JACKSON COLUMN: Echoes of '96 in Cardiff's Euro adventure

They pushed Toulouse all the way into the last minute of extra time on home soil before losing the inaugural final to the latest of late penalties.

Memories of that first Sunday afternoon of 1996 when Christophe Deylaud's short-range strike trumped Adrian Davies' six penalties for Cardiff have been stirred by another home win for the Blues.

Nineteen years on, they are emerging from the lower half of the GUINNESS PRO12 to spearhead a Celtic charge towards the knock-out stages of the European Challenge Cup.

Having won all three ties and taken 14 points from a maximum 15, Mark Hammett's redesigned Blues head Pool 1.

Should they mark Sam Warburton's return from national duty by completing the double over London Irish at the Madejski Stadium on Saturday afternoon, the Blues will be steaming towards a home quarter-final.

Another PRO12 team, Edinburgh, have matched them win for win to take similar charge of Pool 4. After beating two Top14 opponents (Begles-Bordeaux and Lyon) and one from the Aviva Premiership (London Welsh), Alan Solomons' team head south for Sunday's return in Oxford with every chance of taking another huge stride towards the last eight.

Two more from the GUINNESS PRO12 are also in serious contention. Newport Gwent Dragons will expect to repeat last week's five-point win in Romania with another when the Bucharest Wolves make their bow at Rodney Parade on Friday night.

Head coach Lyn Jones appreciates better than anyone that nothing less will be good enough if the Dragons are to turn up the heat on leaders Newcastle in readiness for their Tyneside expedition in the New Year.

Connacht, winners at Toulouse in the European Cup this time last year, aim to make a winning return to French soil in Bayonne on Saturday which would be quite something given that Clermont, of all people, came unstuck there in the Top 14 last month.

Pat Lam's squad make the trip buoyed by two thumping home wins over French teams in Galway - a collective total of twelve tries at the expense of Bayonne last week and La Rochelle in October adding up to ten points out of ten.

Despite that, they have precious little room for error following the one blot on their record - the 20-point defeat inflicted by the Exeter Chiefs some seven weeks ago.

With the English club back in Devon for their home leg against La Rochelle after a try-bonus win down on the Bay of Biscay last week, Connacht must win in Bayonne if they are to be in a position to seize leadership of Pool 2 when Exeter arrive in Galway for the potential decider in Round Five.

On the Champions Cup front, no fewer than six GUINNESS PRO12 qualifiers face critical ties. After their narrow defeat in London last Sunday, Leinster are back on the big stage at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday evening for their return against Harlequins.

Munster, their 17-year-old unbeaten home record against French challengers broken by Clermont, are still alive and kicking but in urgent need of getting their own back in the Stade Marcel Michelin on Sunday.

Should they manage the tallest of orders and turn the tables, they will have succeeded where both Leinster, twice, and Ulster have failed in recent years, albeit narrowly.

Ospreys know they must respond to last Saturday's home draw against Racing Metro by winning in Le Mans on Saturday, the Glasgow Warriors must even up the score against Toulouse at Scotstoun and likewise the Scarlets against Ulster in Llanelli on Sunday.

But In terms of reaching the last eight of either European competition, no match will have more significance than the Blues' trip up the M4 to Reading where London Irish have only won twice in the Aviva Premiership.

The one home win the Exiles have managed came in their opening Challenge Cup tie against Rovigo - a 70-14 romp based on ten converted tries.

While the Blues have had their own difficulties at home, losing both opening GUINNESS PRO12 fixtures at the BT Cardiff Arms Park to Glasgow and Ulster, they have swept all before them in Europe, as befitting the first PRO12 winner of what was then the Amlin Cup.

They did so in some style, coming from behind to beat Jonny Wilkinson's Toulon down on the Mediterranean five seasons ago. In the process they defied a crowd of almost 50,000 in Marseilles, the vast majority of whom had made the short journey along the coast from Toulon.

The Blues had got there via a roundabout route, winning at Newcastle in the quarter-final before removing Wasps in High Wycombe to reach the final. Of their match-day 23, only two of the starting XV are still there - veteran props Gethin Jenkins and Taufa'ao Filise.

Eight are playing elsewhere - Leigh Halfpenny (Toulon), Casey Laulala, Jamie Roberts (both Racing Metro), Chris Czekaj (Colomiers), Ceri Sweeney (Exeter), Richie Rees, T Rhys Thomas (both Dragons) and Bradley Davies (Wasps).

Five have retired - Ben Blair, Maama Molitika, Martyn Williams, Xavier Rush and Deiniol Jones, now in the role of team manager.

Amlin Cup final at the Stade Velodrome, Marseilles, May 21, 2010.

Cardiff Blues 28 (Tries-J Roberts, B Davies, L Halfpenny. Cons-B Blair 2. Pens- B Blair 2, L Halfpenny).

Toulon 21 (Tries- SB Williams, T Sourice. Con- J Wilkinson. Pens-J Wilkinson 2, T May).

Cardiff Blues: Ben Blair; Leigh Halfpenny, Casey Laulala, Jamie Roberts, Chris Czeckaj; Ceri Sweeney, Richie Rees; Gethin Jenkins, T Rhys Thomas, Taufa'ao Filise; Bradley Davies, Deiniol Jones; Maama Molitika, Martyn Williams, Xavier Rush.

Substitutes as used: Gareth Williams, John Yapp, Scott Andrews, Paul Tito, Sam Warburton, Dafydd Hewitt.

Toulon: Clement Marienval; Gabi Lovobalavu, Tom May, Sonny Bill Williams, Jeremy Sinzelle; Jonny Wilkinson, Matt Henjak; Saimone Taumoepeau, Philip Fitzgerald, Davit Kubriashvili; Esteban Lozada, Ross Skeate; Joe van Niekerk, Juan Martin Fernandez-Lobbe, Fotonuupule Auelua.

Substitutes as used: Sebastien Bruno, Laurent Emmanuelli, Jocelino Suta, Tim Ryan, Thomas Sourice, Mafi Kefu.

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