2017 European Rugby Champions Cup Final
# 2017 European Rugby Champions Cup Final

The 2017 European Rugby Champions Cup Final was the final match in the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup, and the twenty-second European club rugby final in general. It was contested by defending champions Saracens of England and French side Clermont at Murrayfield Stadium, in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Saturday 13 May 2017. Saracens retained the trophy after claiming a 28–17 victory.

## Background

Reigning champions Saracens entered the final aiming to defend their title, having won the Champions Cup for the first time when they defeated Racing 92 by 21–9 in the 2016 final. The club was also looking to break the record for most unbeaten European fixtures in a row, after matching the record of 17 held by Leinster. Meanwhile, Clermont were seeking their first top-tier European trophy, following two prior defeats in the 2013 and 2015 finals, both to Toulon. For the second year running, Welsh referee Nigel Owens officiated the Champions Cup final – in doing so, he also became the first official to referee 100 European club rugby matches.

## Route to the final

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

| Clermont | Clermont | Round | Saracens | Saracens |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Opponent | Result | Pool stage | Opponent | Result |
| Exeter Chiefs | 35–8 (A) | Matchday 1 | Toulon | 31–23 (A) |
| Bordeaux Bègles | 49–33 (H) | Matchday 2 | Scarlets | 44–26 (H) |
| Ulster | 32–39 (A) | Matchday 3 | Sale Sharks | 50–3 (H) |
| Ulster | 38–19 (H) | Matchday 4 | Sale Sharks | 24–10 (A) |
| Bordeaux Bègles | 9–6 (A) | Matchday 5 | Scarlets | 22–22 (A) |
| Exeter Chiefs | 48–26 (H) | Matchday 6 | Toulon | 10–3 (H) |
| Pool 5 winner Team P Pts Clermont 626 Bordeaux Bègles 614 Exeter Chiefs 612 Ulster 610 | Pool 5 winner Team P Pts Clermont 626 Bordeaux Bègles 614 Exeter Chiefs 612 Ulster 610 | Final standings | Pool 3 winner Team P Pts Saracens 624 Toulon 616 Scarlets 611 Sale Sharks 64 | Pool 3 winner Team P Pts Saracens 624 Toulon 616 Scarlets 611 Sale Sharks 64 |
| Opponent | Result | Knock-out stage | Opponent | Result |
| Toulon | 29–9 (H) | Quarter-finals | Glasgow Warriors | 38–13 (H) |
| Leinster | 27–22 (H) | Semi-finals | Munster | 26–10 (A) |

## Match

### Summary

After both teams enjoyed attacking spells in the opening 10 minutes without putting points on the board, Saracens opened the scoring when the ball was spread towards the right wing to Alex Goode, who placed a grubber kick behind the Clermont defenders which was collected by Chris Ashton. The try, which could not be converted, saw Ashton overtake Vincent Clerc as the top try scorer in European rugby history. Saracens extended their lead soon after when George Kruis powered over from close range for the team's second try, this time converted successfully by Owen Farrell. A short time later, Clermont responded when a break by Aurélien Rougerie set up Remi Lamerat for their first try of the game, converted by Morgan Parra. This left the half-time score at 12–7 to Saracens.

In the second half, the first ten minutes again went scoreless, until a Farrell penalty. Clermont then brought the game to within just one point via a team move, which started with Scott Spedding counter-attacking from his own try line and ended with Nick Abendanon going over for the try, converted again by Parra. Following an exchange of penalties between Farrell and Parra, which kept the scoreline at a one-point advantage to Saracens, each team had try-scoring opportunities, but to no avail. Finally, in the closing stages, Saracens made their persistent pressure count when Goode crossed the line for a try in the corner, with Farrell landing a difficult conversion from out wide. With one last penalty, Saracens cemented their victory at 28–17, becoming only the fourth reigning champions in the tournament's 22-year history to successfully retain their title.

Saracens Number 8 Billy Vunipola was named the official Man of the Match, while fly-half Owen Farrell was presented with the 2017 ERCC Player of the Year Award. In securing victory, Saracens also achieved a record 18 consecutive unbeaten European games – a record stretching back to the first round of the 2015–2016 cup.

### Details

* 13 May 2017 17:00

| Clermont | 17 – 28 | Saracens |
| - | - | - |
| Try: Lamerat 26' c Abendanon 51' c Con: Parra (2/2) 27', 53' Pen: Parra (1/1) 60' | Report | Try: Ashton 12' m Kruis 21' c Goode 72' c Con: Farrell (2/3) 22', 73' Pen: Farrell (3/3) 50', 57', 78' |

* Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh Attendance: 55,272 Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)

| FB | 15 | Scott Spedding | 71' |
| - | - | - | - |
| RW | 14 | David Strettle |
| OC | 13 | Aurélien Rougerie | 54' |
| IC | 12 | Remi Lamerat |
| LW | 11 | Nick Abendanon |
| FH | 10 | Camille Lopez |
| SH | 9 | Morgan Parra | 75' |
| N8 | 8 | Fritz Lee | 64' 66' |
| OF | 7 | Peceli Yato | 61' 64' 66' |
| BF | 6 | Damien Chouly (c) |
| RL | 5 | Sébastien Vahaamahina | 46' |
| LL | 4 | Arthur Iturria |
| TP | 3 | Davit Zirakashvili | 77' |
| HK | 2 | Benjamin Kayser | 67' |
| LP | 1 | Raphaël Chaume | 23' 26' 54' |
| Substitutions: ||
| HK | 16 | John Ulugia | 67' |
| PR | 17 | Etienne Falgoux | 23' 26' 54' |
| PR | 18 | Aaron Jarvis | 77' |
| LK | 19 | Paul Jedrasiak | 46' |
| FL | 20 | Alexandre Lapandry | 61' |
| SH | 21 | Ludovic Radosavljevic | 75' |
| FH | 22 | Patricio Fernandez | 71' |
| CE | 23 | Damian Penaud | 54' |
| Coach: ||
| Franck Azéma ||
| FB | 15 | Alex Goode |
| RW | 14 | Chris Ashton |
| OC | 13 | Marcelo Bosch |
| IC | 12 | Brad Barritt (c) | 54' |
| LW | 11 | Chris Wyles | 79' |
| FH | 10 | Owen Farrell |
| SH | 9 | Richard Wigglesworth | 79' |
| N8 | 8 | Billy Vunipola |
| OF | 7 | Jackson Wray | 61' |
| BF | 6 | Michael Rhodes |
| RL | 5 | George Kruis |
| LL | 4 | Maro Itoje | 79' |
| TP | 3 | Vincent Koch | 79' |
| HK | 2 | Jamie George | 51' |
| LP | 1 | Mako Vunipola | 77' |
| Substitutions: ||
| HK | 16 | Schalk Brits | 51' |
| PR | 17 | Titi Lamositele | 77' |
| PR | 18 | Petrus du Plessis | 79' |
| LK | 19 | Jim Hamilton | 79' |
| FL | 20 | Schalk Burger | 61' |
| SH | 21 | Ben Spencer | 79' |
| FH | 22 | Alex Lozowski | 79' |
| CE | 23 | Duncan Taylor | 54' |
| Coach: ||
| Mark McCall ||

* Man of the Match:
* Billy Vunipola (Saracens)
