Saints accuse Bordeaux of ‘foul play’ towards Henry Pollock in post-final fracas | Champions Cup

Northampton have urged tournament officials to launch an investigation into a post-game fracas involving England’s Henry Pollock after Bordeaux’s Champions Cup final victory. It is understood Saints will make a citing complaint if the incident does not lead to an official disciplinary probe.

Phil Dowson, Saints’ director of rugby, said the 20-year-old had been the victim of “foul play” by a Bordeaux player. The meleé was initially sparked by an altercation between the Northampton captain, Fraser Dingwall, and the French international fly-half Matthieu Jalibert, before several other Bordeaux players became involved.

Dowson was swift to congratulate Bordeaux on their victory but was clearly unimpressed by what unfolded after the final whistle. “There was a fracas at the end, there was foul play involved and I have been assured the touch judge has seen it and will deal with it appropriately,” said the former England back-row forward. “Henry Pollock was particularly upset by it because it was uncalled for and out of order and so he reacted. The officials have told me they will deal with it.”

Saints’ England fly-half Fin Smith also suggested the French players had previously been riled by Pollock during the game. “They were after him. I don’t think they liked him. He’ll be all right. I remember they all sort of charged at him and tried to get hold of him. If you have just won a European Cup I’m surprised if the first thing you want to do is start a fight with a 20-year-old. I felt that was interesting.”

Dingwall said he did not think there was bad blood during the game but felt the increasing number of players appealing for decisions was against the “values” of the game. “There were a couple of moments when boys potentially didn’t adhere to those things and that’s going to spark a reaction,” he said.

Dowson stressed he was extremely proud of his players for the way they battled on despite a number of injuries. He said George Furbank, driven away on a medical cart after an early collision, was fine but acknowledged the permanent removal of two-thirds of Northampton’s back three inside the first four minutes had had “a huge impact” on the contest.

Dingwall said his team were extremely frustrated to have fallen just short: “There was loads of fight and that sums us up this year – unfortunately we just gave them too many opportunities and didn’t win the critical moments.

“It is frustrating when it is such small margins but that is the way this game is. We stayed in there but unfortunately when you play against top teams you can’t give them opportunities. We didn’t fire as many shots as we could have done. It is going to be frustrating to look back on.”

Bordeaux scored a remarkable 54 tries in their eight Champions Cup games this season, 14 of them by their France winger Damian Penaud who was named player of the tournament.

Penaud scored two of his side’s four tries in the final and is the third Frenchman to win the award in a row, following in the footsteps of Antoine Dupont and Grégory Alldritt. “First of all, we will drink beer and then after that we will think about the Top 14,” said Penaud, whose side are also still in contention for the domestic league title.

Meanwhile, European Professional Club Rugby has announced the first World Club Cup will take place in 2028. A tournament featuring the best club sides from the northern and southern hemispheres, to be held every four years, has received unanimous backing from all the sport’s governing bodies.

Sixteen teams will qualify – eight from the Champions Cup and the remainder drawn from Super Rugby Pacific and Japan. The EPCR chairman, Dominic McKay, confirmed before the Champions Cup final that an idea mooted for “the last two or three years” will now be delivered.