GLOUCESTER have drawn Stade Rochelais, Benetton Treviso and Aviron Bayonnais in Pool 1 of the European Rugby Challenge Cup. Director of Rugby David Humphreys responded positively to the news.

Gloucester were, of course, drawn in the same pool as La Rochelle in last season's tournament, and won both meetings. However, the Cherry and Whites will be taking nothing for granted against a side who will boast the likes of Victor Vito amongst their ranks.

Humphreys told the club website that he and his coaching staff had been expecting a challenging draw in a tournament that features a lot of quality teams.

"It is a competition that has brought us a lot of good memories over the course of the past two seasons, but obviously disappointed this year with the way it finished.

"The draw has got a lot of good teams in it compared to a few years ago. It's no longer a case of getting an easy draw but, for us, it is going to be a challenge.

"In La Rochelle, a team we played last year and know well and two others who we haven't played for a long time so, early in preseason, it will get us really focused on next season.

"The way the completion is formatted, there was always going to be a chance we were going to get two French teams but, for us, France is pretty accessible and it is a place that we have enjoyed over the last couple of seasons and brought out the best in us in terms of our away performances.”

European Challenge Cup weekends (fixture order TBC) Round 1: 13/14/15/16 October Round 2: 20/21/22/23 October Round 3: 8/9/10/11 December Round 4: 15/16/17/18 December Round 5: 12/13/14/15 January 2017 Round 6: 19/20/21/22 January 2017 Quarter-finals: 30/31 March - 1/2 April 2017 Semi-finals: 21/22/23 April 2017 Final: Friday 12 May, BT Murrayfield Stadium