A true-false duplicate
Even if the championship does not have the XV of France as a rival this weekend, it is indeed a “duplicate” since 28 French players – including almost the same 23 winners from Ireland on Saturday (35-27 ) – set off again on Friday for Marcoussis to prepare for the first match of the Autumn Nations Cup on November 15 against Fiji.
Toulouse (6 players summoned), Montpellier (5), Racing 92 (4), Toulon (4), Lyon (3), Bordeaux-Bègles (2), La Rochelle (2) and Stade Français (2) must therefore still get by without their French internationals, not to mention the Argentines, Fijians and Georgians also mobilized by their selection. Among these big teams, the only club not punctuated so far is … the leader, Clermont, who has just chained 4 successes in a row. Coincidence?
First boss on the bridge this weekend, Toulon (8th) however found his scrum-half Baptiste Serin, not retained by the Blues and who will not be too much for the reception of Brive (12th) on Friday. After the postponement of his trip to Bayonne for cases of Covid-19 on the Basque side, the RCT wants to find some rhythm and a place in the top 6 despite its two late matches.
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Reaction expected in Toulouse
It is also the number of matches to catch up with Montpellier (9th) and Bordeaux-Bègles (11th) whose start to the season, unlike Toulon, was far below expectations. These two clubs turned around by winning against other clubs at the bottom of the table. At home on Saturday, respectively against Stade Français (6th) and Bayonne (10th), Héraultais and Girondins have the opportunity to confirm that they are doing better.
Facing Castres (13th), Toulouse, he must rather deny that he is doing badly without his internationals, unlike the season of his title (2019) where the liners had ensured from start to finish. Harmless for an hour against Lyon (7-16), the second team of the last champion of France sank in Paris (48-14) and must avoid a third defeat in a row, especially against the neighbor Tarn, who would definitely spoil his good start to the season (3rd).
There is also no fire on the side of Racing (5th), but the defeat in Castres (28-26) reminded that the Hauts-de-Seine club could be taken without its best players. The injury of the opener Finn Russell with Scotland does not help in the medium term but the coach Laurent Travers has a sufficiently consistent workforce to switch back to the green against Pau (7th).
Rugby-champagne in La Rochelle
Stalled in ambush, Lyon (4th), even deprived of his N.9 Baptiste Couilloud, has the means to win in Agen to chain a 5th game without defeat. But it is above all the match of the last chance for the SUA, red lantern still at a standstill after 7 matches and which has just separated from its coaches Christophe Laussucq and Rémi Vaquin. By having also dismissed three holders of the rout in Bordeaux (71-5), the heaviest setback in the history of the club in the league, President Jean-François Fonteneau hopes for a revolt.
Sinister in Armandie, the atmosphere should be more cheerful then in Marcel-Deflandre, even behind closed doors, for the clash between La Rochelle (2nd) and Clermont (1st) which will end the day on Sunday. Because if the two teams are on a series of 4 victories, it is by stacking the good actions and the tests which make them the two best attacks of this beginning of the season. In the gloom, no one will complain about a new festival.
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