European Champions Cup final live: Saracens beat Clermont Auvergne 28-17 to successfully defend title
Follow the latest from the European Champions Cup final
Saracens became just the fourth team in history to win back-to-back European Champions Cup finals after beating Clermont Auvergne 28-17 at Murrayfield, keeping alive their hopes of the double-double in the process. Re-live the action here.
- Saracens beat Clermont Auvergne 28-17 to win the Champions Cup
- Chris Ashton's record 37th European try opened the scoring
- George Kruis try gave Sarries a 12-0 lead
- Clermont hit back through Remi Lamaerat
- Nick Abendanon try closed gao to just one point
- Alex Goode try and 13 points from Owen Farrell secures victory
Follow the live action below...
Preview...
Saracens and Clermont Auvergne will continue their recent rivalry when they meet in the European Champions Cup at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium to bring the curtain down on another thrilling European season, with history on the line for both sides.
Reigning champions Saracens hope to become just the fourth team to win back-to-back European Cup’s, following in the footsteps of Leicester Tigers, Leinster and most recently Toulon, who remain the only team to lift the trophy three ties consecutively.
Sarries have not been beaten in Europe since the beginning of last season, and if they beat Clermont in the final they will break Leinster’s record of 16 matches unbeaten in Europe, while also gaining a measure of revenge for their 2014/15 Champions Cup semi-final exit at the hands of the French side.
Clermont have plenty to play for though, the most prominent being the attempt to avoid becoming the first team to lose three European Cup finals following the 2013 and 2015 final defeats by Toulon.
In total, Clermont have finished runner-up 15 times in domestic and European competitions, winning just one final which came in the 2010 Top 14 success, and they will hope to banish their final demons by claiming the biggest trophy available in club rugby.
Here’s everything you need to know about the match.
When is it?
Saracens vs Clermont Auvergne kicks off at 17:00 on Saturday, 13 May 2017.
Where can I watch it?
The match will be shown live on both BT Sport 2 and Sky Sports 3, with both broadcasts beginning at 16:00. You can also follow the match live with The Independent here.
Can I still buy tickets?
Yes. Tickets are available from Scottish Rugby, with adult prices ranging from £35-£80 and Under-18s available at £20-£25. Both clubs are also selling tickets through their websites.
Teams...
Saracens: Alex Goode; Chris Ashton, Marcelo Bosch, Brad Barritt, Chris Wyles; Owen Farrell, Richard Wigglesworth; Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Vincent Koch; Maro Itoje, George Kruis; Michael Rhodes, Jackson Wray, Billy Vunipola.
Replacements: Schalk Brits, Titi Lamositele, Petrus Du Plessis, Jim Hamilton, Schalk Burger, Ben Spencer, Alex Lozowski, Duncan Taylor.
Clermont Auvergne: Scott Spedding; David Strettle, Aurelien Rougerie, Remi Lamerat, Nick Abendanon; Camille Lopez, Morgan Parra; Raphael Chaume, Benjamin Kayser, Davit Zirakashvili; Arthur Iturria, Sebastian Vahaamahina; Damien Chouly, Peceli Yato, Fritz Lee.
Replacements: John Ulugia, Etienne Falgoux, Aaron Jarvis, Paul Jedrasiak, Alexandre Lapandry, Ludovic Radosavljevic, Pato Fernandez, Damian Penaud.
Odds...
Saracens to win: 21/50
Clermont to win: 37/20
(Odds provided by 888 Sport)
75 mins: Clermont win an immediate penalty from the restart, but Parra's effort is wide of the left upright.
78 mins: Clermont get themselves in bother as Fernandez flicks a poor pass behind to Lamerat, and Sarries wrap him up quickly, with Owens awarding the penalty. There's a bizarre point when the Sarries boys celebrate the penalty, even though the whistle hasn't gone, but he eventually does and Farrell goes for goal.
80 mins: Changes for Saracens, as Petrus du Plessis, Jim Hamilton, Ben Spencer and Alex Lozowski all come on for the closing stages.
80 mins: Ben Spencer boots the ball into touch and that's it!
SARACENS WIN THE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS CUP FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments