Final preview: Toulouse v Montpellier

In the red corner, with seventeen French and four European titles and an all-international starting XV in their 24th final…Toulouse.

In the red corner, with seventeen French and four European titles and an all-international starting XV in their 24th final – the undisputed kings of French rugby….Toulooooooooouse.

In the blue corner, in their first final, happy to have avoided relegation – the surprise package of 2011…Mooooooontpellier!

Need we say much more? If ever there was a case of David meets Goliath, then Saturday's Top 14 Final at the Stade de France in Paris fits the bill.

Irrespective of who comes out on top, we're are set for an entertaining battle if Saturday's protagonists continue to display the same positive intentions they have all season.

Toulouse have long been proponents of an expansive game – scoring more tires than any other team in France this year – but Montpellier are now also a team eager to envoyer du jeu.

Toulouse moved to the top of the standings in late October and haven't looked back since. Automatic qualification for the semi-finals gave them a 20-day break before the showdown with Clermont last week and their freshness showed as the the big red machine steamrollered past the defending champs.

Toulouse's defence was outstanding with Thierry Dusautoir again living up to his reputation as a insatiable tackler.

Montpellier by contrast have had to fight to the bitter end in the play-offs (against Castres) and semi-finals (against Racing Metro), with both matches literally going down to the last minute.

Les H̩raultais's fighting spirit has been remarkable and with the self believe instilled in the young side by coaching duo Fabien Galthi̩ and Eric Bechu, anything is possible Рjust ask Racing's star-studded losing semi-final side.

Named by most pundits as possible relegation candidates at the start of the season, Montpellier have shook off their inconsistent ways of the past to spend 24 of the regular season's 26 rounds in the top six.

Montpol even produced to goods in Europe, making it to the Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-finals without using most of their top players.

Key to their success has been their ability to recycle and move the ball at pace which has been backed up by the ultra-reliable boot of Pumas wing Martin Bustos Moyano, their top points scorer this year.

But does this group of youngsters have what it takes to deal with the pressure of a final in front of 80 000 fans? Their results in the knock-out stages suggest they could well be up to the task.

Pressure shouldn't be a problem for Toulouse. With experienced campaigners from 1 to 15, les Rouges et Noires are the ultimate team for the big occasion.

Speaking of big occasions, referee Patrick Pechambert will be blowing his first final. The organisers have handed out 30 000 heatsets to the Stade de France spectators, who will be able to hear every word the ref says. No pressure then (!).

Under even more pressure will be the Montpellier pack. Few teams Рin France or Europe Рhave been able to match the Toulouse forwards this year and manager Guy Nov̬s will look to his heavies to dominate Рespecially at scrum time as they did in the semi-finals Рto build the platform for an eighteenth title success.

Both teams have named unchanged starting line-ups from their respective semi-finals.

Huge doubt however still hangs over the head of Montpellier skipper Fulgence Ouedraogo, who has a broken hand and has missed the entire week of preparation.

Ouedraogo was not able to take part in Friday's captain's run and a final decision on his participation will be taken at the last minute on Saturday.

There is one change to the Montpellier bench where South African prop Dannie Thiart replaces Kevin Kervarec.

Players to watch:

For Toulouse: It'll be a special day for number eight Louis Picamoles, who will probably be the only member of the Toulouse team who will not be heartbroken if his side loses. After coming through the ranks in Montpellier, Picamoles will be facing off with some of his closest friends on Saturday. Of course the French international will not be handing out any favours so expect to see plenty of powerful charges around the rucks. If anyone knows where to find weak spots in the blue defence, it's the former Montpelliérain.

For Montpellier: Any game plan starts with the fly-half and when you're looking for flowing movement like Montpellier, then your pivot is crucial. François Trinh-Duc is France's first-choice 10 because of the quality of his distribution. Free from the pressures of place-kicking thanks to sharpshooting Bustos Moyano, Trinh-Duc will be able to concentrate on keeping his side moving forward.

Head-to-head: Argentina centre Santiago Fernandez has been a stalwart in the Montpellier side this season, playing more games than any other member of the squad (25). But he faces arguably his biggest challenge this season against opposite number Clement Poitrenaud, who has been revelation over recent months. Forced to move to midfield from his usual berth at full-back, Poitrenaud has been electric on attack in his new-found role and his partnership with Yannick Jauzion had the Clermont centres chasing shadows last week. If Montpellier are to have a chance, Fernandez will have to police that inside channel with an iron fist.

Previous results
These sides have met 20 times in the post-war era with Toulouse winning 13 times, Montpellier 6, and one draw.
This season: Montpellier won 22-21 at home; Toulouse won 29-9 at home

Prediction: No prizes for guessing who we're backing – while Montpellier have played some great rugby this year, Toulouse should have far too much firepower. Toulouse to win by ten points.

Top 14 Final betting odds: Toulouse 1/5; Montpellier 10/3

The teams:

Stade Toulousain:15 Cédric Heymans, 14 Rupeni Caucaunibuca, 13 Yannick Jauzion, 12 Clément Poitrenaud, 11 Maxime Medard, 10 David Skrela, 9 Jean-Marc Doussain, 8 Louis Picamoles , 7 Thierry Dusautoir, 6 Jean Bouilhou, 5 Patricio Albacete, 4 Romain Millo-Chlusky, 3 Census Johnston, 2 William Servat, 1 Daan Human.
Replacements: 16 Virgile Lacombe, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Yoann Maestri, 19 Yannick Nyanga, 20 Nicolas Bezy, 21 Florian Fritz, 22 Shaun Sowerby, 23 Johnson Falefa

Montpellier HR: 15 Benjamin Thiery, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Sylvain Mirande, 12 Santiago Fernandez, 11 Martin Bustos Moyano, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 JulienTomas, 8 Masinivanua Matadigo, 7 Mamuka Gorgodze, 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo (c), 5 Alikisio Fakate, 4 Hendrickus Hancke, 3 Giorge Jgenti, 2 Fabien Rofes, 1 Juan Guillermo Figallo.
Replacements: 16 Joan Caudullo, 17 Namaa Leleimalefaga, 18 Mickael De Marco, 19 Vassili Bost, 20 Benoit Paillaugue, 21