Bordeaux-Bègles powered past Bath 38-26 at the Stade Atlantique to set up an Investec Champions Cup final against Leinster in Bilbao on 23 May.

Key moments

2 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: The defending champions strike early. Damian Penaud rounds Ollie Lawrence and carries 40 metres before being hauled down. Bath’s defence never recovers and Marko Gazzotti smashes over from close range. Maxime Lucu converts. (Bordeaux 7–0 Bath)

8 mins – TRY BATH: Bath hit back with a stunning score. Henry Arundell claims a cross-kick on the right before Ben Spencer smacks a brilliant high kick from right to left, finding Will Muir in space to catch and touch down. Finn Russell converts via the post. (Bordeaux 7–7 Bath)

15 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: Louis Bielle-Biarrey finishes on the left wing after Lucu’s pass to Matthieu Jalibert takes defenders out of the equation and Bath run out of bodies on the right flank. Pablo Uberti provides the final pass. Lucu converts from the touchline. (Bordeaux 14–7 Bath)

22 mins – HELD UP: Alfie Barbeary punches his way over the line from a tap penalty but Bordeaux get their bodies under the ball and hold it up. Bath retain possession with a penalty advantage.

27 mins – TRY BATH: A superb team move releases Will Muir on the left wing. Arundell breaks on the outside arc before feeding Muir, who dives for the corner and dots down despite Lucu’s attempt to force him into touch. A world-class finish. Russell’s conversion from wide drifts just past the post. (Bordeaux 14–12 Bath)

35 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: Jalibert feints to pass outside from a scrum before switching inside to Lucu, fatally unbalancing the Bath defence. Some remarkable handling from Lucu, who taps the ball upwards and over his head before twisting to catch it, and the scrum-half eventually crashes over under the posts. Lucu converts. (Bordeaux 21–12 Bath)

40 mins – PENALTY BORDEAUX: Guy Pepper penalised for not rolling away after Penaud carries deep into the Bath 22 from a scrum. Lucu slots the kick right in front. (Bordeaux 24–12 Bath)

Half-time: Bordeaux 24–12 Bath. The defending champions lead by 12 after a breathless first half. Bordeaux’s power through the middle and clinical finishing have been too much for Bath, who have leaked soft tries but shown plenty of attacking ambition through Will Muir’s brace. Bath need a big second-half performance, but Bordeaux’s bench, featuring Ben Tameifuna, looks ominous.

42 mins – MISSED HEAD CONTACT: Lucu appears to make head contact on Barbeary but the officials do not review it. Premier Sports commentators suggest it should have been a yellow card.

48 mins – KNOCK-ON: Bath go through more than 20 attacking phases in the Bordeaux 22 but Santiago Carreras spills the ball with the try-line at his mercy.

50 mins – TRY BATH: From a tap penalty seven metres out, Bath’s forwards go through several phases before Louie Hennessey steps back inside the rush defence and uses his footwork to weave past two tacklers, reaching out to ground the ball by inches. Russell converts. (Bordeaux 24–19 Bath)

64 mins – LINEOUT LOST: A crucial turning point. Kepu Tuipulotu’s throw goes through the fingers of Charlie Ewels at the five-metre lineout, gifting Bordeaux possession deep in their own half.

66 mins – NO TRY BORDEAUX: Cameron Woki takes at the lineout and the maul drives for the line. It is dragged down illegally but replacement hooker Gaetan Barlot appears to break off and ground the ball. The TMO rules the ball was dislodged by Sam Underhill’s knee before grounding.

66 mins – YELLOW CARD BATH: Charlie Ewels sent to the sin-bin for illegally dragging down the driving maul. (Bordeaux 24–19 Bath)

69 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: Ben Tameifuna makes his trademark impact off the bench, blasting over from a tap penalty after sustained pressure near the Bath line. Lucu converts. (Bordeaux 31–19 Bath)

77 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: The game is sealed. Penaud breaks on the outside and passes inside to Arthur Retiere, who weaves into the 22. His offload hits Bath replacement Tom Carr-Smith but the scrum-half cannot hold on and Temo Matiu claims the loose ball and runs in. Lucu converts. (Bordeaux 38–19 Bath)

80 mins – TRY BATH: A consolation. Bath steal the ball at a lineout and Carreras releases Arundell, who chips ahead. The hosts make a hash of gathering the bouncing ball and Carr-Smith is on hand to claim it and score. Russell converts. (Bordeaux 38–26 Bath)

Full-time: Bordeaux 38–26 Bath

Full match report to follow.

Teams

Bordeaux-Bègles: 15 Salesi Rayasi, 14 Pablo Uberti, 13 Damian Penaud, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Maxime Lucu (captain), 1 Matis Perchaud, 2 Maxime Lamothe, 3 Carlü Sadie, 4 Boris Palu, 5 Adam Coleman, 6 Pierre Bochaton, 7 Cameron Woki, 8 Marko Gazzotti.
Replacements: 16 Gaetan Barlot, 17 Ugo Boniface, 18 Ben Tameifuna, 19 Cyril Cazeaux, 20 Bastien Vergnes-Taillefer, 21 Temo Matiu, 22 Arthur Retiere, 23 Hugo Reus.

Bath: 15 Santiago Carreras, 14 Henry Arundell, 13 Louie Hennessey, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Will Muir, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben Spencer (captain), 1 Beno Obano, 2 Tom Dunn, 3 Thomas du Toit, 4 Quinn Roux, 5 Charlie Ewels, 6 Josh Bayliss, 7 Guy Pepper, 8 Alfie Barbeary.
Replacements: 16 Kepu Tuipulotu, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Billy Sela, 19 Ted Hill, 20 Sam Underhill, 21 Tom Carr-Smith, 22 Tom de Glanville, 23 Miles Reid.

Match details

Bordeaux 38 (Tries: Gazzotti 2, Bielle-Biarrey 15, Lucu 35, Tameifuna 69, Matiu 77; Conversions: Lucu 5/6; Penalties: Lucu 1/1)
Bath 26 (Tries: Muir 8, 27, Hennessey 50, Carr-Smith 80; Conversions: Russell 3/4)
Half-time: 24–12

Yellow card: Ewels (Bath, 66)
Venue: Stade Atlantique, Bordeaux
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)

Leinster survived a nerve-shredding finale to beat RC Toulon 29-25 at the Aviva Stadium and book their place in the Investec Champions Cup final in Bilbao on 23 May.

Key moments

3 mins – PENALTY MISSED LEINSTER: Thomas Clarkson wins a scrum penalty against Jean-Baptiste Gros, but Harry Byrne drags his kick wide from a central position. (Leinster 0–0 Toulon)

7 mins – PENALTY MISSED TOULON: Melvyn Jaminet has a shot from around 52 metres after Andrew Porter and Caelan Doris are penalised, but the kick drifts wide. (Leinster 0–0 Toulon)

14 mins – TRY LEINSTER: Jack Conan crashes over from close range after a brilliant team move from a lineout. Robbie Henshaw makes the initial carry before Josh van der Flier gains metres out wide. Harry Byrne takes it to the line before Jamison Gibson-Park fires a pass right where Conan is too strong to stop. Byrne converts. (Leinster 7–0 Toulon)

15 mins – INJURY: Robbie Henshaw is stretchered off after being knocked out cold in a collision with Mikheil Shioshvili. Jamie Osborne replaces him. A lengthy stoppage follows, with Henshaw giving a thumbs up as he leaves the field.

16 mins – PENALTY TOULON: Garry Ringrose penalised for tackling Nacho Brex without the ball. Jaminet slots the penalty from in front of the posts. (Leinster 7–3 Toulon)

20 mins – TRY DISALLOWED LEINSTER: Gibson-Park dives over after two powerful carries from Andrew Porter, but the TMO rules a knock-on by the scrum-half as he picked the ball up. Rieko Ioane kept his foot in play by millimetres in the build-up.

25 mins – PENALTY TOULON: Doris penalised at the breakdown and Jaminet launches an absolute rocket from halfway, sailing through the posts. (Leinster 7–6 Toulon)

33 mins – TRY LEINSTER: From a tap-and-go penalty five metres out, Dan Sheehan steps off it before Gibson-Park finds Doris, who flicks a lovely offload out the back door to Josh van der Flier. The openside ploughs over. Byrne converts. (Leinster 14–6 Toulon)

35 mins – YELLOW CARD LEINSTER: Andrew Porter shown yellow for a high tackle on Mikheil Shioshvili. Toulon kick to the corner. (Leinster 14–6 Toulon)

36 mins – TRY TOULON: Toulon capitalise immediately on the extra man. Jérémy Sinzelle creates the overlap and Setariki Tuicuvu finishes in the corner. Jaminet’s conversion drifts wide. (Leinster 14–11 Toulon)

38 mins – YELLOW CARD LEINSTER: Harry Byrne is shown a second yellow card for Leinster for offside after repeated team infringements. Leinster are down to 13 players. (Leinster 14–11 Toulon)

Half-time: Leinster 14–11 Toulon. Leinster have been the better side for long periods, with Tommy O’Brien outstanding and Andrew Porter dominant at scrum time. But two yellow cards in the space of three minutes have handed Toulon a lifeline, and the visitors trail by just three points despite barely threatening the Leinster line for the opening half hour. Leinster will start the second half with 13 players on the pitch.

43 mins – YELLOW CARD TOULON: Teddy Baubigny shown yellow for a high tackle on Van der Flier, levelling up the numbers temporarily.

44 mins – TRY LEINSTER: With 13 men still on the pitch, Leinster strike. Dan Sheehan taps a penalty and carries hard, Van der Flier flings a low pass that misses Jamie Osborne but falls kindly for Garry Ringrose, who collects and dives over. Ringrose takes the conversion himself with Byrne off the field, but pulls it left. (Leinster 19–11 Toulon)

48 mins – PENALTY LEINSTER: Porter and Byrne return from their yellow cards. Porter immediately wins another scrum penalty and Byrne slots the kick to extend the lead to 11 points. (Leinster 22–11 Toulon)

54 mins – INJURY: Jack Conan hobbles off and is replaced by Alex Soroka.

61 mins – PENALTY MISSED LEINSTER: After Joe McCarthy destroys a Toulon maul and Jérémy Sinzelle is penalised for a seatbelt tackle on Ringrose, Byrne misses the penalty from around 40 metres, pushing it right. His second miss from a kickable position. (Leinster 22–11 Toulon)

68 mins – TRY LEINSTER: The captain gets the crucial score. From a lineout, Joe McCarthy catches at the tail and pops down to Porter, who barges close. Gibson-Park goes blind where Caelan Doris holds off Zach Mercer to ground the ball. Byrne converts. (Leinster 29–11 Toulon)

71 mins – TRY TOULON: Toulon hit back immediately from the restart. Leinster give away a penalty and Baptiste Serin snipes over from close range after quick phases. Jaminet’s conversion hits the post but rebounds over. (Leinster 29–18 Toulon)

76 mins – TRY TOULON: Game on. A brilliant falling pass from Serin finds Tomas Albornoz, whose crossfield kick picks out Gaël Drean on the right wing. The winger outmuscles Sam Prendergast to score. Jaminet converts. Four-point game with four minutes left. (Leinster 29–25 Toulon)

79 mins – DRAMA: Drean gets into space down the right touchline after a Jaminet break, but his offload inside is knocked on by Tuicuvu with Rieko Ioane making a game-saving intervention. Leinster win the scrum and then a penalty for a no-arms tackle on Osborne, allowing Byrne to kick to touch.

Full-time: Leinster 29–25 Toulon

Full match report to follow.

Teams

Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 1 Andrew Porter, 2 Dan Sheehan, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 4 Joe McCarthy, 5 James Ryan, 6 Jack Conan, 7 Josh van der Flier, 8 Caelan Doris (captain).
Replacements: 16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Jerry Cahir, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 Alex Soroka, 20 Scott Penny, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Sam Prendergast, 23 Jamie Osborne.

RC Toulon: 15 Melvyn Jaminet, 14 Gaël Dréan, 13 Nacho Brex, 12 Jérémy Sinzelle, 11 Setariki Tuicuvu, 10 Tomas Albornoz, 9 Ben White, 1 Jean-Baptiste Gros, 2 Teddy Baubigny, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 4 Corentin Mézou, 5 David Ribbans (captain), 6 Junior Kpoku, 7 Charles Ollivon, 8 Mikheil Shioshvili.
Replacements: 16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Daniel Brennan, 18 Beka Gigashvili, 19 Matthias Halagahu, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Esteban Abadie, 23 Mathis Ferté.

Match details

Leinster 29 (Tries: Conan 14, Van der Flier 33, Ringrose 44, Doris 68; Conversions: Byrne 3/4; Penalties: Byrne 1/3)
RC Toulon 25 (Tries: Tuicuvu 36, Serin 71, Drean 76; Conversions: Jaminet 2/3; Penalties: Jaminet 2/3)
Half-time: 14–11

Yellow cards: Porter (Leinster, 35), Byrne (Leinster, 38), Baubigny (Toulon, 43)
Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin. Attendance: 38,555
Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)

Bordeaux-Bègles eliminated Toulouse from the Champions Cup for the second consecutive season with a commanding 30–15 victory at Stade Chaban-Delmas, setting up a semi-final meeting with Bath.

Key moments

23 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: The champions strike first. A devastating rolling maul from a lineout five metres out sees hooker Maxime Lamothe crash over for the opening try. Maxime Lucu misses the conversion from wide. (Bordeaux 5–0 Toulouse)

25 mins – TRY TOULOUSE: Toulouse respond immediately. From the restart, Yoram Moefana spills the ball and Santiago Chocobares gathers at the edge of the 22. The forwards pound away before Romain Ntamack finds space on the outside to score. Thomas Ramos converts. (Bordeaux 5–7 Toulouse)

37 mins – RED CARD TOULOUSE: A potential turning point. Dorian Aldegheri collides with Damian Penaud after a kick-chase and is shown a 20-minute red card. Penaud leaves the field for a head injury assessment and does not return.

39 mins – TRY TOULOUSE: Despite being down to 14 men, Toulouse produce a moment of brilliance. Playing from their own half, Ramos finds Kalvin Gourgues who feeds Teddy Thomas for a 30-metre run to the line. Ramos misses the conversion. (Bordeaux 5–12 Toulouse)

41 mins – PENALTY TOULOUSE: Thomas Ramos kicks a penalty straight after the restart following a Bordeaux infringement. (Bordeaux 5–15 Toulouse)

Half-time: Bordeaux 5–15 Toulouse. Toulouse lead despite playing the final minutes a man down. Aldegheri’s red card will see him off for the first 20 minutes of the second half, with Joel Merkler able to replace him afterwards. Penaud failed his HIA and will not return.

45 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: Matthieu Jalibert brings Bordeaux roaring back. The fly-half chases his own grubber kick to the corner, gathers the ball just before it crosses the touchline, and dives over. Lucu converts from the sideline. (Bordeaux 12–15 Toulouse)

56 mins – YELLOW CARD TOULOUSE: Antoine Dupont is sent to the sin bin for an illegal tackle on Cameron Woki near the Bordeaux line. Toulouse are temporarily down to 13 men.

57 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: With Toulouse down to 13, Bordeaux capitalise. From a lineout maul, the ball is worked to Ben Tameifuna who powers over from close range. Lucu converts and the champions lead for the first time since the opening quarter. (Bordeaux 19–15 Toulouse)

58 mins – SUBSTITUTION TOULOUSE: Aldegheri’s 20-minute red card period ends and Joel Merkler enters the fray.

62 mins – PENALTY BORDEAUX: Tameifuna wins a crucial turnover at the breakdown and Lucu kicks the penalty to extend the lead. (Bordeaux 22–15 Toulouse)

74 mins – TRY BORDEAUX: The sealing try. Jalibert makes the initial break before finding Arthur Retiere, who finishes in the corner after the forwards soften up the defence with repeated pick-and-goes. Lucu misses the conversion. (Bordeaux 27–15 Toulouse)

77 mins – PENALTY BORDEAUX: Lucu adds the final points from the tee to confirm the victory. (Bordeaux 30–15 Toulouse)

Full-time: Union Bordeaux-Bègles 30–15 Stade Toulousain

Teams

Union Bordeaux-Bègles: 15 Romain Buros, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Pablo Uberti, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Salesi Rayasi, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Maxime Lucu (c), 1 Jefferson Poirot, 2 Maxime Lamothe, 3 Carlü Sadie, 4 Cameron Woki, 5 Boris Palu, 6 Pierre Bochaton, 7 Marko Gazzotti, 8 Anthony Jelonch.
Replacements: 16 Gaëtan Barlot, 17 Matis Perchaud, 18 Ben Tameifuna, 19 Tiaan Jacobs, 20 Bastien Vergnes-Taillefer, 21 Léo Banos, 22 Temo Matiu, 23 Arthur Retiere.

Stade Toulousain: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 13 Santiago Chocobares, 12 Pita Ahki, 11 Matthis Lebel, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont (c), 1 David Ainu’u, 2 Peato Mauvaka, 3 Dorian Aldegheri, 4 Emmanuel Meafou, 5 Jack Willis, 6 François Cros, 7 Kalvin Gourgues, 8 Teddy Thomas.
Replacements: 16 Julien Marchand, 17 Cyril Baille, 18 Joel Merkler, 19 Joshua Brennan, 20 Théo Ntamack, 21 Blair Kinghorn.

Match details

Union Bordeaux-Bègles 30 (Tries: Lamothe, Jalibert, Tameifuna, Retiere; Conversions: Lucu 2/4; Penalties: Lucu 2/2)
Stade Toulousain 15 (Tries: R Ntamack, T Thomas; Conversions: Ramos 1/2; Penalties: Ramos 1/1)
Half-time: 5–15

Venue: Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux
Attendance: 32,930
Referee: Matthew Carley (England)
Player of the Match: Maxime Lucu (Union Bordeaux-Bègles)

Cards:
– Dorian Aldegheri (Toulouse) – 20-minute red card (37′)
– Antoine Dupont (Toulouse) – Yellow card (56′)