If Londoners Harlequins are to reach their first ever Investec Champions Cup final next month they’ll need to do it by beating five-times winners Toulouse in their own back yard.
Director of rugby Billy Millard’s men pulled off the shock of the weekend, beating Bordeaux-Begles 42-41 on the Atlantic coast on Sunday, in a match that saw the Twickenham-based side back their flamboyant playing style to the nines.
Quins, who rested the likes of England internationals Danny Care and Joe Marler for the trip, matched the hosts’ open playing preference and bettered Bordeaux on the scoreboard.
Their reward is a spot in the final four against Toulouse, with a potential final against four-time winners Leinster or Premiership rivals Northampton Saints.
So close!
Harlequins on the march
“I am just so proud of them, not surprised, because I know the capability of the group. It was quite emotional for us,” Millard said on Saturday.
“The great thing about this group, especially after a loss like Saracens [52-7 loss], is that we were pretty honest with each other.”
Added the Harlequins boss: “We then had a pretty wild game against Bath [40-36 win] and a really tough game against Glasgow [28-24 win], so we were pretty confident that the last three weeks would set us up for this.
“We knew it would go down to the wire. We didn’t turn up against Saracens. Why, we are not sure, but we have done since and the boys executed today.
“The one thing you know about this competition is that with each game as you progress, it gets tougher.
“We’ve played Toulouse already – we know what is coming there. We will enjoy this and then be back into the grind.”
Toulouse comfortably saw off Exeter Chiefs yesterday to earn a home-semi final.
Toulouse and Harlequins have played five times in Europe, the last in December 2023, with the French side winning four of those matches. Harlequins last won in 2011.