Union Bordeaux will ‘give it everything’ for back-to-back titles

Reigning champions Union Bordeaux Bègles will aim to defend their title in the Champions Cup final after their stirring 38-26 victory in a breathless rugby semifinal against Bath on Sunday.

They will meet Leinster, winners in their semi against RC Toulon on Saturday, in Bilbao on May 23.

South African coach Johann van Graan’s Bath were in the contest until the final minutes at Stade Atlantique Bordeaux Metropole.

Bordeaux’s star winger, Louis Bielle-Biarrey, detailed their motivation to go for back-to-back titles.

“The main motivation for us is to defend our title — we’re going to give it everything,” he said. “We’ve got last year’s final as experience and that counts for a lot.

“We know what to expect, the context and the pressure there is for that kind of game. We’ve also lost key finals [like the 2025 Top 14], so we know how it can swing either way.”

Bordeaux will be going up against a side that also know Champions Cup finals all too well. Leinster will play for their fifth star in Bilbao, and Bielle-Biarrey expects a tough test.

“They’re the complete outfit. We’ll have to be on it across the park. As in any final, it’ll be the side that makes the fewest errors that’ll come through.”

Bielle-Biarrey and Bath’s Will Muir lit up a thrilling first half, where there were fireworks from the start.

We know what to expect, the context and the pressure there is for that kind of game

—  Louis Bielle-Biarrey

Mario Gazzotti gathered from close range as UBB struck from minute one. Bath bit back soon after via Muir.

Bielle-Biarrey soon exploited a small gap on the left in typical fashion to grab his eighth of the season. Muir matched that score again just before the half-hour.

UBB captain Maxime Lucu was on hand to cross under the posts.

After the break it was the English side that came out stronger as they looked to grab an early score. They got their reward after 10 minutes of hard battling against the Bordeaux line as youngster Louie Hennessey went over.

The Bath defence seemed ever-present at the breakdown too, turning over several UBB attacks, and they were just a score away from levelling things 10 minutes from time.

A thrilling end ensued as UBB pressed on, and big Ben Tameifuna powered over from close range as the home side pushed into an unassailable lead.

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