Top 14 wrap: La Rochelle set up epic semi-final, Montpellier clinch ‘richest game in rugby’
We recap the weekend's Barrage and Access Match action.
And then there were just four remaining in the French Top 14 as the weekend’s Barrage action saw two contenders bow out and the 14th team for next season seal their place.
Following an action packed weekend, we recap the Barrage matches as well as the all important ‘Access Match’ between the 13th placed Top 14 club this season and the Pro D2 runners-up.
Ronan O’Gara’s charges stay in the running
Peaking at the right time in the season is crucial for any team wanting to win a title, and that is precisely what La Rochelle has done after securing their place in the Top 14 semi-finals.
Last season, they had the luxury of missing the Barrage matches after finishing in the top two, but this time around, with the regular season so hotly contested, they were left playing catch-up in the final few rounds and did just enough to secure their place.
A 31-all draw at Toulouse in earlier this month would have been viewed as a setback but a win over Racing 92 the following week meant that they would face Toulon at the Stade Mayol in the play-offs.
O’Gara’s charges have struggled on the road this season but rose to the occasion in front of the baying Toulon faithful, clinching a 34-29 victory, with the five-point margin far from a true reflection of La Rochelle’s dominance.
Antoine Hastoy, Dillyn Leyds and Jules Favre all crossed for first-half tries for the visitors with Hastoy slotting all three conversions and adding a penalty for a 24-15 half-time lead as Melvyn Jaminet’s boot kept Toulon in the game.
Still, La Rochelle dominated proceedings keeping the usually lethal Toulon attack at bay with Oscar Jegou grabbing his side’s fourth try after one of Hastoy’s penalty attempts fired off the bar and he was quickest to react.
O’Gara’s men would not trouble the scorers after Jegoou’s try with their 34-15 advantage keeping the pressure on Toulon and it was only when Will Skelton was sent to the naughty chair and Judicael Cancoriet joined him after a cynical action leading to a penalty try that Toulon capitalised.
Jack Singleton’s try was too late to complete a comeback as Toulon bowed out.
It was masterful knockout rugby performance from La Rochelle who will now front up against Toulouse in the semi-finals in Bordeaux this week, with the real highlight of the match being a brilliant 50:22 from centre UJ Seuteni with Jack Nowell chasing wonderfully and smartly taking the quick throw-in with Hastoy sending Leyds over.
A transition & 50/22 – great reactions/smarts to get ball back on the pitch. #RCTSR #TOP14 pic.twitter.com/xyAea2Nrmt
— Brett Igoe (@brettruganalyst) June 15, 2024
Bordeaux breeze past Racing 92
Stuart Lancaster’s first season in charge of Racing 92 came to an end on Sunday evening as Bordeaux claimed a 31-17 victory over the Parisian club.
Racing had snuck into the Barrage play-offs by the narrowest of margins but a semi-final was one step too far as they were soundly beaten by Bordeaux, leaving departing club legend Juan Imhoff in tears after the match.
Bordeaux bossed proceedings for most of the match with the opening try coming through the blistering pace of Madosh Tambwe who sped past Tristan Tedder and skinned Antoine Gibert en route to the try line. That score put Bordeaux 11-6 up after 20 minutes and while Tedder and Maxime Lucu would trade further penalties apiece before the break, Bordeaux had the final say of the half.
Maxime Lamothe crashed over before the break with Lucu converting to make it 18-6 at half-time, with Racing 92 starting the second period down a man as Cameron Woki was sent to the sin bin.
Another penalty from Lucu and a Romain Buros try on 50 minutes all but sealed the result for Bordeaux as Racing finally crossed for their first try in the 66th minute and failed to add to their tally from there.
The Matmut Atlantic stadium will host the two semi-finals this week, with Bordeaux’s next task being the regular season table-toppers Stade Francais.
Montpellier survive
The Championship play-off final is often dubbed the ‘richest game in football’, and on Sunday, rugby’s equivalent took place as Pro D2 runners-up Grenoble clashed with Top 14 strugglers Montpellier, who finished the regular season in 13th place.
Few gave Grenoble much of a hope against the 2022 Top 14 champions and when Ben Lam crossed in the fifth minute for the opening Montpellier try, it looked rather bleak for the Top 14 hopefuls.
Welshman Sam Davies quickly cut Montpellier’s lead with a penalty for Grenoble, but that was cancelled shortly afterwards when Gabriel Ngandebe grabbed his side’s second try.
Grenoble hit back from then on, scoring 15 unanswered points before half-time through Barnabe Massa and Terrence Hepetema’s tries and surprisingly led 18-14 at half-time.
It continued to be a cagey encounter in the second half with just six points scored and unfortunately for Grenoble, who put up a massive fight, it was Louis Carbonel who scored all of those points including a clutch 76th-minute penalty that sealed the 20-18 victory and meant that Montpellier retained their Top 14 status for the 2024/25 season.
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