The blazers and committee men of the Celtic nations, or more precisely Ireland and Wales, may have started the season under a cloud after losing the argument about a revamped Europe, but they and their sponsors have hit pay dirt nine months and 126 league games later.
All bar one of Saturday’s final round of games in the Pro12 league – Cardiff Blues, bottom of the pile of non-Italian sides, versus Zebre, who are just bottom of the pile – are televised. Something of a bonus for Guinness in their first year of sponsorship and reflecting the closest of finishes to the season. Three of the four sides in the play-off positions – Ospreys, Glasgow and Munster – are on 70 points, with fourth‑placed Ulster, who travel to Glasgow’s Scotstoun Stadium on Saturday, just a point behind.
Sky is covering the Glasgow game, where the Warriors need a bonus-point win to be sure of a home draw in the semi-final play-off, whereas S4C has bagged the Ospreys’ difficult trip to Connacht, where Pat Lam’s side currently still have hopes of a final Champions Cup spot.
One point behind come Edinburgh, who this week rewarded their coach, Alan Solomons, with a one-year extension to his contract after a burst of success which saw them become the first Scottish club to reach a European final. After beating both London Irish and Newport Gwent Dragons in the latter stages of the Challenge Cup, Edinburgh lost the final to Gloucester but may yet play in Europe’s top tier next season through the system of play-offs.
BBC Alba has Edinburgh’s game with Leinster, currently fifth in the Pro12, while the final Champions Cup place is currently in the hands of Scarlets, four points adrift of Leinster but four points ahead of Connacht. TG4 covers Munster, in third spot, versus the Dragons, while BBC Wales shows Scarlets’ visit to the Veneto, which could be the last televised trip to Italy for any Pro12 club. Alfredo Gavazzi, the president of the Italian Rugby Federation says otherwise, but with more than €1.5m owed to the other 10 Pro12 clubs expulsion could be an option, with London Welsh, about to be relegated from the Aviva Premiership, and London Scottish, who have just failed to make it through the Championship play-offs, being sounded out.
Gavazzi says he has proposed a mediation plan to the Irish, Scottish and Welsh unions over the Italian debt. “I 100% exclude any kind of expulsion as we’re equal partners and there are contracts in place,” he said this week. “I met the other unions’ CEOs on 28 April, and I presented them my mediation proposal. I think it’s a good one. We will have an answer over the next few days.” Treviso, Zebre and London Welsh have declined to comment. Nevertheless, the issue adds yet another edge to Saturday’s match at Llanelli as the Scarlets coach, Wayne Pivac, acknowledged when he demanded a Test match mentality from his players.
As with most of the games in the top six positions, the outcome for Scarlets could depend on other results. But for Pivac, the equation was simple. “It’s just winning by one point,” said the New Zealander, “that’s what we are there to do. If we win by more than that and release the pressure, fantastic, but it’s all about getting a result.
“It’s a matter of going out there with a mind-set of we need to win the game. It’s not about scoring four tries plus, it’s just about winning a game of rugby.
That’s the equation, so that’s what our week is going to be about.”
Not that Treviso are likely to lie down – they need to win to ensure Champions Cup qualification ahead of Zebre, who are only three points adrift. “All six games are played at the same time and is just fantastic for the competition that everyone has got something to play for in every match,” said Pivac. “It would have been nice for us to have it finished already, but we always thought it might come down to the very last game.”
How the top four stand
Ospreys: Played 21 Points 70 Pts diff 184
Glasgow: Played 21 Points 70 Pts diff 158
Munster: Played 21 Points 70 Pts diff 191
Ulster: Played 21 Points 69 Pts diff 174
Fixtures
Benetton Treviso v Scarlets, Cardiff Blues v Zebre, Connacht v Ospreys, Edinburgh v Leinster, Glasgow v Ulster, Munster v Newport Gwent Dragons (all 3pm)
