The 2012–13 Amlin Challenge Cup pool stage was the opening stage of the 17th season of the European Challenge Cup, the second-tier competition for European rugby union clubs. It began with a match between Mont-de-Marsan and Gloucester on Thursday 11 October 2012 and ended on 19 January 2013 when Stade Français hosted competition newcomers London Welsh.
Twenty teams participated in this phase of the competition; they were divided into five pools of four teams each, with each team playing the others home and away. Competition points are earned using the standard bonus point system. The pool winners advanced to the knockout stage, where they were joined by three entrants from the Heineken Cup pool stage. These teams then competed in a single-elimination tournament that ended with the final at the RDS Arena in Dublin on 17 May 2012.
Results All times are local to the game location.
{| class="wikitable" |+ Key to colours |- | style="background:#cfc;"| |Winner of each pool advances to quarterfinals. Seed # in parentheses.
Pool 1 TeamPWDLPFPADiffTFTATBLBPts Gloucester (2) 6 6 0 0 179 86 +93 19 7 3 0 27 London Irish 6 4 0 2 174 139 +35 24 14 2 1 19 Mont-de-Marsan 6 2 0 4 100 156 −56 9 21 0 2 10 Bordeaux-Bègles 6 0 0 6 82 154 −72 7 17 0 2 2 Source : www.ercrugby.com Points breakdown:*4 points for a win*2 points for a draw*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Pool 2 TeamPWDLPFPADiffTFTATBLBPts Perpignan (3) 6 5 0 1 293 89 +204 42 5 4 1 25 Worcester Warriors 6 5 0 1 354 78 +276 51 7 4 1 25 Gernika 6 2 0 4 80 309 −229 6 47 0 0 8 Rovigo 6 0 0 6 67 318 −251 6 46 0 1 1 Source : www.ercrugby.com Points breakdown:*4 points for a win*2 points for a draw*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match Per the Competition Rules, Perpignan and Worcester were level on the first tiebreaker of head-to-head competition points (5–5); Perpignan topped the pool on the second tiebreaker of head-to-head try count (3–1).
Pool 3 TeamPWDLPFPADiffTFTATBLBPts London Wasps (4) 6 5 1 0 231 92 +139 30 9 3 0 25 Bayonne 6 4 1 1 201 91 +110 25 7 2 0 20 Newport Gwent Dragons 6 2 0 4 171 108 +63 19 10 2 3 13 Mogliano 6 0 0 6 29 341 −312 4 52 0 0 0 Source : www.ercrugby.com Points breakdown:*4 points for a win*2 points for a draw*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Pool 4 TeamPWDLPFPADiffTFTATBLBPts Bath (1) 6 6 0 0 245 79 +166 36 7 5 0 29 Agen 6 3 0 3 154 120 +34 18 12 2 3 17 București Wolves 6 2 0 4 121 215 −94 14 29 1 0 9 Calvisano 6 1 0 5 117 223 −106 13 33 2 1 7 Source : www.ercrugby.com Points breakdown:*4 points for a win*2 points for a draw*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Pool 5 TeamPWDLPFPADiffTFTATBLBPts Stade Français (8) 6 5 0 1 210 105 +105 25 7 4 1 25 Grenoble 6 4 0 2 173 81 +92 21 6 3 1 20 London Welsh 6 2 0 3 171 170 +1 20 24 2 0 14 Cavalieri Prato 6 0 0 6 68 266 −198 8 37 1 1 2 Source : www.ercrugby.com Points breakdown:*4 points for a win*2 points for a draw*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Grenoble won the game 20–9, but London Welsh were retroactively awarded a 28–0 victory and five match points, after Grenoble admitted fielding an ineligible player, Lotu Taukeiaho, during the match.
See also European Challenge Cup 2012–13 Heineken Cup
References