I would be lying if said I wasn't a bit excited about it. OK, if I'm honest, I cannot wait. But will the French clubs dominate for the second year in a row? Big-spending Biarritz and Toulouse battled out the Heineken Cup final last May whilst Toulon faced Cardiff Blues in Marseille in the second tier competition, the Blues eventually spoiling the all-French love in.
France also sealed an impressive Six Nations Grand Slam last season. Not a bad year for our Gallic neighbours, eh? Well, if you put the slightly embarrassing defeats by Argentina and South Africa aside...
Here are a couple of my Heineken Cup highlights from last season which sum up why I love this tournament so much.
First up, Takudzwa Ngwenya's amazing try for Biarritz in their quarter-final win over the Ospreys:
For my second choice, I almost went for a clip of Yannick Jauzion weaving his magic, but then I remembered just how much I loved this game. The quarter-final between Leinster and Clermont Auvergne at a pulsating RDS was one of the most exciting games of rugby I have ever seen. Enjoy. (PS: Brock James, look away now...)
Roll on Friday night and Northampton v Castres...
