2014–15 Pro12
The 2014–15 Pro12 (also known as the Guinness Pro12 for sponsorship reasons) was the 14th season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League, and the fifth with its current four-country format.
| 2014–15 Pro12 | |
|---|---|
| Countries | Ireland Italy Scotland Wales |
| Date | 5 September 2014 – 30 May 2015 |
| Champions | Glasgow Warriors (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Munster |
| Matches played | 135 |
| Attendance | 1,159,127 (average 8,586 per match) |
| Tries scored | 587 (average 4.3 per match) |
| Top point scorer | Ian Keatley (Munster) (184 points) |
| Top try scorer | Rhys Webb (Ospreys) (12 tries) |
| Official website | |
| www | |
It was the first season to be referred to as the Pro12 to not have RaboDirect as the title sponsor, having been replaced by Guinness.
Leinster were the defending champions having beaten Glasgow Warriors in the previous season's playoff final, to become the first team in the league to successfully retain the trophy. Leinster were unable to defend their title as they failed to qualify for the end-of-season playoffs for the top four teams after the regular season. Glasgow Warriors finished the regular season on top of the table, and were crowned champions for the first time, beating second seeded team Munster 31–13 in the final. Thus, the Warriors became the first Scottish team to win a professional trophy, beating Edinburgh's appearance in the final of the 2014–15 European Rugby Challenge Cup.
The twelve competing teams were the four Irish teams, Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster; two Italian teams, Benetton Treviso and Zebre; two Scottish teams, Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors and four Welsh teams, Cardiff Blues, Newport Gwent Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets.
The Guinness PRO12 Trophy is a 60 cm tall piece handmade made by silversmith Thomas Lyte from 8.3 kg of sterling silver, with league branding highlighted in gold plate.