1. A familiar landscape

A new tournament it may be, but it is largely the familiar faces who dominated the Heineken Cup in the past few years that are taking a stranglehold on the new Champions Cup, too. Toulon and Clermont look a class apart at the moment, while Toulouse, having not really had a seat at Europe’s top table for a few years now, are unbeaten and, like the middle-aged man desperate to cling to his youth, hell bent on keeping the pace with the new, young superpowers. Clermont oozed power and class for the majority of their game against Munster, before the Irishmen did what only they know how to do and plucked a losing bonus point from nowhere. It was a lesson the Tigers could do with learning, as they were comprehensively outclassed by the Toulonnais, who left plenty of points out on the field. Along with the three French giants, the Saints are quietly and ruthlessly going about their business in one of the easier pools, and look set for a home semi-final if they can win their last two games.

2. Second tier

Then come a host of names, all of whom have European pedigree, who look like they could make the latter stages of the tournament but are currently a class below those mentioned above. Chief among these pretenders are Saracens and Leinster, both with genuine ambitions to win the tournament but neither of whom have really hit their straps just yet. Saracens stumbled their way to a win over Sale but failed to pick up a bonus point, while on another day Leinster would have lost to Quins. The London club, for that matter, are making a real fist of Europe this season, despite a worrying lack of depth and poor domestic form. Elsewhere in that pool, meanwhile, Wasps hover quietly, one point off Leinster and Quins despite one fewer win, thanks to a bonus point picked up in every game so far. Munster’s bonus point means they fall into this category, too, and the way Saracens have been failing to perform will give them confidence that they can nick a win there. Glasgow, Bath and Racing Métro are still in the hunt, too, but it’s probably safe to assume that it’s curtains for the Tigers and Ulster for this year.

3. A glaring anomaly

For the most part, this ever-so-slightly-new-look Europe has produced a higher level of competition. Sure, there have been abysmal capitulations from Castres and Montpellier, but the drama unfolding behind the scenes at both clubs goes some way to excusing that. The greatest disappointment, however, has been Treviso. After their 67-0 loss to Northampton at the weekend, they have never looked more out of place in Europe’s top competition. They suffered a huge exodus of players over the summer, which partly explains it, and it is a real shame as they were starting to show in recent years that they were not just a walking five points. Sadly, they have reverted to type and their presence in this competition is a bit of a farce, to be completely honest. Zebre, who have looked the better side in the PRO12 this year, will likely replace them as the Italian representatives next season.

4. Hoopla

Rarely has one man been scrutinised quite so closely on a rugby field. Sam Burgess made his first start for Bath on Friday night and by the end of the game even the commentators had lapsed into self-parody, taking the Mickey out of each other every time one of them mentioned Burgess. As for his actual performance, there were plenty of positives but also plenty of signs that he still has a long way to go to become the world-class union player everyone wants him to be. His tackling was superb – he was joint top tackler on the park – and his enthusiasm for things like rucking and running dummy lines were a joy to behold for someone coming from a league background. There were a couple of mis-timed runs when he arrived too early on George Ford’s shoulder and a couple of times when he kicked good possession away when a simple pass would have sufficed, but on the whole, for a first start, the positives probably outweighed the negatives.

5. The great entertainers

How good have Wasps been to watch this year? The majority of games they’ve been involved have been been hugely entertaining to watch. They were at it again on Saturday, battering an admittedly average Castres side in their final game at Adams Park. In Nathan Hughes, Ashley Johnson and James Haskell they have one of the best back-rows in the competition, and the latter’s lack of game time with Englandover the autumn is looking increasingly like a travesty. In Andy Goode they have a playmaker who is hugely underrated – he may not look like the conventional fly-half, but he’s one of the best gainline-attackers around. And of course in the likes of Tom Varndell, Sailosi Tagicakibau (both of whom excelled on Saturday), Christian Wade and Alapati Leiua, they have immense firepower out wide. Coventry rugby fans may well find themselves defecting sooner rather than later to a club whose commitment to playing an open style of rugby is refreshing.

By Jamie Hosie
Follow Jamie on Twitter: @jhosie43

Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images