The 2005–06 Celtic League was the fifth Celtic League season, and the third following the introduction of regional rugby in Wales. Eleven teams, from three countries participated. The final table was dominated by the Irish, with the top three spots taken by Ulster, Leinster and Munster respectively. The 2005–06 season was the first (and last) season for which the "free weekend" was awarded points for. Due to the odd number of teams participating, for every round of fixtures, one team has a so-called "free weekend". Each time this occurred, the team was awarded four points, so although at the end of the season it did not alter the positions (each team has a guaranteed 8 points), the table is skewed during the season according to the fixtures.
| 2005–06 Celtic League | |
|---|---|
| Countries |  Ireland Scotland Wales |
| Champions | Ulster (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Leinster |
| Matches played | 110 |
| Attendance | 571,331 (average 5,194 per match) |
| Tries scored | 484 (average 4.4 per match) |
| Top point scorer | Felipe Contepomi (Leinster) (287 points)[1] |
| Top try scorer | Tommy Bowe (Ulster) Jason Forster (Newport Gwent Dragons) (10 tries)[2] |
| Official website | |
| www | |
Teams
 Location of 2005–06 Celtic League teams in Great Britain and Ireland. | |
 Winners;  2nd–4th place;  Other teams. | |
Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TBP | LBP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ulster | 20 | 15 | 1 | 4 | 510 | 347 | +163 | 49 | 31 | 3 | 2 | 75 |
| 2 | Leinster | 20 | 14 | 0 | 6 | 545 | 427 | +118 | 59 | 45 | 8 | 2 | 74 |
| 3 | Munster | 20 | 12 | 0 | 8 | 439 | 372 | +67 | 49 | 42 | 7 | 3 | 66 |
| 4 | Cardiff Blues | 20 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 475 | 389 | +86 | 51 | 38 | 6 | 5 | 63 |
| 5 | Edinburgh Gunners | 20 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 418 | 415 | +3 | 48 | 45 | 5 | 3 | 60 |
| 6 | Llanelli Scarlets | 20 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 418 | 402 | +16 | 49 | 37 | 3 | 4 | 57 |
| 7 | Ospreys | 20 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 381 | 409 | −28 | 33 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 55 |
| 8 | Newport Gwent Dragons | 20 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 355 | 456 | −101 | 40 | 51 | 2 | 7 | 45 |
| 9 | Border Reivers | 20 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 386 | 501 | −115 | 39 | 59 | 1 | 7 | 44 |
| 10 | Connacht | 20 | 6 | 0 | 14 | 325 | 466 | −141 | 28 | 51 | 1 | 4 | 37 |
| 11 | Glasgow Warriors | 20 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 371 | 439 | −68 | 39 | 47 | 2 | 7 | 37 |
Under the standard bonus point system, points are awarded as follows:
| |||||||||||||
Due to the uneven number of participating teams, each team had two free weekends and were awarded 4 match points each time. | |||||||||||||
| Source: RaboDirect PRO12 Archived 22 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine | |||||||||||||
Results
Round 1
Round 2
| 9 September 2005 19:10 |
| Cardiff Blues | 22–25 | Ulster |
| Try: Morgan Con: Robinson Pen: Robinson (5) | Report[3] | Try: Bowe Con: David Humphreys Pen: David Humphreys (5) Drop: David Humphreys |
| Cardiff Arms Park Attendance: 5,784 Referee: Rob Dickson |
Welsh Round 1
- All-Welsh Round 5 matches played mid-week to allow Welsh teams to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
Round 3
| 16 September 2005 19:30 |
| Ulster | 30–23 | Edinburgh Gunners |
| Try: Bowe Trimble Con: Humphreys Pen: Humphreys (6) | Report[4] | Try: Dewey Leonelli Con: Paterson (2) Pen: Paterson (2) Drop: Paterson |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 7,799 Referee: Phil Fear |
Round 4
| 24 September 2005 17:30 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 19–22 | Ulster |
| Try: Gough Con: Warlow Pen: Warlow (3) Drop: Warlow | Report[5] | Try: N. Best (2) Trimble Con: Wallace (2) Pen: Wallace |
| Rodney Parade Attendance: 5,112 |
Round 5
| 1 October 2005 17:30 |
| Leinster | 30–23 | Ulster |
| Try: Hickie Potts Con: Contemomi Pen: Contemomi (6) | Report[6] | Try: Wallace Best Con: David Humphreys (2) Pen: David Humphreys (3) |
| Donnybrook Attendance: 6,500 Referee: Olan Trevor |
Round 6
| 7 October 2005 19:10 |
| Ulster | 36–10 | Connacht |
| Try: R. Best Bowe Topping McCullough Trimble Con: Humphreys (2) Cunningham Wallace Pen: Cunningham | Report[7] | Try: Matthews Con: Robinson Pen: Warwick |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 9,546 Referee: Alain Rolland |
Round 7
| 15 October 2005 19:30 |
| Border Reivers | 0–27 | Ulster |
| Report[8] | Try: Topping N. Best Boss Con: Humphreys (3) Pen: Humphreys (2) |
| Netherdale Attendance: 1,857 Referee: Phil Fear |
Round 8
| 4 November 2005 19:10 |
| Ulster | 12–20 | Ospreys |
| Pen: Steinmetz (4) | Report[9] | Try: Spice Pen: Connor (4) Drop: Connor |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 9,310 Referee: Ian Heard |
Round 9
| 3 December 2005 19:10 |
| Munster | 17–20 | Ulster |
| Try: D. Wallace Flannery Con: O'Gara (2) Drop: O'Gara | Report[10] | Try: Bowe Andrew Trimble Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (2) |
| Musgrave Park Attendance: 6,000 Referee: Alain Rolland |
Welsh Round 2
- All-Welsh Round 9 matches postponed to allow Welsh teams to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
| 23 December 2005 19:10 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 16–28 | Llanelli Scarlets |
| Report |
| Rodney Parade Attendance: 5,763 |
Round 10
| 26 December 2005 17:00 |
| Ulster | 19–24 | Leinster |
| Try: Bowe Con: Humphreys Pen: Humphreys (4) | Report[11] | Try: D'Arcy Dempsey Con: Contepomi Pen: Contepomi (4) |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 12,300 Referee: George Clancy |
| 27 December 2005 16:10 |
| Cardiff Blues | 41–23 | Newport Gwent Dragons |
| Report |
| Cardiff Arms Park Attendance: 12,488 |
Round 11
| 31 December 2005 14:00 |
| Connacht | 22–12 | Ulster |
| Try: Slemen Lacey McPhillips Con: Slemen (2) Pen: Slemen | Report[12] | Pen: Humphreys (4) |
| Sportsground Attendance: 2,100 Referee: Alan Lewis |
Round 12
| 7 January 2006 15:30 |
| Ulster | 25–23 | Glasgow Warriors |
| Try: Humphreys Con: Humphreys Pen: Humphreys (6) | Report[13] | Try: Hamilton Morrison Con: Parks (2) Pen: Parks (3) |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 6,487 Referee: Phil Fear |
Round 13
| 27 January 2006 19:30 |
| Ulster | 30–13 | Llanelli Scarlets |
| Try: Howe Maxwell Con: Steinmetz Pen: Steinmetz (6) | Report[14] | Try: James Con: Davies (2) |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 7,986 Referee: Peter Allan |
Round 14
| 17 February 2006 19:30 |
| Edinburgh Gunners | 23–31 | Ulster |
| Try: Hodge Penalty try Con: Hodge (2) Pen: Hodge (3) | Report[15] | Try: Maxwell (2) Boss Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (4) |
| Murrayfield Attendance: 3,559 Referee: Nigel Whitehouse |
Round 15
| 3 March 2006 19:35 |
| Ulster | 27–3 | Munster |
| Try: Bowe Steinmetz McMillan Wilson Harrison Con: Humphreys | Report[16] | Pen: Burke |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 12,300 Referee: Alain Rolland |
Round 16
| 25 March 2006 15:30 |
| Ulster | 24–17 | Newport Gwent Dragons |
| Try: Bowe Humphreys Cunningham Con: Humphreys (3) Pen: Humphreys | Report[17] | Try: Jones Luscombe Con: Warlow (2) Pen: Warlow |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 7,546 |
Round 10 rescheduled match
Round 17
Round 18
| 15 April 2006 17:30 |
| Glasgow Warriors | 18–27 | Ulster |
| Try: Beattie O'Hare Con: Parks Pen: Parks (2) | Report[18] | Try: Harrison Boss Con: Humphreys Pen: Humphreys (5) |
| Firhill Attendance: 2,240 Referee: Tim Hayes |
Welsh Round 3
- All-Welsh Round 6 matches played mid-week to allow Welsh teams to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup.
Round 15 rescheduled match
- This match was postponed from the weekend of 4 March to allow Llanelli Scarlets to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup semi-final.
Round 19
Round 20
| 5 May 2006 21:00 |
| Ulster | 26–17 | Cardiff Blues |
| Try: Wilson Penalty try Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (4) | Report[19] | Try: Robinson Pen: Macleod (4) |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 9,617 Referee: Andy Ireland |
Round 16 rescheduled match
Round 21
| 12 May 2006 19:30 |
| Ulster | 63–17 | Border Reivers |
| Try: Bowe (2) Wallace Maxwell (2) Wilson Trimble (2) Ferris Con: Humphreys (6) Pen: Humphreys (2) | Report[20] | Try: Moffat Danielli Con: MacRae (2) Pen: MacRae |
| Ravenhill Attendance: 8,932 Referee: James Jones |
Round 17 rescheduled match
- This match was postponed from the weekend of 9 April to allow Llanelli Scarlets to play in the Anglo-Welsh Cup Final.
| 19 May 2006 19:10 |
| Llanelli Scarlets | 12–12 | Ulster |
| Try: John (2) Con: Evans | Report[21] | Try: Bowe Maxwell Con: Humphreys |
| Stradey Park Attendance: 6,425 Referee: Graeme Hannah |
Round 22
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 try scorers
| Rank | Player | Club | Tries[2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tommy Bowe | Ulster | 10 |
| Jason Forster | Newport Gwent Dragons | ||
| 3 |  Felipe Contepomi | Leinster | 9 |
| 4 | Nikki Walker | Border Reivers | 8 |
| 5 | Chris Czekaj | Cardiff Blues | 7 |
Notes
External links
References
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