2008–09 Celtic League
| 2008–09 Celtic League | |
|---|---|
| Countries |  Ireland Scotland Wales |
| Champions | Munster (2nd title) |
| Runners-up | Edinburgh |
| Matches played | 90 |
| Attendance | 731,328 (average 8,126 per match) |
| Tries scored | 352 (average 3.9 per match) |
| Top point scorer | Felipe Contepomi (Leinster) James Hook (Ospreys) (161 points)[1] |
| Top try scorer | Thom Evans (Glasgow) (9 tries)[2] |
| Official website | |
| www | |
The 2008–09 Celtic League (known as the 2008–09 Magners League for sponsorship reasons) was the eighth Celtic League season and the third with Magners as title sponsor. The season began in September 2008 and ended in May 2009. Ten teams played each other on a home-and-away basis, with teams earning four points for a win, and a bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match. Losing teams also earned a bonus point if they lost by seven points or less.
The ten competing teams consisted of the four Irish provinces, Munster, Leinster, Connacht and Ulster; two Scottish regions, Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors; and four Welsh regions, Cardiff Blues, Newport Gwent Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets. The Scarlets were originally known as the "Llanelli Scarlets", but renamed themselves at the start of the season, in order to reflect their regional identity.[3]
Munster were crowned champions on 30 April 2009 after the Ospreys beat the Newport Gwent Dragons 27–18 but failed to claim a bonus point.[4]
Teams[]
 Winners;  2nd–4th place;  Other teams.
| |
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | City, Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardiff Blues
|
Cardiff Arms Park | 12,500 | Cardiff, Wales |
| Connacht
|
Galway Sportsgrounds | 5,500 | Galway, Republic of Ireland |
| Edinburgh
|
Murrayfield Stadium | 67,144[a] | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Glasgow Warriors
|
Firhill Stadium | 10,887 | Glasgow, Scotland |
| Leinster
|
RDS Arena | 18,500 | Dublin, Republic of Ireland |
| Munster
|
Thomond Park Musgrave Park |
26,500 8,300 |
Limerick, Republic of Ireland Cork, Republic of Ireland |
| Newport Gwent Dragons
|
Rodney Parade | 12,000 | Newport, Wales |
| Ospreys
|
Liberty Stadium | 20,500 | Swansea, Wales |
| Scarlets
|
Parc y Scarlets Stradey Park |
14,870 10,800 |
Llanelli, Wales |
| Ulster
|
Ravenhill | 12,800 | Belfast, Northern Ireland |
Table[]
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | Try bonus | Losing bonus | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Munster
|
18 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 405 | 257 | +148 | 49 | 23 | 6 | 1 | 63 |
| 2 | Edinburgh
|
18 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 416 | 296 | +120 | 40 | 30 | 6 | 5 | 55 |
| 3 | Leinster
|
18 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 401 | 270 | +131 | 38 | 20 | 4 | 2 | 52 |
| 4 | Ospreys
|
18 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 397 | 319 | +78 | 39 | 28 | 3 | 5 | 52 |
| 5 | Scarlets
|
18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 376 | 395 | −19 | 41 | 46 | 3 | 1 | 40 |
| 6 | Cardiff Blues
|
18 | 8 | 1 | 9 | 322 | 361 | −39 | 31 | 36 | 2 | 2 | 38 |
| 7 | Glasgow Warriors
|
18 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 349 | 375 | −26 | 36 | 41 | 4 | 5 | 37 |
| 8 | Ulster
|
18 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 298 | 331 | −33 | 30 | 33 | 2 | 6 | 36 |
| 9 | Newport Gwent Dragons
|
18 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 305 | 429 | −124 | 26 | 39 | 1 | 4 | 33 |
| 10 | Connacht
|
18 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 224 | 460 | −236 | 20 | 54 | 1 | 3 | 20 |
|
Under the standard bonus point system, points are awarded as follows:
| |||||||||||||
| Source: RaboDirect PRO12 Archived 2013-11-22 at the Wayback Machine | |||||||||||||
Results[]
Round 1[]
5 September 2008
19:05 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons
|
6–12 | Glasgow Warriors
|
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Rodney Parade
Attendance: 4,113 |
Welsh Round 1[]
- All-Welsh Round 5 matches played mid-week to allow Welsh teams to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
Round 2[]
Round 3[]
Round 4[]
Round 5[]
Round 6[]
Round 7[]
Welsh Round 2[]
- All-Welsh Round 6 matches played mid-week to allow Welsh teams to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
Round 8[]
26 December 2008
14:05 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons
|
19–21 | Cardiff Blues
|
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Rodney Parade
Attendance: 10,180 |
1872 Cup 1st round[]
Round 9[]
1872 Cup 2nd round[]
Round 10[]
9 January 2009
19:30 |
| Glasgow Warriors
|
20–25 | Newport Gwent Dragons
|
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Firhill Stadium
Attendance: 2,217 |
Round 11[]
20 February 2009
19:05 |
| Cardiff Blues
|
34–30 | Glasgow Warriors
|
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Cardiff City Stadium
Attendance: 7,603 |
Round 12[]
Round 13[]
Round 14[]
Round 15[]
Round 16[]
Rearranged fixtures[]
- Round 13 match rescheduled to allow Ospreys to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup semi-final.
- Round 15 match rescheduled to allow Cardiff Blues to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup final.
6 May 2009
19:05 |
| Cardiff Blues
|
26–12 | Newport Gwent Dragons
|
|---|---|---|
| Report |
Cardiff City Stadium
Attendance: 6,608 |
Round 17[]
Rearranged fixture[]
- Round 13 match rescheduled to allow Cardiff Blues to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup semi-final.
Round 18[]
Leading scorers[]
Note: Flags to the left of player names indicate national team as has been defined under IRB eligibility rules, or primary nationality for players who have not yet earned international senior caps. Players may hold one or more non-IRB nationalities.
Top points scorers[]
|
Top try scorers[]
|
Broadcast rights[]
Television rights for the league are split between three broadcasters, BBC Wales, S4C and Setanta Sports. BBC Wales and S4C continues to cover the Pro12.[6]
Notes[]
- ^ Although Murrayfield's full capacity is 67,144, only the lower section of the West Stand, with a capacity of 12,464, is generally opened for Edinburgh fixtures.
References[]
- ^ a b "Leading Points-Scorers". RaboDirect PRO12. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
- ^ a b "Leading Try-Scorers". RaboDirect PRO12. Archived from the original on 4 November 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
- ^ "Scarlets drop Llanelli from name". BBC Sport. 11 September 2008. Retrieved 11 September 2008.
- ^ "Ospreys 27-18 Dragons". BBC Sport. 2009-04-30. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ "John Lacey". www.pro14rugby.org. 23 October 2017. Archived from the original on 16 December 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
- ^ BBC extends Welsh rugby contract
- 2008–09 Celtic League
- United Rugby Championship seasons
- 2008–09 in European rugby union leagues
- 2008–09 in Irish rugby union
- 2008–09 in Welsh rugby union
- 2008–09 in Scottish rugby union