2003–04 European Challenge Cup

2003-04 Parker Pen Challenge Cup 100px Official logo EnglandFranceIreland rugby unionItalyRomaniaScotlandSpain Knockout 5 December 2003 – 22 May 2004 28 57 {{#expr: + 1327 + 500 + 3000 + 512 + 800 + 2000 + 300 + 2500 + 500 + 3000 + 2800 + 1600 + 350 + 4543 + 1622 + 1500 + 2500 + 8707 + 6341 + 1200 + 7941 + 2500 + 3500 + 4087 + 6012 + 1000 + 5265 + 4181 + 2000 + 3000 + 4950 + 4000 + 4500 + 4500 + 4525 + 3653 + 2645 + 9980 + 5011 + 3000 + 4389 + 4000 + 2500 + 7500 + 4950 + 2553 + 4000 + 9444 + 2000 + 5571 + 5000 + 4058 + 7700 + 6573 + 4000 + 6000 + 13123 | tries = {{#expr: + 2 + 7 + 13 + 8 + 7 + 12 + 9 + 5 + 4 + 5 + 7 + 6 + 8 + 1 + 5 + 5 + 2 + 8 + 11 + 9 + 9 + 12 + 3 + 5 + 13 + 5 + 6 + 13 + 5 + 7 + 1 + 4 + 7 + 1 + 2 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 7 + 2 + 4 + 3 + 7 + 4 + 5 + 4 + 5 + 3 + 3 + 4 + 6 + 1 + 6 + 5 + 7 + 4 + 4 }} | top point scorer = Olly Barkley (Bath)(120 points)http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/statistics/index.php?preset871=2003 https://archive.today/20130215230047/http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/statistics/index.php?preset871=2003 dead February 15, 2013 Amlin Challenge Cup: Points Scorers 28 January 2013 | top try scorer = Simon Danielli (Bath)(6 tries)http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/statistics/player_records_tries.php?preset882=2003 https://archive.today/20130215233622/http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/statistics/player_records_tries.php?preset882=2003 dead February 15, 2013 Amlin Challenge Cup: Try Scorers 28 January 2013 | venue = Madejski Stadium, Reading, Berkshire | attendance2 = 13,123 | champions = ENG NEC Harlequins | count = 2 | runner-up = FRA Montferrand | website = https://web.archive.org/web/20080506141030/http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/ | previous year = 2002–03 | previous tournament = 2002–03 Parker Pen Challenge Cup | next year = 2004–05 | next tournament = 2004–05 European Challenge Cup }} The 2003–04 European Challenge Cup (known as the Parker Pen Challenge Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 8th season of the European Challenge Cup, Europe's second-tier club rugby union competition below the Heineken Cup. A total of 28 teams participated, representing seven countries. This was the first year of the competition following the introduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales. With the reduction of Welsh teams from nine to five, and with all teams participating in the 2003-04 Heineken Cup, there were no Welsh teams in the 2003–04 Parker Pen Challenge Cup. The competition began when Rotherham hosted Narbonne and Leonessa hosted Montferrand on 5 December 2003 and culminated in the final at the Madejski Stadium in Reading on 22 May 2004. As in the previous season, the competition was organised in a knockout format. Teams played each other on a home and away basis, with the aggregate points winner proceeding to the next round. The final was a single leg. For the second time, a third tier tournament was held - the European Shield. This was contested between the first round losers from the European Challenge Cup.http://www.ercrugby.com:80/eng/amlinchallengecup/champions.php https://web.archive.org/web/20080506141030/http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/amlinchallengecup/champions.php dead 6 May 2008 Challenge Cup European Champions ERC 26 January 2013 As there were only 28 teams involved, the 2 "best" 1st Round losers were reprieved and proceeded to the 2nd Round. The defending champions, England's London Wasps, did not have a chance to defend their crown because they qualified to play in the Heineken Cup. NEC Harlequins claimed the narrowest of victories over Montferrand in the final and picked up their second piece of European Club silverware. Teams The allocation of teams was as follows: England: 6 teams — all teams from the Zurich Premiership that did not qualify for the 2003–04 Heineken Cup France: 10 teams — all teams from the Top 16 that did not qualify for the Heineken Cup Ireland: 1 team — the Irish team from the Celtic League that did not play in the Heineken Cup Italy: 8 teams — all the teams from the Super 10 that did not qualify for the Heineken Cup Scotland: 1 team — the Scottish team from the Celtic League that did not play in the Heineken Cup Spain: 2 teams — drawn from the División de Honor de Rugby ENG England FRA France Ireland rugby union Ireland ITA Italy SCO Scotland ESP Spain Bath NEC Harlequins London Irish Newcastle Falcons Rotherham Saracens Béziers Brive Castres Olympique Colomiers Grenoble Montauban Montferrand Montpellier Narbonne Pau Connacht Gran Parma L'Aquila Leonessa Overmach Parma Petrarca Padova Rugby Roma Rovigo Viadana Glasgow El Salvador Valladolid RAC Matches All kickoff times are local to the match location.http://www.ercrugby.com/eng/matchcentre/amlin_challenge_cup_fixtures.php?includeref=480&season=2003-2004&round=elimination Challenge Cup Fixtures ERC 28 January 2013January 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes Round 1 1st leg 5 December 2003 19:45 Rotherham ENG 10 – 17 Report FRA Narbonne Millmoor 1,327 5 December 2003 20:00 Leonessa ITA 0 – 55 Report FRA Montferrand Campo Comunale di Rugby 500 6 December 2003 12:30 Valladolid RAC ESP 10 – 71 Report ENG Newcastle Falcons Estadio Pepe Rojo 3,000 6 December 2003 14:30 Rugby Roma ITA 13 – 45 Report ENG Saracens Stadio Tre Fontane 512 6 December 2003 15:00 Gran Parma ITA 10 – 35 Report FRA Grenoble Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi 800 6 December 2003 15:00 L'Aquila ITA 11 – 75 Report ENG Bath Stade Tommaso Fattori 2,000 6 December 2003 15:00 Rovigo ITA 14 – 53 Report FRA Castres Olympique Stadio Comunale Mario Battaglini 300 6 December 2003 18:00 Colomiers FRA 37 – 12 Report ITA Petrarca Padova Stade Selery 2,500 6 December 2003 18:00 Montpellier FRA 11 – 30 Report SCO Glasgow Stade Sabathé 500 6 December 2003 19:30 Brive FRA 39 – 3 Report ITA Viadana Stade Amédée-Domenech 3,000 7 December 2003 12:30 El Salvador ESP 18 – 31 Report ENG NEC Harlequins Estadio Pepe Rojo 2,800 7 December 2003 13:30 Montauban FRA 30 – 26 Report ENG London Irish North Power StadiumAccording to the ERC web site. Montauban usually play at Stade Sapiac. 1,600 7 December 2003 14:30 Overmach Parma ITA 28 – 33 Report FRA Pau Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi 350 7 December 2003 15:00 Béziers FRA 10 – 18 Report Ireland rugby union Connacht Stade de la Méditerranée 4,543 2nd leg 12 December 2003 19:30 Glasgow SCO 38 – 13 Report FRA Montpellier Hughenden Stadium 1,622 12 December 2003 19:45 Narbonne FRA 35 – 13 Report ENG Rotherham Parc des Sports et de l'Amitié 1,500 13 December 2003 14:00 Connacht Ireland rugby union 11 – 13 Report FRA Béziers Galway Sportsgrounds 2,500 13 December 2003 14:15 Bath ENG 50 – 0 Report ITA L'Aquila The Recreation Ground 8,707 13 December 2003 15:00 NEC Harlequins ENG 63 – 3 Report ESP El Salvador The Stoop 6,341 13 December 2003 15:00 Petrarca Padova ITA 20 – 38 Report FRA Colomiers Stadio Plebiscito 1,200 13 December 2003 17:00 Montferrand FRA 58 – 3 Report ITA Leonessa Stade Marcel-Michelin 7,941 13 December 2003 18:00 Castres Olympique FRA 75 – 10 Report ITA Rovigo Stade Pierre-Antoine 2,500 13 December 2003 19:00 Pau FRA 25 – 6 Report ITA Overmach Parma Stade du Hameau 3,500 13 December 2003 19:30 Grenoble FRA 41 – 6 Report ITA Gran Parma Stade Lesdiguières 4,087 14 December 2003 13:00 Newcastle Falcons ENG 66 – 27 Report ESP Valladolid RAC Kingston Park 6,012 14 December 2003 14:30 Viadana ITA 38 – 22 Report FRA Brive Stradey ParkAccording to the ERC web site. Viadana usually play at Stadio Luigi Zaffanella. 1,000 14 December 2003 15:00 London Irish ENG 36 – 24 Report FRA Montauban Madejski Stadium 5,265 14 December 2003 15:00 Saracens ENG 82 – 5 Report ITA Rugby Roma Vicarage Road 4,181 Aggregate Results {| class="wikitable" |+ Key to colours |- | |     |14 winners and 2 best losers advance to 2nd Round. |- |style="background:#cfc;"|     |12 other teams to Shield. |} Winners Match points Aggregate score Points margin Losers Bath ENG 4 – 0 125 – 11 114 ITA L'Aquila Montferrand FRA 4 – 0 113 – 3 110 ITA Leonessa Saracens ENG 4 – 0 127 – 18 109 ITA Rugby Roma Castres Olympique FRA 4 – 0 128 – 24 104 ITA Rovigo Newcastle Falcons ENG 4 – 0 137 – 37 100 ESP Valladolid RAC NEC Harlequins ENG 4 – 0 94 – 21 73 ESP El Salvador Grenoble FRA 4 – 0 76 – 16 60 ITA Gran Parma Glasgow SCO 4 – 0 68 – 24 44 FRA Montpellier Colomiers FRA 4 – 0 75 – 32 43 ITA Petrarca Padova Narbonne FRA 4 – 0 52 – 23 29 ENG Rotherham Pau FRA 4 – 0 58 – 34 24 ITA Overmach Parma Brive FRA 2 – 2 61 – 41 20 ITA Viadana London Irish ENG 2 – 2 62 – 54 8 FRA Montauban Connacht Ireland rugby union 2 – 2 29 – 23 6 FRA Béziers Round 2 1st leg 10 January 2004 14:00 Connacht Ireland rugby union 29 – 7 Report FRA Pau Galway Sportsgrounds 2,000 10 January 2004 19:30 Montauban FRA 8 – 43 Report ENG NEC Harlequins Stadio Luigi Zaffanella 3,000 11 January 2004 14:30 Newcastle Falcons ENG 10 – 3 Report FRA Montferrand Kingston Park 4,950 11 January 2004 15:00 Brive FRA 30 – 17 Report FRA Castres Olympique Stade Amédée-Domenech 4,000 11 January 2004 15:00 Colomiers FRA 25 – 32 Report ENG Bath Stade Selery 4,500 11 January 2004 15:00 Grenoble FRA 15 – 19 Report FRA Béziers Stade Lesdiguières 4,500 11 January 2004 15:00 London Irish ENG 20 – 13 Report FRA Narbonne Madejski Stadium 4,525 11 January 2004 15:00 Saracens ENG 37 – 6 Report SCO Glasgow Vicarage Road 3,653 2nd leg 16 January 2004 19:30 Glasgow SCO 33 – 5 Report ENG Saracens Hughenden Stadium 2,645 17 January 2004 14:15 Bath ENG 26 – 17 Report FRA Colomiers The Recreation Ground 9,980 17 January 2004 15:00 NEC Harlequins ENG 36 – 17 Report FRA Montauban The Stoop 5,011 17 January 2004 19:00 Pau FRA 10 – 6 Report Ireland rugby union Connacht Stade du Hameau 3,000 17 January 2004 19:30 Béziers FRA 24 – 8 Report FRA Grenoble Stade de la Méditerranée 4,389 17 January 2004 19:30 Narbonne FRA 29 – 10 Report ENG London Irish Parc des Sports et de l'Amitié 4,000 18 January 2004 15:00 Montferrand FRA 25 – 13 Report ENG Newcastle Falcons Stade Marcel-Michelin 7,500 18 January 2004 15:00 Castres Olympique FRA 31 – 28 Report FRA Brive Stade Pierre-Antoine 2,500 Aggregate Results Proceed to Quarter-final Match points Aggregate score Points margin Eliminated from competition NEC Harlequins ENG 4 – 0 79 – 25 54 FRA Montauban Béziers FRA 4 – 0 43 – 23 20 FRA Grenoble Bath ENG 4 – 0 58 – 42 16 FRA Colomiers Connacht Ireland rugby union 2 – 2 35 – 17 18 FRA Pau Narbonne FRA 2 – 2 42 – 30 12 ENG London Irish Brive FRA 2 – 2 58 – 48 10 FRA Castres Olympique Montferrand FRA 2 – 2 28 – 23 5 ENG Newcastle Falcons Saracens ENG 2 – 2 42 – 39 3 SCO Glasgow Quarter-finals 1st leg 24 January 2004 15:00 NEC Harlequins ENG 41 – 8 Report FRA Brive The Stoop 4,950 24 January 2004 19:30 Béziers FRA 24 – 19 Report ENG Bath Stade de la Méditerranée 2,553 24 January 2004 19:30 Narbonne FRA 18 – 27 Report Ireland rugby union Connacht Parc des Sports et de l'Amitié 4,000 25 January 2004 15:00 Montferrand FRA 26 – 10 Report ENG Saracens Stade Marcel-Michelin 9,444 2nd leg 31 January 2004 14:00 Connacht Ireland rugby union 16 – 10 Report FRA Narbonne Galway Sportsgrounds 2,000 31 January 2004 14:15 Bath ENG 26 – 7 Report FRA Béziers The Recreation Ground 5,571 1 February 2004 15:00 Brive FRA 36 – 20 Report ENG NEC Harlequins Stade Amédée-Domenech 5,000 1 February 2004 15:00 Saracens ENG 18 – 14 Report FRA Montferrand Vicarage Road 4,058 Aggregate Results Proceed to Semifinal Match points Aggregate score Points margin Eliminated from competition Connacht Ireland rugby union 4 – 0 43 – 28 15 FRA Narbonne NEC Harlequins ENG 2 – 2 61 – 44 17 FRA Brive Bath ENG 2 – 2 45 – 31 14 FRA Béziers Montferrand FRA 2 – 2 40 – 28 12 ENG Saracens Semi-finals 1st leg 10 April 2004 13:00 Bath ENG 29 – 15 Report FRA Montferrand The Recreation Ground 7,700 11 April 2004 13:00 NEC Harlequins ENG 31 – 22 Report Ireland rugby union Connacht The Stoop 6,573 2nd leg 24 April 2004 14:00 Montferrand FRA 38 – 22 Report ENG Bath Stade Marcel-Michelin 4,000 25 April 2004 13:00 Connacht Ireland rugby union 23 – 18 Report ENG NEC Harlequins Galway Sportsgrounds 6,000 Aggregate Results Proceed to Final Match points Aggregate score Points margin Eliminated from competition NEC Harlequins ENG 2 – 2 49 – 45 4 Ireland rugby union Connacht Montferrand FRA 2 – 2 53 – 51 2 ENG Bath Final 22 May 2004 12:00 Montferrand FRA 26 – 27 Report ENG NEC Harlequins AzamMignoni Floch (2) Floch (3) Merceron (1) DuffyKeogh Dunne (1) Burke (4)Dunne (1) Madejski Stadium, Reading, Berkshire 13,123 Nigel Whitehouse (Wales) See also 2003-04 Heineken Cup European Challenge Cup 2003–04 European Shield References Category:2003–04 rugby union tournaments for clubs 2003-04 Category:2003–04 in European rugby union Category:2003–04 in English rugby union Category:2003–04 in French rugby union Category:2003–04 in Irish rugby union Category:2003–04 in Italian rugby union Category:2003–04 in Romanian rugby union Category:2003–04 in Spanish rugby union Category:2003–04 in Scottish rugby union