The quarter-finals of the 2025 EPCR Challenge Cup featured four closely contested matchups and four high-scoring performances.
Edinburgh held off the Bulls in front of a home crowd, Racing 92 pulled off a comeback in Galway despite going down to 14 men, Lyon edged the Ospreys in a two-point finish, and Bath overpowered Gloucester with nine tries at the Rec.
- Edinburgh 34 – 28 Bulls
- Ospreys 18 – 20 Lyon
- Connacht 40 – 43 Racing 92
- Bath 61 – 26 Gloucester
Here are all the match recaps from the Challenge Cup quarter-finals:
EDINBURGH EDGE BULLS IN THRILLER TO BOOK SEMI-FINAL SPOT AT HIVE
Edinburgh 34 – 28 Bulls (HT: 24-7)
Edinburgh held off a ferocious second-half comeback from the Vodacom Bulls to reach the semi-finals of the EPCR Challenge Cup for the first time in a decade. A blistering opening 42 minutes saw the Scots race into a 31-7 lead, with James Lang crossing twice and tries from Magnus Bradbury and Grant Gilchrist providing a commanding buffer. The Bulls fought back strongly in the final half-hour, capitalizing on a yellow card to Ross McCann to claw their way to within six points. But Edinburgh’s resolve held, and a crucial last-minute turnover from Pierre Schoeman sealed the victory before a packed Hive Stadium. Lang opened the scoring inside four minutes, then Bradbury powered over as the home side took full advantage of Zak Burger’s sin-binning. Lang added a fortunate second try before halftime, and a Ross Thompson penalty pushed the gap to 24-7 at the break. Early in the second half, another yellow card—this time for Jannes Kirsten—led to Gilchrist crashing over for Edinburgh’s bonus point score. But the Bulls responded with a penalty try and further scores from Cameron Hanekom and David Kriel, the latter grabbing a brace to keep the game on a knife-edge. Withstanding a late onslaught, Edinburgh’s defense held firm in the final moments to book a home semi-final against Bath in early May.
EDINBURGH
- Tries: Lang (3’, 24’), Bradbury (13’), Gilchrist (42’)
- Conversions: Thompson (4’, 13’, 25’, 43’)
- Penalties: Thompson (37’, 59’)
VODACOM BULLS
- Tries: Kriel (16’, 76’), Penalty try (46’), Hanekom (49’)
- Conversions: Johannes (16’), Goosen (50’, 76’)
(Highlights coming soon)
LYON HOLD OFF OSPREYS IN THRILLING FINISH TO REACH CHALLENGE CUP SEMI-FINALS
Ospreys 18 – 20 Lyon (HT: 10-13)
Lyon booked their place in the EPCR Challenge Cup semi-finals with a gritty 20-18 win over the Ospreys in Swansea, surviving a late charge from the Welsh side. The French visitors showed immense defensive resilience and capitalized on key moments to edge a tight quarter-final contest. LOU struck first through Vincent Rattez after a slick counterattack off a stolen lineout, finished with precision following strong build-up play from Josiah Maraku and Théo Millet. Berdeu added the extras before slotting a penalty soon after to extend the lead to 10. Ospreys responded through a Jac Morgan try off a sustained goal-line barrage, levelling the match at 10-10 before Berdeu’s boot nudged Lyon back ahead before the break. After halftime, Lyon’s fresh bench made an immediate impact. Mickaël Guillard crashed over in the 52nd minute following a dominant maul and several pick-and-go phases. That would prove to be the match-winning try, as the French side weathered intense Ospreys pressure. Dan Edwards clawed back three points and later added the extras to a maul try from George McGuigan, but heartbreak followed as his potential game-tying conversion in the 73rd minute ricocheted off the post. In a frantic final stretch, Lyon survived multiple phases deep in their half, with Guillard eventually sealing the victory with a crucial breakdown penalty. The 2022 champions now advance to the semi-finals where they will face Racing 92.
OSPREYS
- Tries: Morgan (25’), McGuigan (70’)
- Conversions: Edwards (26’)
- Penalties: Edwards (19’, 54’)
LYON
- Tries: Rattez (6’), Guillard (50’)
- Conversions: Berdeu (7’, 51’)
- Penalties: Berdeu (21’, 34’)
RACING 92 STUN CONNACHT IN 14-MAN COMEBACK TO REACH CHALLENGE CUP SEMI-FINALS
Connacht 40 – 43 Racing 92 (HT: 28-24)
Racing 92 overcame a nightmare start and a red card to produce one of the great Challenge Cup comebacks, edging Connacht 43-40 in Galway to set up a semi-final clash with Lyon. Down 16 points after just 20 minutes and reduced to 14 following Wame Naituvi’s early red card, the Parisians showed remarkable determination and tactical precision. Led by the outstanding Nolan Le Garrec and a dominant maul, they stormed back into the game and eventually over the line. Connacht flew out of the blocks with three early tries from Bundee Aki and Cian Prendergast (twice), along with a penalty try—the latter also seeing Naituvi sent off for a high tackle. But Racing responded with a gritty try from hooker Diego Escobar off a maul, and Le Garrec’s first try off a sharp blindside move. A try from powerhouse Josua Tuisova brought the visitors within four points at the break. The momentum stayed with Racing after halftime. A penalty from Lancaster and an improvised solo effort from Le Garrec put the visitors in front for the first time. Owen Farrell then slotted a drop goal before Le Garrec added two more penalties to extend the lead to 40-28. Connacht mounted a late fightback with tries from Ben Murphy and Cathal Forde, especially after Farrell was sin-binned in the final minutes. But a resolute 13-man Racing held on in a thriller that saw both sides throw everything into the contest. Patrice Collazo’s men, now on a four-game winning streak, will head to Lyon in early May with a spot in the Challenge Cup final on the line.
CONNACHT
- Tries: Aki (2’), Prendergast (8’, 29’), Penalty try (12’), Murphy (72’), Forde (78’)
- Conversions: Hanrahan (3’, 9’, 30’, 79’)
RACING 92
- Tries: Naituvi (5’), Escobar (18’), Le Garrec (24’, 48’), Tuisova (33’)
- Conversions: Lancaster (25’, 33’), Le Garrec (49’)
- Penalties: Lancaster (42’), Le Garrec (56’, 64’)
- Drop goal: Farrell (53’)
BATH CRUSH GLOUCESTER TO REACH CHALLENGE CUP SEMIS
Bath 61 – 26 Gloucester (HT: 33-19)
Bath produced a scintillating nine-try display to overpower Gloucester 61-26 at the Recreation Ground and book their spot in the Challenge Cup semi-finals, where they will face Edinburgh away. Alfie Barbeary starred with a brace of tries either side of the break, while Ben Spencer, Tom de Glanville, and Ted Hill also crossed in a commanding team performance. Despite four Gloucester tries, including a first-half effort from Santiago Carreras, Bath were relentless on attack and ruthless in execution, pulling away emphatically in the second half. The contest began in end-to-end fashion with five first-half tries shared between the West Country rivals. Bath opened the scoring through de Glanville after Ciaran Donoghue’s line break, but Gloucester hit back through Carreras, who latched onto a pinpoint cross-field kick from Gareth Anscombe. Bath regained momentum with three rapid tries—Dunn from a maul, Griffin under the posts after a slick Russell-Molony link, and Spencer off a brilliant aerial chase by Muir and Staddon. Jack Singleton and Jake Morris kept Gloucester in touch, and even a yellow card to Ted Hill couldn’t derail Bath, who finished the half strong with Barbeary diving on a loose ball for try number five. After the break, Barbeary returned with a thunderous run to extend the lead. Gloucester, unable to match the physicality of Bath’s fresh forwards, conceded again as Jaco Coetzee and then Hill powered over. Though Lewis Ludlow crossed for a consolation, Tom Carr-Smith had the final say in the 78th minute to cap off Bath’s ninth try and a statement win.
BATH
- Tries: De Glanville (3’), Dunn (10’), Griffin (14’), Spencer (29’), Barbeary (38’, 50’), Coetzee (65’), Hill (70’), Carr-Smith (78’)
- Conversions: Russell (4’, 15’, 29’, 39’, 51’, 66’, 71’, 79’)
GLOUCESTER
- Tries: Carreras (6’), Singleton (22’), Morris (36’), Ludlow (73’)
- Conversions: Carreras (7’, 22’, 73’)
SEMI-FINALS OVERVIEW
Edinburgh, Bath, Racing 92, and Lyon are through to the semi-finals. The next round will be played in early May, with places in the Challenge Cup final on the line.
Who impressed you most in the quarterfinals? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let’s talk rugby.
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