Its hard to already be looking forward to next season especially during a Lions Tour but today's Heineken Cup draw at Lansdowne Road still excites with the prospect of some outstanding clashes during next year's pool stages.
Munster look to have got the best draw of the Irish sides with Perpignan finishing only 7th in the Top 14 last year and a young Gloucester side featuring the exciting talents of Freddie Burns and Jonny May could yet be the bigger threat. Leinster were unlucky to draw French champions Castres as fourth seeds but it would still be a surprise if they didn't top Pool 1 ahead of Northampton and Ospreys, neither of whom are really European heavyweights.
Pool 6 sees Ulster handed the difficult task of qualifying for the quarter-finals from a group containing English champions Leicester and the 'Gorgodzilla' lead Montpellier. Connacht would seem to again be up against it pitted against Toulouse and Saracens.
If Pool 4 is the 'Group Of Death' then Toulon's pool is the 'Group Of Life' and they already look certainties for a home quarter-final.
The full results of the draw are below
POOL 1:
Leinster, Northampton Saints, Ospreys, Castres Olympique
POOL 2:
RC Toulon, Cardiff Blues, Glasgow Warriors, Exeter Chiefs
POOL 3:
Toulouse, Saracens, Connacht, Zebre
POOL 4:
ASM Clermont Auvergne, Harlequins, Scarlets, Racing Metro 92
POOL 5:
Ulster, Leicester Tigers, Montpellier, Benetton Treviso
POOL 6:
Munster, Perpignan, Edinburgh, Gloucester
Picture credit: Tom Dwyer / SPORTSFILE
