Bielle-Biarrey sparkles as Bordeaux-Begles cruise in Champions Cup / Photo: ROMAIN PERROCHEAU - AFP
Bielle-Biarrey sparkles as Bordeaux-Begles cruise in Champions Cup
Reigning European champions Bordeaux-Begles scored five tries in 18 first-half minutes as they swatted aside visiting Leicester 64-14 in the Champions Cup on Sunday to set up a showdown against French champions Toulouse in the last eight.
In a deceptively even first 20 minutes, the hosts nosed ahead with a Maxime Lucu penalty, but after Cameron Woki breached the Leicester defence by reaching a long arm out to touch down from a ruck, the dam broke.
Louis Bielle-Biarrey, drew a crowd in the 25th minute before flipping a pass to Salesi Rayasi who trotted over untouched.
After Bielle-Biarrey had an acrobatic 31st-minute effort in the corner ruled out, Leicester kicked their drop out back to him, and the Six Nations player of the tournament beat five defenders and drew two more before sending the unsupervised Lucu loping home.
Two minutes after that, Bielle-Biarrey, starting deep in his own half, accelerated. He crisply sidestepped five defenders and only one even laid a despairing finger on the flying winger on his sprint to the line.
"I was just happy to score," he said.
Another France star, Matthieu Jalibert, jinked through the Leicester defence after 38 minutes to send lock Maxime Lamothe lumbering over.
Izaia Perese replied for Leicester early in the second half but Ben Tameifuna immediately responded for the hosts. That try, like the first four, was converted by Lucu who then headed to the bench.
After Billy Searle again hit back for Leicester, Bordeaux replied with an eight-minute broadside of two tries by Rayasi either side of one by Arthur Retiere, all converted by Hugo Reus.
The European champions will host runaway Top 14 leaders Toulouse in the quarter-finals next Sunday.
"Everyone wants to see a match against Toulouse," said Lucu. "We'll have to play a perfect match."
On Saturday, France centre Kalvin Gourgues scored two scintillating tries as Toulouse hammered Bristol 59-26.
"It doesn't matter who we face, we'll prepare the same way," said Gourgues about the prospect of an all-French tie against Bordeaux and a re-run of last season's semi-final.
Glasgow Warriors edged the Bulls 25-21 and will welcome Toulon next week after the French three-time winners held on while down two players to edge the Stormers 28-27.
England flier Henry Arundell also scored twice as 1998 champions Bath came from behind to see off English Prem rivals Saracens 31-22.
English champions Bath will face Henry Pollock's Northampton in the next round after last season's runners up beat Castres 49-41 on Friday.
Sale Sharks' experienced George Ford won the battle of the England fly-halves, kicking 16 points against Marcus Smith's Harlequins in a 26-17 victory in west London.
Sale will next play Leinster or Edinburgh, who face off in Dublin later on Sunday.
C.White--PI
