Advertisement
T. Ofa (17'), O. Jegou (30'), D. Niniashvili (39'), T. Latu (61'), A. Niusalelekitoga (76')
Tries
H. Wyk (4'), M. Brandon (34')
A. Hastoy (18', 31', 77')
Conversions
C. Smith (4', 35')
This fixture carried a different weight. In the shadow of Hyron Andrews’ death and with the visitors taking their first steps in the Champions Cup, what mattered most was control. Stade Rochelais had it when it counted. They didn’t chase the game, didn’t force the play, and over 80 minutes their experience and composure told in a ground that demands both.
The 10bet Lions turned up and, for a long stretch, matched them. That’s no small thing given the week they endured. They hit the gain line, nailed their set piece and struck twice in the first half. But Europe at Marcel-Deflandre isn’t won on moments; it’s won on sustained accuracy. La Rochelle kept poise through the key passages either side of half-time, squeezed the middle third, and trusted their bench to land the decisive blows.
The hinge came after the break with the scoreboard stuck within one score and the noise rising. La Rochelle didn’t blink. They played the corners, asked the Lions to exit and to reload again, and when the visitors’ discipline frayed the pressure finally cashed out through Tolu Latu on 61 minutes. From there the pattern was set: hosts back on the front foot, visitors chasing. Avakuki Niusalelekitoga’s late strike only confirmed a margin already earned by control.
That outcome was built earlier by cool heads in chaos. The first half had two yellows, one each way, and both sides nicked seven points while up a man. Sibabalwe Mahashe’s bin invited the Oscar Jégou try; Pierre Bourgarit’s shortly after gave the Lions a foothold through Morne Brandon. Then the noise settled and La Rochelle reverted to type: reset the breakdown, kick to contests, and be patient in the red zone. The difference was who could keep repeating those acts without blinking.
CARRIES
CLEAN BREAKS
TACKLE
TACKLES MISSED
TURNOVERS WON
PENALTIES CONCEDED
YELLOW CARDS
POSSESSION
SCRUMS
LINEOUTS
The numbers back the feel. Lions were immaculate at lineout (14 from 14) and clean at the scrum (five from five), so this wasn’t a set-piece unravelling. They even shaded clean breaks. Where it slipped was discipline (14 penalties) and conversion in the 22: two first-half tries, then nothing. La Rochelle conceded fewer penalties, forced one more turnover and, crucially, turned pressure into five tries. That’s European nous.
Individually, La Rochelle’s back five set the tone. Gregory Alldritt’s 11 carries were about as subtle as a metronome, always over the ball, always resetting tempo. Jégou was tireless with 12 tackles and the first-half score, and Theo McFarland’s range showed in contact and link. Out wide, Tevita Ofa and Davit Niniashvili gave them edge value: Ofa punched holes and finished, Niniashvili picked his line before the break. Antoine Hastoy steered with a calm boot and took his threes from the touchlines when offered; the goal-kicking wasn’t spotless, but his management was. Off the bench, Latu’s close-range finish mattered more than its meters, and Niusalelekitoga’s clean break for the bonus wrapped the points.
The Lions had men who stood up. Henco van Wyk took his early chance and kept asking, Bronson Mills carried hard in traffic, and Ruan Delport made a pile of tackles in a pack that never went away. Quan Horn found meters on counter and Bathobele Hlekani added real thrust off the bench. But the longer it went, the more they were playing without the ball in the right parts of the field. When the collisions turned even, La Rochelle’s breakdown detail was sharper and their phase play tidier. Small errors started to cost big chunks of territory.
It’s also fair to say the scoreline doesn’t wildly flatter either side. 31-14 reads clear, and the last try widened it, but the game lived on a knife edge for 20 minutes after half-time. La Rochelle earned daylight through discipline and patience, yet they won’t love conceding first or the amount of grass the Lions found in the backfield at times. Their lineout wobble (17 from 19) and a yellow are notes for the review before Saracens away.
For the Lions, this was as much about resolve as rugby. They honoured Andrews and stayed in a brutal contest at a venue that eats visiting debuts. They’ll take genuine confidence from a perfect set piece and the chances they created; the lesson is European: accuracy at the breakdown, fewer penalties, and more bite in the red zone. Toulouse at home next is another hard ask, but this didn’t look like a side out of its depth.
La Rochelle bank a bonus-point win without burning fuel they’ll need later, which is exactly what former champions aim for in round one. The shape is there, the bench impact is there, and the composure under emotional strain was notable. The standard goes up in London. The Lions leave with grief, pride and a clear picture of the margins at this level. Now it’s about turning a brave shift into points in Johannesburg.
