Darry Worthington runs the rule of this fixture and gives his opinion on who he thinks will take the Top 14 title.
Saturday 17 June
Toulouse 84/100 | Draw 18/1 | La Rochelle 1/1
What a clash we are in for this Saturday evening with Top 14 heavyweights Toulouse and La Rochelle set to square off. The sides have been the dominant forces in French rugby since the post-pandemic period with Toulouse winning the 2021 Top 14 and La Rochelle winning back-to-back Heineken Cups.
The two sides enjoyed magnificent regular seasons with Toulouse topping the domestic pile with 17 wins and a draw from their 26 games. They finished three points ahead of La Rochelle, who also recorded 17 wins during the regular season.
Both sides took their solid regular form into their semi-final clashes with Toulouse hammering Racing 92 41-14 while La Rochelle recorded a more understated but yet solid win as they beat Bordeaux 24-13.
Looking back at the regular season meetings between the sides, each encounter was won by the side with hosting rights as Toulouse won the first meeting 26-17 while La Rochelle bounced back with a 30-7 win in the second encounter.
The duo are loaded with international talent especially at fly-half with the battle between Finn Russel and Romain Ntamack set to have a massive bearing on which one of these teams claims the French top tier title this term.
This is going to be a titanic affair. French rugby is in rude health and both these sides have played a major role in France’s international success. My money is on Toulouse edging it by the narrowest of margins courtesy of their dynamic halves pairing of Ntamack and Dupont.
Toulouse to take the win.
