Nowhere to hide in battle of tribes contest

In between the politics, the first round of European matches kick off tonight

Political footballs do not get kicked around because they are irrelevant to the affairs of state, but because they are central to them - and in terms of rugby governance, the Heineken Cup is the National Health Service and the education system rolled into one.

Political footballs do not get kicked around because they are irrelevant to the affairs of state, but because they are central to them - and in terms of rugby governance, the Heineken Cup is the National Health Service and the education system rolled into one. Ten years ago, the English and Scottish unions declined to participate in the inaugural tournament because they were scared to death of its potential; a couple of seasons later, the Premiership clubs boycotted the competition after realising this was the biggest blow they could strike in pursuit of a larger role in the decision-making process.

And now? Wasps, the reigning European champions, are pointing an accusatory finger at the Celtic nations, and the Irish nation in particular, over the clear injustices in Heineken qualification, which allow the likes of Munster and Leinster to be guaranteed places in the competition by their own national union and, as a result, plan their campaigns methodically and meticulously over a period of many months. The English, French and Italians, meanwhile, must sweat torrents from the start of September to the end of May, just to stand a chance of making the cut. Gloucester, the equal of almost any side in the northern hemisphere on their day, very nearly missed out on the competition that begins in Belfast, Llanelli and Perpignan this evening. Sale, perhaps the form side in England, are nowhere to be seen.

When Lawrence Dallaglio, the Wasps captain, raised the issue in public forum earlier this week, he did not do it to pass the time of day. It was a wail of anger, driven by his frustration at the continued loading of the dice in favour of provincial, regional and district sides playing in a tournament that was created ideally for teams of the club variety.

It also confirmed, as though confirmation were needed, that the Heineken Cup is the only true yardstick of an élite outfit's place in the great scheme of things. Wasps won the domestic-European double last season. For all their commitment to the Premiership, they would unhesitatingly have traded Grand Final victory over Bath for European victory over Toulouse had they been forced to make the choice.

"This is the measure," said Ian McGeechan, a three-time coach of the British and Irish Lions, and director of rugby in Scotland, at the tournament launch in Edinburgh. "It has drawn the northern hemisphere together and created a European rugby community that simply wasn't there in the mid-1990s. It forces coaches and players to look outward, to prepare to play internationally and this multi-cultural environment has been of inestimable benefit to all of us on this side of the equator. I would certainly select for the Lions on the basis of performance in this competition; indeed, I have done so. Why? Because of all tournaments, this one strips the players of their sense of the familiar. They have to do things differently, and that separates the men from the boys."

There are precious few infants to be seen in this season's jamboree. Calvisano will be reduced to their component parts on at least three occasions, Glasgow do not possess the quality of personnel to fire anything but blanks and Harlequins, in a parlous state domestically, have better things than Europe to think about right now. But there is nothing resembling a duffer among the remaining 21 challengers, and the chances of anyone emerging from the pool stage with a 100 per cent record are slim indeed.

Such records are as rare as radium - Leinster were the last side to emerge unbeaten from the round-robin section of the competition, in 2002-03. A fat lot of good it did them. Having seen off an intimidated Bristol, a quixotic Montferrand and a pathetic Swansea, they reached the last eight rather less than battle-hardened and eventually messed up against Perpignan in the semi-final. If the Dubliners make it past Bath, Bourgoin and Treviso this time, a soft centre will not be their problem.

Dallaglio made precisely this point in London this week. In 1997-98, Wasps put together a clean sweep in the pool before losing to Brive in the quarter-finals. The Londoners had enjoyed the easiest of runs, while their opponents had been involved in two classic matches with Bath and a wild punch-up with Pontypridd - a fight that spilled over into after-match drinking time. When the heat came on, the Frenchmen dealt with it better. "It's the one saving grace about being drawn in a pool with Leicester and Biarritz, either of whom could win the tournament," Dallaglio said. "We've never been involved in what you might call an easy pool in this competition and in a sense, we don't want to be. As New Zealand and France found in the World Cup last year, an absence of hard matches early in the tournament rarely bodes well for the remainder of it. If we're to retain our title - and yes, I believe we are equipped to do so - it will be as well to see off the Leicesters at the first available opportunity."

It may be too much to ask of Heineken 2004-05 to repeat the best of Heineken 2003-04, which generated a voltage infinitely more electrifying than anything felt in recent Six Nations' Championships. The final between Wasps and Toulouse would have been a stone-cold match of the season had not the actual match of the season been played a month earlier at Lansdowne Road in Dublin. There the Londoners prevailed over Munster - the whole of it, judging by the numbers from Limerick and Cork in the stadium.

But there is nothing common or garden about this tournament. Wasps, Leicester and Biarritz will struggle not to produce at least one minor classic from their meetings, and there is something about the Gloucester-Stade Français and Bath-Leinster pairings that holds out the promise of something heavenly. And when the divine descends upon this most passionately tribal of competitions, not even rugby's political classes can gainsay its grandeur.

Sink or Swim? Pool-By-Pool Guide

POOL 1Biarritz, Calvisano, Leicester, Wasps.

Calvisano will deserve a medal, just for turning up. The Italians' record over three consecutive tournaments shows the grand total of two victories in 18 matches, and if they improve on that between now and mid-January, the world will be a wackier place than the Python team ever imagined. This is heavy-duty stuff. Biarritz are only two players short of being able to field an entire side of French caps; Leicester are back in business after the palace revolt that deposed Dean Richards; and Wasps, the champions, are Wasps.

Likely qualifiers: Um... not Calvisano.

POOL 2

Bourgoin are not quite the side they were a year ago under Philippe Saint-André, so forward-driven Bath and O'Driscoll-blessed Leinster may fancy their chances of home-and-away victories over the Frenchmen and, as likely as not, a joint qualification for the knock-out stage. The problem? Treviso. And not for the first time, either. The Italian champions have a glorious knack of sticking a dirty thumb in other people's optics - they always win at least one game, having beaten Llanelli, Pontypridd, Harlequins and Wasps in past competitions.

Likely qualifiers: Bath or Leinster, maybe both.

POOL 3Glasgow, Llanelli Scarlets, Northampton, Toulouse.

Six weeks ago, the smart euros would have been on both the Scarlets and Northampton to give those blue-bloods of the northern hemisphere game, Stade Toulousain, a run for their millions. But the Saints cannot score a try these days, let alone win a match, and the Scarlets can no longer claim to be the best side in Welsh rugby - or even in West Welsh rugby. Toulouse, kissed by the genius of Frédéric Michalak and energised by the power of Gareth Thomas, could afford to lose a game on the road and still qualify with ammunition to spare.

Likely qualifiers: Toulouse, for sure.

POOL 4Castres, Harlequins, Munster, Ospreys.

Harlequins have signed two international locks - Simon Maling of New Zealand and Geo Cronje of South Africa - in an effort to reignite their season, but neither is eligible for the pool stage. We can therefore dismiss the Londoners as serious contenders. Munster are highly unlikely to lose in Limerick, so the Ospreys, in the finest of expansive fettle under Lyn Jones, must beat the Irishmen at home on Sunday week to press their claims. And Castres? Do not dismiss them.

Likely qualifiers: Munster, but not without a fright.

POOL 5Edinburgh, Newcastle, Dragons, Perpignan.

Perpignan do love a fight. Bernard Goutta's ultra-physical Catalonians are the acknowledged villains of European rugby, positively loaded with boo-hiss merchants: Michel Konieck and Christophe Porcu, to name but two. They also happen to be rather useful, and it is difficult to imagine either Edinburgh or Newcastle surviving their visits to the Spanish border. The Dragons may just stand up to be counted, however. They are fit, aggressive and committed. What is more, they have some hot backs in Kevin Morgan, Gareth Wyatt and Percy Montgomery.

Likely qualifiers: Perpignan first, Dragons second.

POOL 6Cardiff Blues, Gloucester, Stade Français, Ulster

Cardiff should be half-decent, but they aren't. Eighteen Welsh Internationals plus a flash American flanker in Kort Schubert, and they barely fire a shot. Ulster are in decline too; if recent evidence is anything to go by, they play even less rugby under Mark McCall than they managed under Alan Solomons. But Ravenhill remains heavily fortified, so Gloucester and Stade Français cannot bank on a double qualification. The games between the two will be decisive. The Parisians are marginally the classier.

Likely qualifiers: Stade Français, at a pinch.