The Heineken Cup has soared to new heights - crashing through the magical six-figure mark for a weekend's attendance.

The 12 Round 3 matches attracted a phenomenal 106,431 through the turnstiles to smash the old mark by almost 8,000 as Heineken Cup fever took a firm grip across Europe.

Leinster Lions led the way with the crowd of 14,225 who flocked to Lansdowne Road to see their Pool 3 clash with Sale Sharks last Friday night.

The other five-figure attendances came at Ulster (12,300), Northampton Saints (11,713), Toulouse (11,600) and Gloucester (11,000). Llanelli Scarlets and Perpignan were both just a few hundred short of joining them.

With the bumper television coverage - the cameras will be at six of this weekend's matches - it all adds up to a super success story off the field while on the pitch the competition for qualification for April's quarter-finals has never been fiercer. Only Gloucester, Edinburgh Rugby and Llanelli Scarlets can boast 100 per cent records at the halfway stage of the Pool rounds.

There has not been an away win in sight in Pool 1; Biarritz Olympique and Leinster Lions are locked together on 10 points at the top of Pool 3 - Sale Sharks also have two wins but no bonus points - while in Pool 6 it is a three-way tie on 10 points for Perpignan, London Wasps and Celtic Warriors.