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French Top 14

PREVIEW: We’re in for a cracking set of Top 14 fixtures 

The Six Nations is on a hiatus this weekend so that means the focus switches back to the European domestic stuff and we’re in for a cracking set of Top 14 fixtures with Saturday’s headline affairs seeing a play-offs hunting Castres outfit taking on second-placed Montpellier and third-placed Lyon duking it out with ninth-placed Clermont, while Sunday will see Toulouse and Stade go head-to-head.

French Top 14
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The Six Nations is on a hiatus this weekend so that means the focus switches back to the European domestic stuff and we’re in for a cracking set of Top 14 fixtures with Saturday’s headline affairs seeing a play-offs hunting Castres outfit taking on second-placed Montpellier and third-placed Lyon duking it out with ninth-placed Clermont, while Sunday will see Toulouse and Stade go head-to-head.

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Standings provided by SofaScore LiveScore

Saturday 5 March

Castres v Montpellier 16:00

We start things off with a fixture that could have a massive bearing on the play-off make-up with Castres taking on Montpellier at home. 

The hosts were involved in a high-scoring affair in Paris last weekend as they went down 45-25 to Racing. Castres were actually in the game until the 55-minute mark and only trailed Racing by a point but the floodgates opened and Racing ran riot. 

Montpellier had a far better time of it in the previous round as they beat Stade Francais 30-3 with former Springbok Jan Serfontein impressing in the centres,


Montpellier are on a ridiculously good run of form at the minute and I can’t help but back them to take the spoils here.  


Biarritz v Toulon 18:00

Next up we’ve got a battle between two teams at the wrong end of the table with cellar-dwellers Biarritz taking on 12th placed Toulon.

Both sides are having horrid seasons with Toulon only managing six wins and two draws from their 17 outings while Biarritz have only claimed five wins from their 19 fixtures. 

The two struggling sides head into this one off the back of defeats as well with Toulon going down 17-10 away to Brive while Biarritz were beaten 34-15 by Lyon. 

Biarritz will be desperate to keep their slim hopes of avoiding the drop alive and I think this may just see them to a win over a Toulon outfit that has really struggled on the road this term.

 

Bordeaux Begles v Pau 18:00

Moving on now and our next fixture pits log-leaders Bordeaux up against 11th-placed Pau. The hosts only sit a point above Montpellier on the Top 14 standings and are in serious danger of losing that spot as Montpellier have a game in hand on them 

Bordeaux head into this one off of two successive narrow defeats having gone down 13-16 to and the 12-11 to Toulouse this past weekend. They were desperately unlucky to have lost these games with  a 70th minute penalty sinking them last week while an eighth minute penalty saw Racing snatch a draw from them the week prior. 

Pau also head into this one off of a narrow defeat having gone down 16-22 to La Rochelle last weekend. While the defeat will have been disheartening for Pau, they will be pleased that they managed to claim a losing bonus point courtesy of a late penalty. 

Bordeaux will be targeting the full five-point haul here in a bid to open up that gap between themselves and Montpellier. I reckon they will do just that.  

La Rochelle v Brive 18:00

Next up we’ve got La Rochelle taking on Brive. Brive really need to get the win here if they are to keep their play-off hopes alive as they sit in ninth spot with only a half dozen regular season games remaining. La Rochelle are better placed to make the play-offs as they currently occupy seventh spot, 

In terms of last weekend’s results, La Rochelle recorded a solid 16-22 away win over Pau while Brive beat Toulon 17-10. 


La Rochelle have not been great on the road this term but have been solid at home. I simply cannot see them losing this one in front of their home fathful.  


Perpignan v Racing 92 18:00

13th-placed Perpignan will play host to fourth-place Racing this Saturday. Both teams will be desperate for points with the hosts trying to stave off relegation and the visitors looking to claim one of the automatic semi-final berths. 


The two sides experienced contrasting fortunes in the last round with Perpignan being hammered 52-12 while Racing registered a comfortable 45-25 bonus-point win over Castres.  

Racing have won their past six domestic games and are in red-hot form. I fully expect Racing to take this at a canter. 


Clermont v Lyon 22:05

Saturday’s action comes to a close at the Parc des Sports Marcel Michelin where Clermont and Lyon will lock horns. Lyon are currently sttng in there and are 11 points ahead of Clermont who sit in tenth. Clermont do have a game in hand over most of the teams ahead of them, however. 


Both sides enjoyed very profitable Round 19’s with Lyon beating Biarritz 34-15 and Clemront smashing Perpignan 52-12. 


Lyon are a very solid team this season and I can’t see them losing on home soil to a hit and miss Clermont outfit. 

Stade Francais v Toulouse 22:05

Things come to a close at the Stade Jean Bouin this Sunday with Stade Francais and Toulouse going head to head in what should be a cracker of a game. 

Toulouse broke their five-game domestic losing streak as they edged out the Bordeaux Begles by a solitary point this past Saturday. Stade had a worse round than their opponents for this weekend as they went down 30-3 to Montpellier. 

These two sides met a couple weeks ago and played out an absolute cracker with Stade winning 28-29. I reckon we’ll get a similarly tight game here but with a different victor.   

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