2010–11 British and Irish Cup explained
| 2010–11 British and Irish Cup |
| Countries: |
 Ireland
|
| Tournament Format: | Round-robin and knockout |
| Date: | October 2010 - May 2011 |
| Teams: | 24 |
| Matches: | 67 |
| Top Point Scorer: |
(128 points)[1] |
| Top Try Scorer: |
(11 tries)[2] |
| Venue: | Memorial Stadium, Bristol |
| Attendance2: | 4,375 |
| Champions: | Bristol |
| Count: | 1 |
| Runner-Up: | Bedford Blues |
| Previous Year: | 2009–10 |
| Previous Tournament: | 2009–10 British and Irish Cup |
| Next Year: | 2011–12 |
| Next Tournament: | 2011–12 British and Irish Cup |
The 2010–11 British and Irish Cup was the 2nd season of the annual rugby union competition for second tier, semi-professional clubs from Britain and Ireland. First round matches began on Friday 15 October 2010 and the final was held on Saturday 7 May 2011.
Defending champions Cornish Pirates were unable to make it out of the pool stages. Bristol lifted the cup, narrowly defeating Bedford Blues 17–14 in the first all-English final.
Teams
The allocation of teams was as follows:
| width=20% | England | width=20% | Ireland | width=20% | Scotland | width=20% | Wales |
|---|
|
| - Leinster A
- Munster A
- Ulster Ravens
|
|
| |
Competition format
The teams were divided into four pools of six, playing over five weekends during the Autumn International and Six Nations windows. The four pool winners and runners-up contested a knock-out stage, with quarter-finals on 5 or 6 March, semi-finals on 23 March and the final on 7 May.
Pool stages
Pool A
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Pool B
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Pool C
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Pool D
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Knock-out stages
Qualifiers
The four pool winners and the four runners up proceeded to the knock out stages. The best four qualifiers (pool winners) had home advantage in the quarter-finals.
Quarter-finals
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Semi-finals
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Final
Touch judges:
Ian Heard
Graham Marshall | |
Top scorers
Top points scorers
Top try scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Tries |
|---|
| 1 | | | 11 |
| 2 | | | 6 |
| Bristol |
| 4 | | | 5 |
| 5 | | | 4 |
| |
| | |
Geography
| width=20% | Team | width=20% | Stadium | width=20% | Capacity | width=40% | City/Area/Country |
|---|
| Ayr | Millbrae | Unknown | Alloway, South Ayrshire, Scotland |
| Bedford Blues | Goldington Road | 4,684 | Bedford, Bedfordshire, England |
| Damson Park | 3,050 | Solihull, West Midlands, England |
| Bristol | Memorial Stadium | 12,100 | Bristol, England |
| Cornish Pirates | Mennaye Field | 3,500 | Penzance, Cornwall, England |
| Currie | Malleny Park | Unknown | Balerno, Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Doncaster | Castle Park | 3,075 | Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England |
| Esher | Molesey Road | Unknown | Esher, England |
| Leinster A | Donnybrook | 7,000 | Dublin, Leinster, Ireland |
| Llandovery | Church Bank | 5,000 | Llandovery, Wales |
| Llanelli | Parc y Scarlets | 14,870 | Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales |
| London Welsh | Old Deer Park | 5,850 | London, England |
| Melrose | The Greenyards | Unknown | Melrose, Scottish Borders, Scotland |
| Moseley | Billesley Common | 3,000+ (650 seated) | Birmingham, West Midlands, England |
| Munster A | Musgrave Park | 8,300 | Cork, County Cork, Ireland |
| Neath | The Gnoll | 7,500 | Neath, Neath Port Talbot, Wales |
| Newport | Rodney Parade | 10,500 | Newport, Wales |
| Nottingham | Meadow Lane | 19,588 | Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England |
| Plymouth Albion | The Brickfields | 6,500 | Plymouth, Devon, England |
| Pontypridd | Sardis Road | 7,861 | Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales |
| Rotherham | Clifton Lane | 2,500 | Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England |
| Swansea | St Helens | 4,500 | Swansea, Wales |
| Ulster A | Ravenhill Stadium | 12,125 | Belfast, Ulster, Northern Ireland |
| Worcester Warriors | Sixways Stadium | 12,068 | Worcester, England | |
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: British & Irish Cup Top Point Scorers. 16 July 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120521075717/http://rugbyroundup.com/league.php?league_id=117#leagueInfo. 21 May 2012. dead.
- Web site: British & Irish Cup Top Try Scorers. 16 July 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120521075717/http://rugbyroundup.com/league.php?league_id=117#leagueInfo. 21 May 2012. dead.
- Web site: Birmingham & Solihull 35 Doncaster Knights 29 . Doncaster Free Press . 11 January 2011 . 1 February 2016 . 26 October 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161026173143/http://www.doncasterfreepress.co.uk/sport/birmingham-amp-solihull-35-doncaster-knights-29-1-3004734 . dead .
Dan Montagu