La Rochelle stuns Castres
Stade La Rochelais, imperial in the first half (32-0 at halftime) against a completely lazy Castres, dominated the match from start to finish in Marcel-Deflandre’s den (53-7).
Ronan O’Gara’s men, suspended for ten weeks, go through without really shaking off, scoring seven tries and sealing an improved victory that temporarily places them second in the standings on 31 points, behind Toulouse (35 points ), away to Lyon on Sunday evening.
The Tarn club (12, 21 points), who have plenty to worry about given their mediocre performance for a finalist last season, saved their honor at the last minute thanks to a try from their hooker Pierre Colonna.
Montpellier suffers in front of Bayonne but passes
Outnumbered from the beginning of the game, after the red card inflicted on the new international second row Florian Verhaeghe, MHR suffered at home against the promoted Bayonne but showed character to win (35-14).
Rowing, which had chained three victories before moving to Hérault, almost caused a sensation on the French champion’s field, until a brace from the bottom Julien Tisseron (72nd, 75th) put an end to Basque hopes.
Thanks to this success, the third in a row, which reinforces the good momentum found by Philippe Saint-André’s men, Montpellier is provisionally in third place in the league with 28 points.
Perpignan makes the UBB doubt
This is the feeling of this 11th day: in Aimé-Giral, Perpignan managed to overcome Bordeaux-Bègles (23-20). It was the first UBB game without Christophe Urios, who was sacked last week and replaced by a coaching duo made up of his former assistants, Julien Laïrle and Frédéric Charrier.
Despite the presence of internationals Maxime Lucu, Yoram Moefana – injured in the 29th minute – and Matthieu Jalibert, who suffered a concussion right after the match, UBB were unable to materialize their dominance, coming up against the excellent Catalan defence.
This success allows USAP to raise its head a bit (18 points), even if it remains in the penultimate place, just three points behind the Girondin club (11th).
Pau pushes Brive deep
The Section of Pau, in its Hameau stadium, signed the third consecutive victory, and the second with the bonus, dominating Brive (22-6) which for its part is sinking into the depths of the standings (13 points).
Sébastien Piqueronies’ men, who occupy the 8th provisional place with 24 points, are thus approaching the Top 6, confirming the excellent form of the moment.
Stade Français surprised by Toulon
Toulon, however dominated until now, defeated Stade Français (17-12) for the first time this season at their Jean-Bouin stadium, where they were unbeaten so far. The Var club, struggling with two consecutive defeats, momentarily climbs to 5th place (26 points), a good omen before receiving Racing 92.
Despite the bonus point snatched at the last second, the Pink Soldiers (4th, 27 points) can harbor regrets, they were ahead at halftime (9-0) and are preparing to host La Rochelle next Saturday.
Matchday 11 continues on Sunday with Racing 92 welcoming Clermont at 17:00 and the Toulouse leader’s perilous trip to Lyon in the evening.
