| 2006–07 Celtic League | |
|---|---|
 A scrum between Cardiff Blues and Munster | |
| Countries |  Ireland Scotland Wales |
| Champions | Ospreys (2nd title) |
| Runners-up | Cardiff Blues |
| Matches played | 110 |
| Attendance | 661,163 (average 6,011 per match) |
| Tries scored | 453 (average 4.1 per match) |
| Top point scorer | Dan Parks (Glasgow) (197 points)[1] |
| Top try scorer | Darren Daniel (Llanelli Scarlets) Barry Davies (Llanelli Scarlets) Jamie Heaslip (Leinster) Andrew Trimble (Ulster) (7 tries)[2] |
| Official website | |
| www | |
The2006–07 Celtic League (known as the2006–07 Magners League for sponsorship reasons) was the sixthCeltic League season and the first withMagners as title sponsor. The season commenced on 1 September and was completed on 12 May.
The teams competing remained the same as the previous season with four Irish provinces;Munster,Leinster,Connacht and 2005–06 championsUlster, three Scottish regions;Edinburgh,Border Reivers andGlasgow Warriors and four Welsh regions;Llanelli Scarlets,Cardiff Blues,Ospreys andNewport Gwent Dragons.
The league was won for the second time in three seasons by the Ospreys, with a final-day win over the Borders, playing their last match, as theScottish Rugby Union had announced that the Borders would not exist in the following season.[3] Cardiff Blues finished second, making this the only season of the tournament (as of 2021) in which no Irish team made the top two of theUnited Rugby Championship and predecessor tournaments.[4]
Location of 2006–07 Celtic League teams in Great Britain and Ireland. | |
 Winners; 2nd–4th place; Other teams. | |
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | City, Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Border Reivers | Netherdale | 6,000 | Galashiels, Scotland |
| 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 | Hughenden Stadium | 6,000 | Glasgow, Scotland |
| Leinster | Donnybrook Stadium[b] | 6,500 | Dublin, Republic of Ireland |
| Llanelli Scarlets | Stradey Park | 10,800 | Llanelli, Wales |
| Munster | Thomond Park Musgrave Park | 13,200 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 |
| Ulster | Ravenhill | 12,800 | Belfast, Northern Ireland |
Ulster began the season as the reigning champions whilst Munster areHeineken Cup champions of the 2005–06 season. Prior to the season commencing it was announced by theIrish Rugby Football Union that some of their internationals were to be rested during part of the season as the Rugby World Cup takes place at the end. This would include the first four matches of the season, to allow for recovery from the June internationals. Those who did not play much during the internationals may return sooner.[5] Major signings during the off-season includeJustin Marshall for the Ospreys[6] andStephen Jones for the Scarlets.[7] The free weekend scheme, where each team that did not compete in a match on a weekend due to the odd number of teams in the league would receive 4 points, was scrapped.[8]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TBP | LBP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ospreys | 20 | 14 | 0 | 6 | 461 | 374 | +87 | 49 | 32 | 4 | 4 | 64 |
| 2 | Cardiff Blues | 20 | 13 | 1 | 6 | 447 | 327 | +120 | 53 | 33 | 6 | 3 | 63 |
| 3 | Leinster | 20 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 472 | 376 | +96 | 54 | 37 | 7 | 4 | 61 |
| 4 | Llanelli Scarlets | 20 | 12 | 0 | 8 | 490 | 417 | +73 | 61 | 41 | 9 | 0 | 57 |
| 5 | Ulster | 20 | 11 | 1 | 8 | 423 | 310 | +113 | 45 | 31 | 4 | 5 | 55 |
| 6 | Munster | 20 | 12 | 0 | 8 | 379 | 294 | +85 | 37 | 31 | 3 | 3 | 54 |
| 7 | Glasgow Warriors | 20 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 434 | 419 | +15 | 42 | 49 | 3 | 2 | 49 |
| 8 | Edinburgh | 20 | 8 | 1 | 11 | 335 | 423 | −88 | 31 | 45 | 2 | 6 | 42 |
| 9 | Newport Gwent Dragons | 20 | 8 | 0 | 12 | 353 | 362 | −9 | 36 | 43 | 1 | 6 | 39 |
| 10 | Connacht | 20 | 4 | 2 | 14 | 326 | 474 | −148 | 30 | 48 | 2 | 4 | 26 |
| 11 | Border Reivers | 20 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 201 | 545 | −344 | 16 | 64 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
Under the standard bonus point system, points are awarded as follows:
| |||||||||||||
| Source:RaboDirect PRO12Archived 3 September 2020 at theWayback Machine | |||||||||||||
| 12 September 2006 19:10 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 22 – 23 | Llanelli Scarlets |
| Report |
| Rodney Parade Attendance: 5,574 |
Note: Flags to the left of player names indicate national team as has been defined underIRB 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[edit]
| Top try scorers[edit]
|
Television rights for the league are split between three broadcasters,BBC Wales,S4C andSetanta Sports. At the start of the season it was announced that the BBC Wales and S4C had extended their contract to show Celtic League until the end of the 2009/10 season.[9]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)