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Team announcements for the Top 14 on a Friday evening signal the end of the working week and the start of a weekend of rugby gluttony. Top 14 clubs have long seasons and large squads to help them deal with that. Every club in the league must - and does - rotate and juggle its players, but when they decide to rest the big names and when to go hammer and tongs is a game of chess in itself. So welcome to this week’s guide to which teams are going for it and which teams have possibly already thrown in the towel…
The week of Top 14 fixtures that nestles in between the international rugby of November and the first rounds of the continental competitions in December is usually a fairly quiet one. However, Round 11 may well have more spotlight on it than the weekends it is sandwiched between, and that is thanks to one man: the return of Antoine Dupont to competitive rugby for the first time since March is something that should excite all rugby fans. Elsewhere, the match ups in this round mean there are long odds on any away wins, but it could prove a pivotal for some sides - particularly those on the road this weekend.
Montpellier v Union Bordeaux Bègles
Round 11 kicks off on Saturday lunchtime with one of those games where the away side could really do with a win. Given the injuries and international absentees that UBB have had to contend with this season, a return of six wins from ten games isn’t disastrous. However, after last week’s surprise reversal at home to Pau, they don’t want the gap between them and their great rivals Toulouse to extend by too much more.
That is reflected with their team selection. From their France contingent that lined up against the Wallabies last weekend, Maxime Lucu and Nicolas Depoortère brought straight back into the starting line up, newly capped Maxime Lamothe finds himself on the bench, and only the two superstar wingers get the week off. Adam Coleman makes only his second appearance of the season, and it is arguably their strongest team selection this season: it will be the first time this season that Lucu, Mathieu Jalibert, Depoortère and Romain Buros have all played in the same side.
Are Bordeaux now prioritising the Top 14 and that elusive Brennus shield over the Champions Cup. The defence of their title kicks off, rather underwhelmingly, with a trip to Pretoria to play the Bulls. So perhaps this week’s selection is more a reflection that they won’t be sending their strongest side down to South Africa next weekend.
Montpellier have an awkward trip of their own next weekend but despite their pedigree in the Challenge Cup, not many would envisage them sending a strong side to Tbilisi to face Black Lion. Accordingly, they look pretty much full strength this week, making only three changes from the side that nilled Perpignan last weekend. That Montpellier pack is monstrous, and they certainly have the firepower in the scrum and the skill at the lineout to cause issues for UBB. They’ve also got plenty of heft and aggression to come off the bench.
On the opposite bench, look out for Bobby Bissu, the 19 year old back row in line for his UBB debut. He was impressive for France U20s over the summer with his hugely powerful carries and ambitious offloading game.
Toulon v Montauban
While UBB have a chance away at Montpellier, it is hard to say the same about Montauban and their trip to the Stade Mayol. Their away form has been dreadful, conceding an average of 61 points per game in the five away games so far.
With a trip to Zebre in the Challenge Cup to come next weekend, one might have expected Montauban to throw everything into this one and try to catch Toulon off-guard. This team selection is stronger than those in previous away games, but full-noise it is not. That said, the back row looks strong, with a rare outing for 40-cap Argentinian Tomas Lezana. Still incredibly highly rated among his teammates, he is making only his 5th start in three seasons for Montauban.
Toulon should be too strong. Unbeaten at home this season, they’ve picked up four attacking bonus points from their five home games. Their selection for this one is a bit mix-and-match, with an eye clearly on the Champions Cup, given the fans’ desire to see a return to their European glories of a decade ago. Perhaps Montauban will rue not going stronger.
Nevertheless, Toulon really show their squad depth this week, and it's a match day squad that would have the beating of most in the Top 14. They’ve got some good youngsters at Toulon and a few of them are on display here with Léo Ametlla making his first start, and Corentin Mézou, Joé Quere Karaba, and Oli Cowie waiting on the bench. Mézou is an absolute giant of a second row, Quere-Karaba is absolute dynamite in the back row, and Cowie is a feisty all-action centre. It’s also always exciting to see Mathis Ferté get a run out at full back.
Clermont v Stade Français
Next to the Auvergne, where the home side go as strong as injuries allow. Régis Montagne, Baptiste Jauneau and Bautista Delguy come straight back in from international duty. They are without Marcos Kremer, who picked up an injury at Twickenham last weekend. They make 10 changes from the side that were underwhelming in Lyon last weekend, and there are plenty of combinations that are going well this year. Notably their front row (with an average age of only 24) and their half backs, where Harry Plummer has been one of the stars of the season since joining from Blues.
Curiously, Stade Français appear to have picked a slightly rotated side. They have had joy this season, and in recent years, when they have favoured consistency over selection. And yet, faced with a potentially winnable game at Clermont and two weeks of Challenge Cup action awaiting them, they make nine changes to last week’s starting XV that was so impressive against Toulon. Only one of those changes appears to be injury-enforced; Peniasi Dakuwaqa will miss the next couple of months.
The side they’ve picked is still capable of beating Clermont, even if the hosts have scored more points at home than anyone else. It could be a real heavyweight battle up front with two meaty packs. In Noah Néné, SFP have one of the form players in the league: he now sits joint-second in the try scoring charts with six tries from eight games, and the hype is building again.
Castres v Perpignan
Perpignan, simply put, are having a shocker this season. Even bringing in two-time Top 14 winning coach Laurent Labit, and calling veteran fly-half Benjamin Urdapilleta out of retirement couldn’t prevent another disastrous result. They may have moved last week’s derby to Béziers and away from the cauldron of the Stade Aimé Giral, but being nilled by an indifferent Montpellier side represents arguably their worst result of the season.
Laurent Labit enjoyed Top 14 success as both a player and as head coach at Castres, and will be hoping for a happy return. He brings nine new faces into the starting line up, including Jamie Ritchie and Joaquin Oviedo returning from international duty. As with many USAP lineups this season, it looks to have plenty of stardust. Duncan Paia’aua plays his first game since September and, when fit, he’s one of the best centres in the league.
Urdapilleta starts again at fly half and it was his eight seasons at Castres that really helped Urdapilleta carve his name into Top 14 folklore, amassing 1,679 of his record 2,491 points and steering them to the Top 14 title in 2018. Urdapilleta is clearly the more experienced fly half option; Gabin Kretchmann, his deputy on the bench, is less than half his age, and was only 18 months old when the Argentinian made his international debut.
Facing them are a Castres side who will be buoyant after a rare away win in La Rochelle. There were jubilant scenes at the final whistle, but they return home without three of their best players. Santiago Arata, Tom Staniforth and Will Collier all suffered concussions in last week’s victory.
However, a few other key men return for Castres. Winger Remy Baget always brings something a bit different, and he makes his first appearance since picking up a first half injury in the opening game of the season. Quentin Walcker is an exceptional scrummager and makes his first start of the season. With Loris Zarantonello, Lo?s Guéris-Galisson and Levan Chilachava on the bench, Castres have plenty of scrummaging prowess in reserve too.
USAP’s scrum, before this season, has been a real positive for them in recent years, with Kieran Brookes to the fore. Castres have the muscle to neutralise that and clearly come into this in better form with tried and tested combinations. It would be a remarkable return to Stade Pierre Fabre if Labit and Urdapilleta were to take home the points.
Bayonne v Lyon
On the face of it, there should be only one winner here, given Bayonne’s home record and Lyon’s away record. However, both teams have gone hard at this one, with Lyon (perhaps unsurprisingly) going strong ahead of their home game against Newcastle Red Bulls next weekend in the Challenge Cup.
The eyes are naturally drawn to the return of their two dynamite international wingers, Monty Ioane and Jiuta Wainiqolo, but we often say that the best way to gauge if a team is going for it in French rugby is to look at their front row and their half backs. Lyon have gone for first choice in both departments, but it's the half-back pairing that is most critical for Lyon. It was no coincidence that last week their best performance for a while came with the return of Baptiste Couilloud for the first time since September.
As strong as Lyon look, it will be some going to beat that Bayonne side at fortress Stade Jean Dauger. That pack is frighteningly strong and, aside from missing Manu Tuilagi, it’s full tilt in the backline with Sireli Maqala straight back in after international duty. Intriguingly, on the bench, all-action young hooker Lucas Martin appears to be filling a back row slot.
Toulouse v Racing 92
While the French rugby public, including the official Top 14 social media accounts, have gone all out on the return of their national hero, Toulouse themselves, to their credit, have reserved their fanfare for a different club legend.
Saturday marks the last appearance for Toulouse for Pita Ahki and it is not hyperbole to say that he is probably the most underrated player in the Top 14 this decade. He arrived from Connacht in 2018 as a relative unknown, and he leaves with five Top 14 titles and two Champions Cup medals, having been a key cog in returning the club back to their expected glory. His pairing in the centres alongside 20 year-old Kalvin Gourgues marks a changing of the guard. Where Gourgues is an instant headline grabber, Ahki has done his best work away from the limelight, the ‘glue’ man in a backline of superstars. He returns to New Zealand to join the Blues; he will be missed in France.
The cameras will undoubtedly focus on Dupont, Ahki, and probably ‘Gorgeous Gourgues’, but there is plenty more young Toulouse talent to keep an eye on. Matias Remue nearly steered Belgium to a first ever World Cup place, and there are exciting young tight-five forwards in Thomas Lacombre, Benjamin Bertrand - who trained with France this autumn - and Roméo Martin-Bonnard, son of former France international Rémy Martin.
Racing 92 will hope to spoil the Ahki-Dupont party, and they’ve sent a side that is capable of doing so. They make nine changes from last week’s starting XV, but it looks a strong side with Gaël Fickou coming straight back in. The young half-back pairing of Léo Carbonneau and the ever-impressive Ugo Seunes is their first choice and developing nicely. The pack is big and could cause Toulouse some trouble, and there is some frightening bulk waiting on the bench.
Sunday - Pau v La Rochelle
No team news at the time of writing (expect that on Saturday evening), but we expect Pau to go strong and for La Rochelle to possibly rotate slightly, given their own and their coach’s love affair with the Champions Cup. That said, the La Rochelle squad is quite thin and there has been very little rotation week to week from Les Maritimes.
Their defeat at home to Castres last week suggests the injuries are starting to hit La Rochelle. Uini Atonio, Pierre Bourgarit, Will Skelton, Paul Boudehent, Nolann Le Garrec, Jonathan Danty, Semi Lagivala are, among others, all unavailable currently. Even with that game at home to Leicester next weekend, Grégory Alldritt and Oscar Jégou are expected to come straight back into the starting line up.
Pau looked a bit stretched themselves last week, but pulled off a magnificent result in Bordeaux, and the pack will be boosted by the return of Thomas Laclayat, Hugo Auradou, Julian Montoya and Beka Gorgadze from international duty. Pau have developed some genuine strength in depth, and it will be some going to see a reverse of last week’s fortunes for these two sides.