# 2012–13 LV Cup

The 2012–13 LV Cup (styled as the LV= Cup) is the 42nd season of England's national rugby union cup competition, and the eighth to follow the Anglo-Welsh format.
The competition consists of the four Welsh Pro12 teams and the 12 English Premiership clubs arranged into pools consisting of three English and one Welsh team. English clubs have been allocated to the pools depending on their finish in the 2011-12 Aviva Premiership. Welsh regions have been allocated to the pools to avoid repeating fixtures from the Heineken and Amlin Challenge cups where possible. Teams are guaranteed two home and two away pool matches, with teams in Pools 1 and 4 playing each other and teams in Pools 2 and 3 playing each other, with the top team from each pool qualifying for the semi-finals. The competition will take place during the Autumn Internationals window and during the Six Nations thus allowing teams to develop their squad players.
Leicester Tigers are defending champions this season after claiming the cup with a 26–14 victory over Northampton Saints in the final at Sixways Stadium in Worcester. It was the seventh victory for Leicester Tigers (a record) in the competition, and the second since the current Anglo-Welsh format was adopted in 2005.

## Pool stages
### Points system

The points scoring system for the pool stages will be as follows:
* 4 points for a win
* 2 points for a draw
* 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match (TB)
* 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less (LB)

### Pool 1 v Pool 4

Pool 1 :
| Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TB | LB | Pts |
| Harlequins | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 60 | +31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 17 |
| Exeter Chiefs | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 99 | 63 | +36 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 95 | 94 | +1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Gloucester | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 85 | 111 | −26 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
Pool 4 :
| Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TB | LB | Pts |
| Bath | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 96 | 47 | 49 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| Northampton Saints | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 105 | 86 | 19 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| Ospreys | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 72 | 84 | −12 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| London Welsh | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 55 | 153 | −98 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Round 1

* 9 November 2012 19:45
| Ospreys | 33–27 | Gloucester |
| Try: Grabham 64' m Allen 78' c Con: Davies 79' Pen: Morgan (4) 10', 34', 40', 56' Davies 60' Drop: Morgan (2) 20', 29' | Report | Try: Thomas 26' c Murphy 71' c Penalty try 75' c Con: Burns 27' Robson (2) 71', 76' Pen: Burns (2) 8', 16' |
* Liberty Stadium, Swansea Attendance: 5,738 Referee: David Rose (England)
* 10 November 2012 13:00
| Northampton Saints | 30–31 | Harlequins |
| Try: Burrell 49' m May 59' c Con: Lamb 60' Pen: Lamb (5) 2', 10', 40', 48', 64' Drop: Lamb 77' | Report | Try: Smith (2) 6' c, 33' c Sloan 25' c Botica 80' c Con: Botica (4) 7', 26', 34', 80' Pen: Botica 54' |
* Franklin's Gardens, Northampton Attendance: 11,586 Referee: Neil Hennessey (Wales)
* 10 November 2012 14:15
| Bath | 36–15 | Newport Gwent Dragons |
| Try: Rokoduguni (2) 8' c, 74' c Banahan 42' c Con: Heathcote (3) 8', 43', 75' Pen: Heathcote (5) 2', 20', 24', 34', 40' | Report | Try: Wardle 5' c Evans 80' m Con: Jones 6' Pen: Jones 21' |
* Recreation Ground, Bath Attendance: 10,960 Referee: Llyr Ap Geraint-Roberts (England)
* 11 November 2012 16:00
| London Welsh | 15–42 | Exeter Chiefs |
| Pen: Ross (5) 6', 25', 38', 56', 58' | Report | Try: Carrick-Smith 28' m Foster 49' c Nowell (2) 64' m, 77' c Sestaret (2) 68' c, 72' m Con: Slade (3) 50', 69', 78' Pen: Slade (2) 10', 43' |
* Kassam Stadium, Oxford Attendance: 2,084 Referee: Ian Davies (Wales)

#### Round 2

* 16 November 2012 19:45
| Harlequins | 21–12 | Bath |
| Pen: Botica (5) 1', 4', 14', 18', 31' Grimoldby (2) 67', 71' | Report | Pen: Donald (3) 16', 28', 45' Heathcote (1) 64' |
* Twickenham Stoop, London Attendance: 11,655 Referee: James Jones (Wales)
* 17 November 2012 16:30
| Gloucester | 46–20 | London Welsh |
| Try: Monahan 7' c Morgan (3) 21' c, 36' c, 73' c Qera 29' c Britton 64' m Con: Burns (4) 8', 22', 29', 37' Cook 74' Pen: Burns (2) 4', 25' | Report | Try: Scott 59' c Tideswell 76' c Con: Ross 59' Davies 76' Pen: Ross (2) 10', 19' |
* Kingsholm, Gloucester Attendance: 9,936 Referee: Tim Wigglesworth (England)
* 17 November 2012 17:00
| Exeter Chiefs | 23–13 | Ospreys |
| Try: Carrick-Smith 28' c Dorrian 40' c Con: Slade (2) 28', 40' Pen: Slade (3) 2', 55', 66' | Report | Try: Allen 10' c Con: Davies 10' Pen: Davies (2) 31', 45' |
* Sandy Park, Exeter Attendance: 7,829 Referee: Greg Garner (England)
* 18 November 2012 15:15
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 20–30 | Northampton Saints |
| Try: Chavhanga (3) 34' c, 44' m, 70' m Con: Prydie 35' Pen: Prydie 22' | Report | Try: Dowson 49' c Elliott 62' m Con: Lamb 50' Pen: Lamb (5) 13', 25', 43', 56', 59' Drop: Lamb 74' |
* Rodney Parade, Newport Attendance: 5,312 Referee: Luke Pearce (England)

#### Round 3

* 26 January 2013 14:15
| Bath | 16–6 | Exeter Chiefs |
| Try: Stringer (2) 56' m, 61' m Pen: Heathcote (2) 4', 31' | Report | Pen: Slade (2) 8', 23' |
* Recreation Ground, Bath Attendance: 11,170 Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
* 26 January 2013 15:00
| Harlequins | 23–6 | London Welsh |
| Try: Lambert 15' c Ward 74' c Con: Botica (2/2) Pen: Botica (3) 20', 46', 65' | Report | Pen: Davies (2) 14', 25' |
* Twickenham Stoop, London Attendance: 12,356 Referee: Neil Hennessey (Wales)
* 26 January 2013 15:00
| Northampton Saints | 26–7 | Gloucester |
| Try: Burrell 32' Waller 66' Con: Lamb (1/1) Myler (1/1) Pen: Lamb (2) 9', 22' Myler (2) 55', 62' | Report | Try: Mills 24' c Con: Mills |
* Franklin's Gardens, Northampton Attendance: 12,722 Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
* 26 January 2013 18:30
| Dragons | 18–14 | Ospreys |
| Pen: S. Jones (6) 2', 7', 30', 49', 65', 73' | Report | Try: Thomas 59' m Pen: Morgan (3) 24', 34', 38' |
* Rodney Parade, Newport Attendance: 4,607 Referee: Llyr Ap Geraint-Roberts (England)

#### Round 4

* 2 February 2013 14:00
| Gloucester | 5–32 | Bath |
| Try: Edmonds 34' m | Report | Try: Woodburn 11' m Abendanon 49' m Gilbert 64' m Rokoduguni 68' c Donald 75' c Con: Vesty (2) Pen: Vesty 61' |
* Kingsholm, Gloucester Attendance: 13,243 Referee: Ian Davies (Wales)
* 2 February 2013 18:30
| Exeter Chiefs | 28–19 | Northampton Saints |
| Try: White 7' c Nowell 15' m Votu 26' c Con: Mieres (2) Pen: Mieres 31', 63', 68' | Report | Try: Waller 35' m Dickson 59' c, 76' c Con: Myler (2) |
* Sandy Park, Exeter Attendance: 8,181 Referee: JP Doyle (England)
* 3 February 2013 15:00
| London Welsh | 14–42 | Newport Gwent Dragons |
| Try: Williamson 53' m Pen: Davies (3) 20', 25', 34' | Report | Try: Amos 69' c I. Jones 73' c Groves 77' c Con: S Jones (3) Pen: S Jones (7) 17', 27', 42', 56', 60', 62', 80' |
* Kassam Stadium, Oxford Attendance: 1,772 Referee: Andrew Small (England)
* 3 February 2013 17:00
| Ospreys | 12–16 | Harlequins |
| Pen: Morgan (4) 7', 34', 40', 54' | Report | Try: Hopper 29' c Con: Botica (1) Pen: Botica (3) 12', 16', 80' |
* Brewery Field, Bridgend Attendance: 2,849 Referee: Martin Fox (England)

### Pool 2 v Pool 3

Pool 2 :
| Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TB | LB | Pts |
| Sale Sharks | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 122 | 104 | 18 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 15 |
| Leicester Tigers | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 96 | 101 | −5 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| Cardiff Blues | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 59 | 64 | −5 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| Worcester Warriors | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 89 | 114 | −25 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
Pool 3 :
| Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TB | LB | Pts |
| Saracens | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 102 | 69 | 33 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 14 |
| London Irish | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 101 | 84 | 17 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 12 |
| Scarlets | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 97 | 105 | −8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| London Wasps | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 83 | 108 | −25 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 6 |

#### Round 1

* 9 November 2012 19:30
| Cardiff Blues | 22–17 | London Wasps |
| Try: Fish 12' c James 58' m Sweeney 69' c Con: Davies 13' Sweeney 70' Pen: Davies 44' | Report | Try: Daly 35' m Pen: Bell (4) 14', 24', 39', 56' |
* Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff Attendance: 7,046 Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
* 9 November 2012 19:45
| Saracens | 38–21 | Leicester Tigers |
| Try: George 20' c Taylor 35' c Maddock 40' c Saull 64' m Con: Mordt (3) 21', 36', 40' Pen: Mordt (4) 6', 27', 47', 73' | Report | Try: Cain 52' c Noone 56' c Thacker 80' c Con: Cornwell (3) 53', 57', 80' |
* Goldington Road, Bedford Attendance: 3,168 Referee: James Jones (Wales)
* 10 November 2012 15:00
| Worcester Warriors | 34–18 | Scarlets |
| Try: Howard 54' c Taulava 68' c Abbott 73' c Best 79' c Con: Carlisle (4) 55', 68', 73', 80' Pen: Carlisle (2) 3', 13' | Report | Try: Fenby 16' c Phillips 76' m Con: O. Williams 17' Pen: O. Williams (2) 6', 11' |
* Sixways, Worcester Attendance: 7,489 Referee: Tim Wigglesworth (England)
* 11 November 2012 15:00
| London Irish | 34–28 | Sale Sharks |
| Try: Garvey (2) 22' c, 63' c Skivington 50' c Geraghty 76' m Con: Humphreys (4) 23', 51', 64', 77' Pen: Humphreys (2) 31', 75' | Report | Try: Peel 2' m Cipriani 38' c Amesbury 80' c Con: Cipriani 39' Miller 80' Pen: Cipriani (3) 17', 37', 43' |
* Madejski Stadium, Reading Attendance: 8,654 Referee: Ian Tempest (England)

#### Round 2

* 16 November 2012 20:00
| Sale Sharks | 25–23 | Saracens |
| Try: Cueto 2' m Penalty try 19' c McKenzie 50' c Con: Davies (2) 20', 52' Pen: Cipriani 56' Miller 72' | Report | Try: Ratuvou 7' c Tomkins 40' c Con: Mordt (2) 8', 40' Pen: Mordt (2) 6', 36' Spencer 58' |
* Salford City Stadium, Salford Attendance: 5,243 Referee: Llyr Ap Geraint-Roberts (England)
* 17 November 2012 18:30
| Scarlets | 22–16 | Cardiff Blues |
| Try: Penalty try 35' c Con: Owen 35' Pen: Owen 6' Williams 40' Thomas (3) 64', 68', 71' | Report | Try: Hamilton 15' c Con: Davies 16' Pen: Davies (3) 26', 31', 43' |
* Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli Attendance: 6,469 Referee: JP Doyle (England)
* 18 November 2012 15:00
| Leicester Tigers | 22–15 | London Irish |
| Try: Andrew 19' c Con: Ford 20' Pen: Ford (5) 23', 39', 47', 57', 79' | Report | Try: Watson 8' m Homer 69' c Con: Humphreys 70' Pen: Humphreys 3' |
* Welford Road, Leicester Attendance: 17,569 Referee: Ian Davies (Wales)
* 18 November 2012 15:00
| London Wasps | 28–19 | Worcester Warriors |
| Try: McIntyre 6' c Wallace 61' c Davies 71' m Con: Bell (2) 7', 62' Pen: Bell (3) 31', 38', 46' | Report | Try: Grove 26' m Short 29' c Howard 69' c Con: Carlisle (2) 30', 70' |
* Adams Park, High Wycombe Attendance: 5,152 Referee: Rhys Thomas (Wales)

#### Round 3

* 26 January 2013 15:00
| Leicester Tigers | 34–8 | London Wasps |
| Try: Mulipola 17' c Noone 37' m Tait 61' m Goneva (2) 67' c, 77' c Con: Bowden (1) Cornwell (2) Pen: Bowden (1) 29' | Report | Try: Southwell 74' m Pen: T. Bell (1) 46' |
* Welford Road, Leicester Attendance: 19,757 Referee: David Rose (England)
* 26 January 2013 15:00
| Sale Sharks | 36–17 | Scarlets |
| Try: Vernon 31' m Amesbury 40' c Cipriani 64' c Ingall 75' m Con: Cipriani (40, 64) Pen: Cipriani (4) 13', 24', 28', 56' | Report | Try: Fenby 4' c G. Davies 20' c Con: O. Williams (2/2) Pen: O. Williams (1) 49' |
* Salford City Stadium, Salford Attendance: 3,108 Referee: Ian Tempest (England)
* 27 January 2013 15:00
| London Irish | 46–24 | Worcester Warriors |
| Try: Aulika (2) 14' c, 29' c Yarde (3) 40' m, 65' c, 78' c A. Gray 55' c Con: Homer (5/6) Pen: Homer (2) 9', 42' | Report | Try: D. Gray 52' c Lemi 64' c Percival 73' c Con: D. Gray (1/1) Goode (2/2) Pen: D. Gray (1) 2' |
* Madejski Stadium, Reading Attendance: 5,038 Referee: Leighton Hodges (Wales)
* 27 January 2013 15:00
| Saracens | 19–11 | Cardiff Blues |
| Try: Short 78' c Con: Mordt (1/1) Pen: Mordt (4) 3', 27', 49', 62' | Report | Try: Copeland 35' m Pen: Sweeney (1) 5' Davies (1) 72' |
* Allianz Park, London Attendance: 3,726 Referee: Rhys Thomas (Wales)

#### Round 4

* 1 February 2013 19:30
| Cardiff Blues | 10–6 | London Irish |
| Try: Evans 33' c Con: Patchell (1) Pen: Patchell (1) 69' | Report | Pen: Homer (2) 20', 55' |
* Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff Attendance: 5,938 Referee: Ian Tempest (England)
* 2 February 2013 14:00
| London Wasps | 30–33 | Sale Sharks |
| Try: Hayter 4' c Davies 69' c Sam Jones 80' c Con: Stephen Jones (1) T. Bell (2) Pen: Stephen Jones (2) 12', 24' T. Bell (1) 35' | Report | Try: Penalty try 17' c Myall 21' c Tuitupou 42' c Taylor 45' m Cipriani 48' m Con: Cipriani (4) |
* Adams Park, High Wycombe Attendance: 5,430 Referee: David Rose (England)
* 2 February 2013 15:00
| Worcester | 12–22 | Saracens |
| Try: Cowan 15' c Drauniniu 55' m Con: Goode (1) | Report | Try: Joubert 2' c Con: Spencer (1) Pen: Spencer (5) 9', 40', 57', 73', 78' |
* Sixways, Worcester Attendance: 6,552 Referee: Tim Wigglesworth (England)
* 3 February 2013 13:00
| Scarlets | 40–19 | Leicester Tigers |
| Try: Fenby 69' c Owen 76' m Reynolds 78' c Con: A. Thomas (2) Pen: O. Williams (7) 6', 14', 18', 21', 34', 44', 59' | Report | Try: Waldrom 10' m Penalty try 30' c Forsyth 40' c Con: Cornwell (2) |
* Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli Attendance: 6,496 Referee: Greg Garner (England)

## Knock–out stage

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 9 March – Twickenham Stoop | 9 March – Twickenham Stoop |
| Harlequins | 31 |
| Harlequins | 31 | 17 March – Sixways | 17 March – Sixways |
| Bath | 23 | 17 March – Sixways | 17 March – Sixways |
| Bath | 23 | Harlequins | 32 |
| 10 March – Salford City Stadium | 10 March – Salford City Stadium | | Harlequins | 32 |
| 10 March – Salford City Stadium | 10 March – Salford City Stadium | Sale Sharks | 14 |
| Sale Sharks | 21 | Sale Sharks | 14 |
| Saracens | 15 | | |

### Qualification criteria

The top teams from each pool qualify for the knockout stages. The pool winners will be decided by the following criteria:
    1. The pool winner will be the club with the highest number of match points in each pool. The pool winners will be ranked 1 to 4 by reference to the number of match points earned in the pools.
    2. If two or more clubs in the same pool end the pool stage equal on match points, then the order in which they have finished will be determined by:
       i. the greater number of matches won by the club and
       ii. if the number of matches won is equal, the club with the greater total number of tries scored and
       iii. if the total number of tries scored is equal, the club with the greater points difference (points scored for, less points scored against) and
       iv. if the points difference is equal, the club with the fewer number of red cards and
       v. if the number of red cards is the same, by the toss a coin.
Each of the four qualifying clubs shall be ranked as above and shall play each other as follows:
    Semi-final 1 – 1st ranked club v 4th ranked club
    Semi-final 2 – 2nd ranked club v 3rd ranked club
The first club listed in each of the semi-final matches shall be the home club.
Qualifiers :
| Rank | Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TB | LB | Pts |
| 1 | Harlequins | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 60 | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 17 |
| 2 | Sale Sharks | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 122 | 104 | 18 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 15 |
| 3 | Saracens | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 102 | 69 | 33 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 14 |
| 4 | Bath | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 96 | 47 | 49 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 13 |

### Semi-finals

* 9 March 2013 12:15
| Harlequins | 31–23 | Bath |
| Try: Guest 8' c Williams 20' c, 52'c Dickson 36' c Con: Botica (4/4) Pen: Botica (1) 67' | Report | Try: Louw 26' c Abendanon 58' c Con: Heathcote (2/2) Pen: Heathcote (3) 39', 42', 63' |
* Twickenham Stoop, London Attendance: 6,523 Referee: Leighton Hodges (Wales)
* 10 March 2013 13:00
| Sale Sharks | 21–15 | Saracens |
| Try: Holmes 37' m Fowles 67' c Con: Cipriani (1/2) Pen: Cipriani (3) 4', 17', 78' | Report | Pen: Spencer (5) 5', 8', 14', 24', 63' |
* Salford City Stadium, Salford Attendance: 3,129 Referee: JP Doyle (England)

### Final

* 17 March 2013 15:00
| Harlequins | 32–14 | Sale Sharks |
| Try: Williams 9' m Guest 26' c Casson 44' c Wallace 53' c Con: Botica (3/4) Pen: Botica (2) 4', 33' | Report | Try: Leota 56' m Pen: Cipriani (3) 15', 30', 42' |
* Sixways, Worcester Attendance: 8,100 Referee: Greg Garner (England)
| | 15 | Ross Chisholm |
| | 14 | Tom Williams |
| | 13 | George Lowe |
| | 12 | Tom Casson |
| | 11 | Sam Smith |
| | 10 | Ben Botica |
| | 9 | Karl Dickson |
| | 8 | Tom Guest |
| | 7 | Luke Wallace (c) |
| | 6 | Maurie Fa'asavalu |
| | 5 | Charlie Matthews |
| | 4 | Sam Twomey |
| | 3 | Will Collier |
| | 2 | Rob Buchanan |
| | 1 | Mark Lambert |
| Replacements: ||
| | 16 | Dave Ward |
| | 17 | Darryl Marfo |
| | 18 | James Johnston |
| | 19 | Peter Browne |
| | 20 | Joe Trayfoot |
| | 21 | Jordan Burns |
| | 22 | Rory Clegg |
| | 23 | Charlie Walker |
| Coach: ||
| John Kingston ||
| | 15 | Nick Macleod |
| | 14 | Tom Brady |
| | 13 | Johnny Leota |
| | 12 | Sam Tuitupou |
| | 11 | Charlie Ingall |
| | 10 | Danny Cipriani |
| | 9 | Nathan Fowles |
| | 8 | Andy Powell |
| | 7 | David Seymour (c) |
| | 6 | James Gaskell |
| | 5 | Tom Holmes |
| | 4 | Fraser McKenzie |
| | 3 | Tony Buckley |
| | 2 | Tommy Taylor |
| | 1 | Alasdair Dickinson |
| Replacements: ||
| | 16 | Aston Croall |
| | 17 | Ross Harrison |
| | 18 | Henry Thomas |
| | 19 | Andrei Ostrikov |
| | 20 | Daniel Braid |
| | 21 | Dwayne Peel |
| | 22 | Charlie Amesbury |
| | 23 | Mark Cueto |
| Coach: ||
| Steve Diamond ||
* Harlequins gain a place in the 2013–14 Heineken Cup by winning this competition.