1997–98 Heineken Cup
| 1997–1998 Heineken Cup | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Countries | England France Ireland Italy Scotland Wales |
| Tournament format(s) | Round-robin and Knockout |
| Date | October 1997 to 31 January 1998 |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Teams | 20 |
| Matches played | 70 |
| Attendance | 462,958 (6,614 per match) |
| Top point scorer(s) | Lee Jarvis (Cardiff) (134 points) |
| Top try scorer(s) | Kenny Logan (Wasps) (7 tries) |
| Final | |
| Venue | Stade Lescure, Bordeaux |
| Attendance | 36,500 |
| Champions | Bath (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Brive |
The 1997–98 Heineken Cup was the third edition of the Heineken Cup European rugby union club competition. Competing professional club teams from France, Ireland, Italy, Wales, England and Scotland, were divided into five pools of four, in which teams played home and away matches against each other. The pool winners automatically qualified for the knock-out stages. The five runners-up and the best third placed team entered the play-offs, where they competed for the remaining three quarter final positions.
Teams
| England | Ireland | Italy | France | Scotland | Wales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pool stage
In the pool matches teams received
- 2 points for a win
- 1 points for a draw
| Winner of each pool advances to quarter-final stage | |
| Advance to quarter-final playoffs |
Pool 1
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toulouse | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 12 | 13 | 200 | 121 | 79 | 10 |
| Leicester | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 163 | 117 | 46 | 8 |
| Leinster | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 19 | −4 | 137 | 167 | −30 | 4 |
| Milan | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 15 | 26 | −11 | 111 | 206 | −95 | 2 |
Pool 2
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wasps | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 12 | 19 | 243 | 104 | 139 | 12 |
| Glasgow | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 15 | −1 | 132 | 167 | −35 | 6 |
| Swansea | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 16 | −1 | 157 | 161 | −4 | 4 |
| Ulster | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 23 | −17 | 95 | 195 | −100 | 2 |
Pool 3
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bath | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 141 | 119 | 22 | 10 |
| Brive | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 13 | 11 | 210 | 146 | 64 | 9 |
| Pontypridd | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 13 | 4 | 154 | 147 | 7 | 5 |
| Scottish Borders | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 29 | −15 | 129 | 222 | −93 | 0 |
Pool 4
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harlequins | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 198 | 141 | 57 | 8 |
| Cardiff | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 184 | 146 | 38 | 8 |
| Bourgoin | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 21 | −7 | 141 | 180 | −39 | 4 |
| Munster | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 11 | −4 | 93 | 149 | −56 | 4 |
Pool 5
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pau | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 27 | 8 | 19 | 203 | 89 | 114 | 8 |
| Llanelli | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 18 | −3 | 144 | 142 | 2 | 8 |
| Benetton Treviso | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 19 | −1 | 146 | 162 | −16 | 4 |
| Caledonia | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 23 | −15 | 89 | 189 | −100 | 4 |
Seeding
| Seed | Pool Winners | Pts | TF | +/− |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London Wasps | 12 | 31 | +139 |
| 2 | Toulouse | 10 | 25 | +79 |
| 3 | Bath | 10 | 12 | +22 |
| 4 | Pau | 8 | 27 | +114 |
| 5 | Harlequins | 8 | 21 | +57 |
| Seed | Pool Runners-up (and best third place) | Pts | TF | +/− |
| 6 | Brive | 9 | 24 | +64 |
| 7 | Cardiff | 8 | 17 | +38 |
| 8 | Leicester Tigers | 8 | 16 | +46 |
| 9 | Llanelli | 8 | 15 | +2 |
| 10 | Glasgow | 6 | 14 | −35 |
| 11 | Pontypridd | 5 | 17 | +7 |
Knockout stage
Quarter-final play-offs
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Brive advance to final on try count (two tries to one)
Final
| 31 January 1998 15:30 |
| Bath | 19 – 18 | Brive |
| Try: Callard Con: Callard Pen: Callard (4) | Report | Pen: Lamaison (5) Drop: Penaud |
| Stade du Parc Lescure, Bordeaux Attendance: 36,500 Referee: Jim Fleming (Scotland) |