The draw for next season's Heineken Cup takes place next Wednsday at Lansdowne Road and it seems all of the Irish provinves have been granted a strong seeding. Leinster and Munster hold on to their places in the top tier, where they are joined by Ulster, who were a tier three team just two years ago. Connacht hold on to their ranking as a third tier team.
Tier 1: Leinster, Toulon, Toulouse, Clermont Auvergne, Ulster, Munster
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Tier 2: Northampton Saints, Harlequins, Cardiff Blues, Saracens, Leicester Tigers, Perpignan
Tier 3: Edinburgh, Ospreys, Scarlets, Glasgow Warriors, Montpellier, Connacht
Tier 4: Gloucester, Castres Olympique, Racing Metro 92, Exeter Chiefs, Benetton Treviso, Zebre
Picture credit: Matt Browne, Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE
