The 2019–20 Celtic Cup was the second edition of the Celtic Cup rugby union competition, which features development regional and provincial teams from Ireland and Wales. It ran from August 2019 until October 2019, with a change to a single table format from the original conference system.
Leinster A, winners of the inaugural edition, defended their title by beating first time finalists Ulster A in an all-Ireland final 31–10.
Formation and purpose
The Irish Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union created a new development competition, the Celtic Cup, for the emerging professional players from the four Irish provinces and four Welsh regions, announcing the tournament in August 2018.
The tournament, which features development squads from Pro14 teams Connacht, Leinster, Munster, Ulster, Cardiff Blues, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets, aims to provide a learning environment for development players, coaches and referees by recreating the week-to-week challenges presented by senior professional rugby.
2019–20 season
In a change from the 2018–19 tournament, the 2019–20 edition of the competition featured all eight teams in a single round-robin league format, rather than two conferences. Each team playing seven matches and the top two teams advanced to the final.
Table
TeamPWDLPFPAPDTFTATBLBPts 1 Leinster A (CH) 7 7 0 0 351 140 211 55 22 7 0 35 2 Ulster A (RU) 7 5 0 2 198 170 28 28 23 5 0 25 3 Connacht Eagles 7 5 0 2 191 169 22 24 24 3 0 23 4 Scarlets A 7 4 0 3 217 194 23 29 28 4 2 22 5 Dragons A 7 2 0 5 205 236 -31 30 34 5 2 15 6 Munster A 7 2 1 4 165 206 -41 22 31 3 0 13 7 Ospreys Development 7 1 1 5 133 229 -96 19 32 2 0 8 8 Cardiff Blues A 7 1 0 6 109 225 -116 17 30 2 1 7 If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order - number of matches won the difference between points for and points against the number of tries scored the most points scored the difference between tries for and tries against the fewest red cards received the fewest yellow cards received Green background indicates teams that advance to the final(Q) Qualified for the final (CH) Champions (RU) Runners-upUpdated: 5 October 2019Source: Munster Rugby
Pool Stage
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Final
References