Cardiff Blues attracted the sixth highest crowd for a Heineken Cup Pool match when 27,114 fans went through the Millennium Stadium turnstiles and saw the Blues beat Gloucester Rugby 37-24 in their Pool 6 showdown yesterday (Sunday, 19 October). The attendance was a record for a tournament Pool match in Wales, surpassing the old mark by almost 500 when the Blues played Leicester Tigers at the ground two seasons ago.

That, and Sale Sharks’ tournament record home crowd of 10,928, contributed to an overall Round 2 total crowd figure of 134,231 – the third highest total for any round of Pool matches in the history of the tournament.

And, following the record 152,991 fans who poured through the turnstiles across Europe in Round 1, it means the opening two weekends of this season’s tournament have pulled in 287,222 fans.

TOP 25 HEINEKEN CUP POOL MATCH ATTENDANCES

44,112 – STADE FRANÇAIS PARIS v Sale Sharks – Rd 3 2006/07 (Parc des Princes)
34,000 – TOULOUSE v London Wasps – Rd 5 2005/06 (Le Stadium, Toulouse)
33,883 – NEC HARLEQUINS v Munster – Rd 6 2004/05 (Twickenham)
32,500 – TOULOUSE v Leicester Tigers – Rd 4 2007/08 (Le Stadium, Toulouse)
31,885 – TOULOUSE v Bath Rugby – Rd 1 2008/09 (Le Stadium, Toulouse)
27,114 – CARDIFF BLUES v Gloucester Rugby – Rd 2 2008/09 (Millennium Stadium)
26,645 – CARDIFF BLUES v Leicester Tigers – Rd 2 2006/07 (Millennium Stadium)
23,500 – MUNSTER v Montauban – Rd 1 2008/09
23,463 – LEINSTER v Cardiff Blues – Rd 5 2003/04 (Lansdowne Road)
22,000 – TOULOUSE v Bath – Rd 6 1999/00
21,506 – LONDON WASPS v Munster – Rd 1 2007/08 (Ricoh Arena, Coventry)
20,000 – TOULOUSE v Saracens – Rd 1 2000/01
19,700 – STADE FRANÇAIS PARIS v Leicester Tigers – Rd 2 2005/06 (Stade Charlety)
18,890 – TOULOUSE v Edinburgh – Rd 6 2007/08
18,806 – TOULOUSE v Leinster – Rd 2 2007/08
18,652 – LEINSTER v Agen – Rd 3 2006/07 (Lansdowne Road)
18,500 – LEINSTER v Leicester Tigers – Rd 1 2007/08 (RDS)
18,300 – LEINSTER v London Wasps – Rd 2 2008/09 (RDS)
18,184 – TOULOUSE v Edinburgh Rugby – Rd 6 2003/04
18,145 – LEINSTER v Edinburgh – Rd 3 2007/08
18,017 – OSPREYS v Gloucester Rugby – Rd 5 2007/08
17,498 – LEICESTER TIGERS v Toulouse – Rd 3 2007/08
17,498 – LEICESTER TIGERS v Ospreys – Rd 1 2008/09
17,300 – TOULOUSE v Northampton Saints – Rd 4 2004/05
17,138 – TOULOUSE v Llanelli Scarlets – Rd 1 2005/06

Tags: Cardiff Blues, Heineken Cup

Cardiff Blues romped to their biggest Heineken Cup victory when they beat Rugby Calvisano 56-20 at Centro Sportivo San Michele in Round 1 – but now the acid test comes with their Millennium Stadium showdown with Gloucester Rugby on Sunday.

The 56 points scored against the Italian champions surpassed the 48 scored against reigning Heineken Cup champions Munster way back in 1996, along with a record equalling eight tries, but international flanker Martyn Williams insists feet will remain firmly on the ground in the build-up to the big Anglo-Welsh clash.

“Next week will be the time to judge what we can do in Europe and when we will find out where we really stand,” said Williams. “At the moment we are still finding our feet but it will be our hardest game of the season so far and only then we will know what level we are playing at.

“Any tries and bonus points are very important in this competition. If you pick them up along the way it could make the difference when it all goes into the mix at the end of the group stage.

“And while we are still under no illusions about how tough a group this is we really could not have asked for a much better start although at the end of the day the result in Calvisano is nothing more than a confidence boost and we know we have to go up a few levels to compete with Gloucester, one of the best sides in England.

“We haven’t looked at them too much yet but, as you look at the team sheets, it’s very hard to find a weakness. But to play at the Millennium Stadium against a team with so many household names will be a fantastic occasion.

“It’s going to be massive and that’s the great thing about Europe. Yes, it will be a tough game for us but, if we concentrate on our own game and give our all, hopefully that will be enough.

“We are nowhere near our peak yet. We have shown glimpses and hopefully that is all building up to a really big performance next week.

“There’s definitely still a lot more to come from us. You should never be satisfied with a performance and you always have to be looking to improve.

“Next week will be a really big step up for us, something entirely different to Calvisano. But it’s brilliant and that’s the kind of game you want to be involved in.

“The big test will be in defence as Gloucester have so many attacking weapons that we really have to step up in that area.

“That said, it was a good result and, first and foremost, it was important for us to get a win out there so to score that many tries was just a huge bonus.
“It took us a while to grind them down. But we played some good stuff in the second half and it was just too much for them.

“It was a no-win situation because everyone expects you to get a result but the manner in which we did it was very pleasing.

“It was tough in the first half, especially being down to 14 men for 20 minutes of it. We held out though and then the boys showed how skillful we can be when the game opened up.

“There is still a lot for us to work on and we won’t be resting on our laurels. But we have to be happy with that score.

Tags: Cardiff Blues, Heineken Cup