Ollie Phillips: It’s all a bit French to me but it’s amazing to watch
Sure, Leicester’s win in Bordeaux was impressive and Exeter looked comfortable against Montpellier, but I still don’t see an English team challenging for the Champions Cup.
Toulouse put out a strong XV against a makeshift Cardiff and proved they weren’t there to play along with the Welsh region’s fairytale game.
Racing 92, meanwhile, absolutely dominated a very good Northampton. It was almost embarrassing for the Premiership.
Other than Leinster, who looked buoyant against Bath, it’s difficult to look past the two French sides for the title.
In the Challenge Cup, Covid-19 has hit at the worst time for Saracens. A shock defeat last weekend to Edinburgh and now a forfeited game means they’re on one point out of 10.
The top three in each pool go through so they’re not out yet but this might turn their focus to Premiership matters now.
Captain fantastic… leaves?
Who saw this coming? Leicester are 12 from 12 this season under a new captain but now that captain has announced he is leaving.
Ellis Genge has been terrific and epitomises the new Tigers. I do think he’s timed his move right, however.
Leicester coach Steve Borthwick is in pole position to succeed Eddie Jones at England and if that happens, Genge may not want to be tied down beyond the Borthwick era.
He will be a smart addition for Bristol Bears, a boy from the area going home is a brilliant story for the club to sell.
Munster homecoming?
Munster head coach Johann van Graan has taken the Bath head coach job – a brave move.
It looks as though Stuart Hooper will hang on as director of rugby for now, but van Graan has high standards, and those will go beyond just his playing squad. It could be a new beginning for Bath.
That does, however, leave one of club rugby’s biggest jobs vacant. Wouldn’t it be brilliant if Ronan O’Gara took it? He’s a fan favourite like Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United but, unlike OGS, has a proven track record at big clubs.
O’Gara could be the club legend that takes Munster back to the top. If he took fellow La Rochelle coach Donnacha Ryan too and teamed him with current Munster forwards coach Graham Rowntree, it could forge an outstanding set-up for some of rugby’s best fans.
Former England Sevens captain Ollie Phillips is the founder of Optimist Performance, experts in leadership development and behavioural change. Follow Ollie on Twitter and on LinkedIn.