Good day for basement boys, Montpellier go top


There were wins for Bordeaux-Bègles, Brive, Agen and Montpellier while La Rochelle were held at Oyonnax, meaning Montpol go top.

Saturday
Bordeaux-Bègles 19-10 Lyon
Brive 13-12 Toulon
Agen 30-3 Castres
Oyonnax 38-38 La Rochelle
Montpellier 28-16 Stade Français

Sunday
Pau vs Toulouse
Racing 92 vs Clermont Auvergne

Bordeaux-Bègles 19-10 Lyon
Stade Chaban-Delmas

Rory Teague's tenure at Bordeaux-Bègles started with a win as they beat Lyon 19-10 in a dour Top 14 match at Stade Chaban-Delmas.

It was a forgetful first period with no tries to speak of, in fact neither side came close to scoring in a dull 40 minutes that finished 6-0.

Lyon missed the chance to take an early lead when fly-half Mike Harris hit the post from a long-range penalty after flanker Liam Gill's excellent work at the breakdown. Bordeaux-Bègles' Matthieu Jalibert made no such mistake on eight minutes to give his side a 3-0 lead.

A dominant scrum allowed Jalibert to make it 6-0 just on the half-hour but that was the last of the scoring before a much-needed break.

Jalibert struck again two minutes into the second 40 following a high tackle and at 9-0 down, Lyon were staring down the barrel of defeat.

Delon Armitage did get them back into matters from range on 51 minutes following a scrum penalty, giving them hope of sealing victory.

But that was soon chalked off by the impressive pivot Jalibert, whose penalty from distance took UBB into a 12-3 cushion on 54 minutes.

And the result was sealed on 61 minutes as Jailbert set up number eight Marco Tauleigne for a powerful try, making it 19-3 with the kick.

Former UBB full-back Jean-Marcellin Buttin did cross in the game's final play but it was only a consolation for Lyon who were well beaten.

The scorers:

For Bordeaux-Bègles:
Try: Tauleigne
Con: Jalibert
Pens: Jalibert 4

For Lyon:
Try: Buttin
Con: Michalak
Pen: Armitage

Bordeaux-Bègles: 15 Nans Ducuing, 14 Fa'asiu Fuatai, 13 Romain Lonca, 12 Julien Rey, 11 Blair Connor, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Yann Lesgourgues, 8 Marco Tauleigne, 7 Cameron Woki, 6 Mahamadou Diaby, 5 Jandre Marais, 4 Luke Jones, 3 Vadim Cobilas, 2 Clement Maynadier, 1 Sebastien Taofifenua
Replacements: 16 Adrien Pelissie, 17 Jefferson Poirot, 18 Johan Aliouat, 19 Cyril Cazeaux, 20 Alexandre Roumat, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Ben Volavola, 23 Marc Clerc

Lyon: 15 Jean-Marcellin Buttin, 14 Alexis Palisson, 13 Theo Belan, 12 Thibault Regard, 11 Delon Armitage, 10 Mike Harris, 9 Baptiste Couilloud, 8 Toa Halafihi, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Julien Puricelli, 5 Etienne Oosthuizen, 4 Felix Lambey, 3 Clement Ric, 2 Mickael Ivaldi, 1 Alexandre Menini
Replacements: 16 Virgile Lacombe, 17 Albertus Buckle, 18 Hendrik Roodt, 19 Taiasina Tuifua, 20 Frederic Michalak, 21 Dylan Cretin, 22 Lionel Beauxis, 23 Stephane Clement

Referee: Jonathan Dufort
Assistant referees: Ludovic Cayre, Laurent Breil
TMO: Laurent Sclafer

Brive 13-12 Toulon
Stade Amedee-Domenech

A last-minute try from former Toulon back Benjamin Lapeyre, converted by Gaetan Germain, saw Brive claim a shock 13-12 win on Saturday.

The 12th-placed side beat their heavyweight visitors in a big setback to Toulon's season, as they missed the chance to push for the play-offs.

Toulon led 6-3 at the break thanks to two Francois Trinh-Duc penalties to one from Germain in another low-scoring first-half in the Top 14.

Trinh-Duc and Anthony Belleau took Toulon into a 12-6 lead as time began to run out for Brive, who are just above the relegation places.

But Lapeyre's 79th minute score left Germain with the pressure kick, which he slotted, as Brive claimed a priceless four points at home.

The scorers:

For Brive:
Try: Lapeyre
Con: Germain
Pens: Germain 2

For Toulon:
Pens: Trinh-Duc 3, Belleau

Brive: 15 Thomas Laranjeira, 14 Benjamin Lapeyre, 13 Arnaud Mignardi, 12 Sevenaia Galala, 11 Nadir Megdoud, 10 Matthieu Ugalde, 9 Samuel Marques, 8 Petrus Hauman, 7 Dominiko Waqaniburotu, 6 Said Hireche, 5 Peet Marais, 4 Julien Ledevedec, 3 Sila Puafisi, 2 Mike Tadjer, 1 Karlen Asieshvili
Replacements: 16 Thomas Acquier, 17 Vivien Devisme, 18 Johan Snyman, 19 Sisa Koyamaibole, 20 Poutasi Luafutu, 21 Florian Cazenave, 22 Gaetan Germain, 23 Damien Jourdain

Toulon: 15 Hugo Bonneval, 14 Josua Tuisova, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Mathieu Bastareaud, 11 Semi Radradra, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Raphael Lakafia, 6 Facundo Isa, 5 Romain Taofifenua, 4 Juandre Kruger, 3 Marcel van der Merwe, 2 Guilhem Guirado, 1 Florian Fresia
Replacements: 16 Bastien Soury, 17 Xavier Chiocci, 18 Jocelino Suta, 19 Jean Monribot, 20 Anthony Belleau, 21 JP Pietersen, 22 Sebastien Tillous-Borde, 23 Levan Chilachava

Referee: Pierre Brousset
Assistant referees: Laurent Millotte, Jacques De Lemos
TMO: Philippe Bonhoure

Agen 30-3 Castres
Stade Armandie

Castres had their play-off push halted by an impressive Agen, who ran out 30-3 winners at Stade Armandie to boost their hopes of survival.

Before kick-off Agen were second bottom with just four wins to their name, but they impressed in this win over a side that was sitting third.

A low-scoring first period saw the hosts go in 6-3 to the good but second-half tries from Mathieu Lamoulie, Yoan Tanga and George Tilsley proved too much for Castres, who had number eight Maama Vaipulu sent off in the 63rd minute, summing up a disappointing day at the office.

Unfortunately for Agen, Brive also won on Saturday so they remain in 13th place, but this result with have given them a lot of confidence.

The scorers:

For Agen:
Tries: Lamoulie, Tanga, Tilsley
Cons: McIntyre 3
Pens: McIntyre 3
Yellow Card: Nakosi

For Castres:
Pen: Urdapilleta
Red Card: Vaipulu

Agen: 15 Clement Laporte, 14 George Tilsley, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Pierre Fouyssac, 11 Filipo Nakosi, 10 Jake McIntyre, 9 Ricky Januarie, 8 Antoine Miquel, 7 Vincent Farre, 6 Yoan Tanga, 5 Corentin Braendlin, 4 Denis Marchois, 3 Arthur Joly, 2 Paula Ngauamo, 1 Quentin Bethune
Replacements: 16 Facundo Bosch, 17 Morgan Phelipponneau, 18 Tom Murday, 19 Antoine Erbani, 20 Hugo Verdu, 21 Mathieu Lamoulie, 22 Julien Heriteau, 23 Dave Ryan

Castres: 15 Armand Batlle, 14 Julien Caminati, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Florian Vialelle, 11 David Smith, 10 Benjamin Urdapilleta, 9 Rory Kockott, 8 Maama Vaipulu, 7 Mathieu Babillot, 6 Yannick Caballero, 5 Rodrigo Capo Ortega, 4 Christophe Samson, 3 Daniel Kotze, 2 Jody Jenneker, 1 Mihaita Lazar
Replacements: 16 Marc-Antoine Rallier, 17 Antoine Tichit, 18 Thibault Lassalle, 19 Alex Tulou, 20 Thomas Combezou, 21 Ludovic Radosavljevic, 22 Alexandre Bias, 23 Damien Tussac

Referee: Pascal Gauzere
Assistant referees: Thierry Mallet, Laurent Perrin
TMO: Eric Gonthier

Oyonnax 38-38 La Rochelle
Stade Charles-Mathon

An 87th minute penalty from Ben Botica helped Oyonnax take a share of the spoils against high-flying La Rochelle at Stade Charles-Mathon.

It had looked like La Rochelle were heading to the four points but a converted try and then Botica's penalty all came after 79 minutes in a thrilling finish, which was crucial seeing as relegation rivals Agen and Brive picked up wins elsewhere in Saturday's Top 14 matches.

Oyonnax led 18-17 at the break thanks to tries from Bjorn Basson and Daniel Ikpefan, with Jean Charles Orioli and Vincent Pelo replying.

After the turnaround Axel Muler's 44th minute try put Oyonnax in a strong position but then the league's pace-setters struck with three unanswered tries from Gabriel Lacroix, Kevin Gourdon and Kini Murimurivalu, as they raced into a 38-28 advantage with eight minutes left.

Then came Maxime Veau's try for Oyonnax, converted by Botica, before the former Harlequins fly-half stepped up to level with the last kick.

The scorers:

For Oyonnax:
Tries: Basson, Ikpefan, Muler, Veau
Cons: Botica 3
Pens: Botica 4

For La Rochelle:
Tries: Oriolo, Pelo, Lacroix, Gourdon, Murimurivalu
Cons: Lamb 4, James
Pen: Lamb

Oyonnax: 15 Bjorn Basson, 14 Daniel Ikpefan, 13 Vincent Lasmarrigues, 12 Ulupano Seuteni, 11 Axel Muler, 10 Ben Botica, 9 Jeremy Gondrand, 8 Rory Grice, 7 Bilel Taieb, 6 Valentin Ursache, 5 Phoenix Battye, 4 Geoffrey Fabbri, 3 Irakli Mirtskhulava, 2 Quentin MacDonald, 1 Kilian Bendjaballah
Replacements: 16 Benjamin Geledan, 17 Tommy Raynaud, 18 Curtis Browning, 19 Thibault Tauleigne, 20 Julien Audy, 21 Maxime Veau, 22 Vili Ma'afu, 23 Pietro Ceccarelli

La Rochelle: 15 Kini Murimurivalu, 14 Gabriel Lacroix, 13 Paul Jordaan, 12 Pierre Aguillon, 11 Vincent Rattez, 10 Ryan Lamb, 9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8 Kevin Gourdon, 7 Gregory Lamboley, 6 Afaesetiti Amosa, 5 Thomas Jolmes, 4 Mathieu Tanguy, 3 Lekso Kaulashvili, 2 Jean Charles Orioli, 1 Vincent Pelo
Replacements: 16 Jeremie Maurouard, 17 Dany Priso, 18 William Demotte, 19 Jason Eaton, 20 Alexi Bales, 21 Brock James, 22 Pierre Boudehent, 23 Uini Atonio

Referee: Cedric Marchat
Assistant referees: Adrien Descottes, Sebastien Hebert
TMO: Patrick Dellac

Montpellier 28-16 Stade Français
Altrad Stadium

Montpellier climbed above La Rochelle to the Top 14 summit after they overcame Stade Français 28-16 with a bonus-point victory at Altrad Stadium.

Vern Cotter's men led 14-13 at the break, somewhat fortuitously, as Stade Français enjoyed the better of the first 40 minutes of the game.

Marvin O'Connor went over on 14 minutes for a deserved try on the right and with Jules Plisson's conversion, the visitors were 7-0 ahead.

However the hosts hit back on 20 minutes when Aaron Cruden crossed almost in slow motion from five metres out. Benoit Paillaugue levelled.

Plisson kicked two penalties to nudge his side 13-7 in front but Louis Picamoles crossed before the break to give Montpellier the buffer.

The hosts came out strongly after the interval as, following a couple of offloads, prop Mohammed Haouas collected the ball and dived over.

Plisson then missed a shot before being successful from 40 metres out to keep Stade in touch at 21-16 down.

But it would be the devastating wing Nemani Nadolo who sealed the victory for Montpellier on 66 minutes as he slipped O'Connor wide on the left before strolling over from 20 metres out.

The scorers:

For Montpellier:
Tries: Cruden, Picamoles, Haouas, Nadolo
Cons: Paillaugue 4

For Stade Français:
Try: O'Connor
Con: Plisson
Pens: Plisson 3

Montpellier: 15 Benjamin Fall, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Yvan Reilhac, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Nemani Nadolo, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Benoit Paillaugue, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Yacouba Camara, 6 Julien Bardy, 5 Paul Willemse, 4 Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, 3 Mohammed Haouas, 2 Charles Geli, 1 Mikheil Nariashvili
Replacements: 16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Yvan Watremez, 18 Konstantin Mikautadze, 19 Kelian Galletier, 20 Arthur Guigue, 21 Vincent Martin, 22 Gabriel Ngandebe, 23 Johannes Jonker

Stade Français: 15 Tony Ensor, 14 Marvin O'Connor, 13 Waisea Nayacalevu, 12 Jonathan Danty, 11 Djibril Camara, 10 Jules Plisson, 9 Clement Daguin, 8 Willem Alberts, 7 Sekou Macalou, 6 Brandon Nansen, 5 Alexandre Flanquart, 4 Paul Gabrillagues, 3 Paul Alo-Emile, 2 Laurent Sempere, 1 Heinke van der Merwe
Replacements: 16 Laurent Panis, 17 Emmanuel Felsina, 18 Mathieu De Giovanni, 19 Mathieu Ugena, 20 Terry Bouhraoua, 21 Shane Geraghty, 22 Jimmy Yobo, 23 Ramiro Herrera

Referee: Julien Castaignede
Assistant referees: Cyril Lafon, Thierry Guilloton
TMO: Eric Briquet-Campin

The post Good day for basement boys, Montpellier go top appeared first on Planet Rugby.