor Vito , 21. Thierry Lacrampe , 22. Finn Russell, 23. Sam Epsland-Robinson

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Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Vincent Debaty	09. Nick Phipps
02. Jamie George (c)	10. Ian Madigan (k)
03. Matt Stevens
04. Dom Barrow	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Yohan Maestri	12. Tom Stephenson
06. Rhys Ruddock	13. Robbie Freaun
07. Callum Clark	14. Vince Tavae Aso
08. Jack O'Donaghue	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.Dane Coles 17.Matt Mullan 18. Charlie Faumuina 19. Flip Van Der Merwe 20. Kieran Read 21. Dave Lewis 22. Owen Farrell 23. Ben Smith

Take the French on at their own game with a massive power carrying pack, then Phipps to spin the ball out and get Madigan on the front foot where he works best.

Running threats throughout the backline, with electric pace in the back 3.

Solid set piece anchored by George, who will lead the side

Bringing in our All Blacks off the bench to get them back into the swing of things and get us the bonus point late on

Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Joe Moody	09. Lee Dickson
02. Ross Batty	10. Owen Williams (k)
03. Henry Thomas
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Nehe Milner-Skudder
05. Jacques Potgeiter	12. Cory Allen
06. Mike Williams	13. Huw Jones
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Warren Whiteley	15. Brice Dulin

:-
16. Codie Taylor 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Lucas Noguera Paz 19. Dean Mumm 20. Jackson Wray 21. Rory Kockett 22. Jules Plisson 23. Anton Leniert Brown

09.11.2015London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. David Kilcoyne	09. Ben Spencer
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Charlie Hodgson (c, k)
03. James Johnston
04. George Merrick	11. Richard Lane
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. George Moala
06. Carl Fearns	13. Nick Tompkins
07. Sekou Makalou	14. Frank Halai
08. Tom Guest	15. Jesse Mogg

:-
16. Nathan Catt, 17. Scott Spurling, 18. Sekope Kepu,  19. Luke Charteris  , 20 Victor Vito , 21. Thierry Lacrampe , 22. Finn Russell, 23. Sam Epsland-Robinson

Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Jack Yeandle	10. Alex Losowski (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Paul O'Connell (c)	11. Andrew Trimble
05. Jake Ball	12. Toby Flood
06. Kane Douglas	13. Sam James
07. Luke Wallace	14. James Lowe
08. Brad Shields	15. James O'Connor

_
16. Sean Cronin 17. Wyatt Crockett 18. Vincent Koch 19. Lood De Jäger 20. Joe Edwards 21. Chris Cook 22. Ma'a Nonu 23. Jamie Elliott

mark

Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

01. Rob Evans	09. TJ Perenara
02. Joe Grey	10. Johan Goosen
03. Uini Atonio
04. Elliot Stooke	11. Charlie Walker
05. George Robson	12. Matt Scott
06. Tom Croft	13. Juan De Jong
07. Pablo Matera	14. Metuisela Talebula
08. Sam Dickinson	15. Israel Dagg

Subs:
16. Nick Wood 17. LCD 18. Nicholas Mas 19. Tomas Lavinini 20. Ross Moriarty 21. Dan Robson 22. Matt Toomua 23. Grant Hermanus

RESULTS:

Newcastle Falcons 32 (T:4 C;3 P:2)
Montpeiller 20 (T:2 C:2 P:2)

Worcester 36 (T:5 C:4 P:1)
La Rochelle 17 (T:1 P:4)

Exeter Chiefs 40 (T:5 C:3 P:3)
Agen 17 (T:1 P:4)

Dragons 20 (T:2 C:2 P:2)
Gloucester 35 (T:5 C:5)

Brive 20 (T:2 C:2 P:2)
Wasps 33 (T:5 C:4)

Falcons 30-22 Montpeiller
I'd expect Falcons to have enough v a 2nd string french side based on last weeks games but can't see them running away with it till late on with the backrow battle pretty close.

Newcastle Falcons 25-21 Montpellier
It's a decent Montpellier side on paper, but it's tough to get away from the fact that the French clubs have very little interest in this competition, particulary in the pool stages and away from home.  There is enough quality in the Falcons side to make this a comfortable home win.

Newcastle 27-20 Montpellier

Decent outfit from Falcons with just enough experience youth to see off a handy Montpellier side. Strong front row for Falcons but the away side will match them in the back 5. Falcons a touch better in the backs and with home advantage get the win.

Falcons 30 - 29 Montpelier

Newcastle 26-13 Montpelier
An inexperienced Newcastle side can get the win against poor travellers

Falcons 23 - 22 Montpellier

I think Newcastle have rather underated Montpellier here. Montpellier have a strong side all the way through and will provide a very stern physical test. Upfront is an even contest and I think Newcastle just about edge the game in the half backs as their is nothing between the outside backs for me. Narrow win.

Newcastle Falcons 31 - 16 Montpellier

Montpellier are one of the tougher french sides in the Challenge Cup and will create a good test for Falcons for up to around 50/60 minutes. Falcons bench will blow the french travelers away. 

Falcons 29 - 15 Montpeiller

Worcester 26-14 La Rochelle
Not overly sure if the Worc halfbacks are the combo to direct their side to the bonus point but would expect them to win fairly comfortably in the end.

Worcester 37 - 14 La Rochelle

Worcester negate the strength of their opposition by putting out two international props, then their back row and half backs have way too much experience and quality. Add Milner Skudder to finish everything off and Wuss will walk it

Worcester Warriors 37-16 La Rochelle
Some rotation from Worcester, but on paper not one La Rochelle makes the Worcester side in my opinion, so this is an absolutely routine try bonus point win.

Worcester 34-16 Rochelle

Worcester showing some good form in the league come into this one full of beans. They've set the tone in the front row and have some good balance in the back 5. Plenty of pace in the back 3 will get them a good win.

Worcester 30 - 29 La Rochelle

Worcester 34-9 La Rochelle
Worcester will be similarly dominant

Worcester 32 - 23 La Rochelle

Worcester look good on paper and La Rochelle don't. Worcester look to have a real depth this year which is reflected in this side and their league position. A nice balance of youth and experience to there side and they take a comfortable win.

Worcester Warriors 29 - 19 La Rochelle

Warriors are set up solidly with some sprinkling of creativity and talent throughout their line up. La Rochelle are gritty prospect to breakdown. La Rochelle would be tougher to breakdown compared to Montpellier who would drop their heads after so many points. La Rochelle are something a bit tougher, but as per french sides don't travel so well. Warriors will secure a well earned victory. 

Warriors 26 - 9 La Rochelle

Exeter 36-14 Agen
Expect the Chiefs pack to give the young FH an armchair ride and with Flood in good nick as well can see Chiefs going well.

Exeter 34 - 13 Agen

Same again here, far too much quality in the pack from Chiefs with the likes of POC and the back row, decent set of halfbacks with an excellent game controller in Flood outside, the youngsters in the back line will do very well and ease home

Exeter Chiefs 45-16 Agen
I've never heard of most of the Agen team, and they are bottom of the Top 14 for a reason.  They will have no interest in this game whatsoever and Exeter will completely ruin them.

Exeter 28-16 Agen

Another AP side with too much on show. Strong front 5 but not so sure on the backrow balance but they'll get away with it here. Not so sure about the Exeter midfield but they'll be playing off front foot ball and get a decent win.

Exeter 30 - 29 Agen

Exeter 44-7 Agen
Having Flood and JOC outside helps Losowski

Exeter 34 - 19 Agen

Far too much across the board in a strong Exeter side. Exeter's youth is surrounded by experienced players which is important in Euro rugby. A comfortable BP win.

Chiefs 38 - 18 Agen

Dragons 23 - 30 Gloucester

Dragons aren't a bad outfit at home, and will test Glos at times, but the international class in the likes of Dagg, Perenara and Matera will tell. Cavalry off the bench with Toomua and Lavanini will just get the bonus point

Dragons 20-27 Gloucester
There is a disparity in quality between the two sides, despite Gloucester rotating and this is an easy enough away win.  Would have been far more comprehensive had Gloucester been at home though, as Rodney Parade can be a difficult place to go and play.

Dragons 29 - 30 Gloucester

Dragons 13-37 Gloucester
Gloucester too much star power and take away win

Newport Gwent Dragons 19 - 24 Gloucester

Rodney Parade a tough place to go but Gloucester have enough depth to take an important win, but I don't think there is enough for a TBP. 

Newport Gwent Dragons 14 - 35 Gloucester

Glaws are just too much for this tight Dragons side. The shining light for the Dragons is their back row, which are all action and dangerous, but are fighting an up hill battle. Gloucester have some dangerous carriers and the decent conditions it will suit their style of play. 

Dragons 22 - 34 Gloucester

Brive 20-32 Wasps
Wasps gone pretty strong overall with a small splattering of youth and think they should have enough to secure the tbp.

Brive 21 - 30 Wasps

French sides away from home are never particularly easy games, but the Wasps team has international quality throughout, and even with some youngsters will come away with a bonus point once Russell and Vito get on

Brive 17-20 Wasps
Brive are an ugly side, but they are combative and competitive at home.  Wasps have enough quality to win, but not easily, and I don't see Brive giving up a try bonus point.

Brive 17-25 Wasps

The toughest game of the round but Wasps look strong throughout and will get a foothold early on. I like the balance throughout the Wasps side and they'll come away with a good away win.

Brive 18-26 Worcester
Worcester have named a strong enough lineup to get the win

Brive 28 - 29 London Wasps

Never easy in France but Wasps have enough to take a victory. They have enough in the pack to control the game and enough in the backs to get the points they need.

Brive 21 - 29 Wasps

Closest game of the round, Brive are a tough old unit at home and Wasps have rotated a little. This one will be a tight affair, however Wasps have the right man at 10 to guide through and build a lead. Then as the game opens up late on, when Brive chase the win, Wasps can punish a few turnovers and mistakes and really drive home the nail into the brive coffin, and enjoy a good away win.

Brive 19 - 38 London Wasps