Top 14, r7 preview - Wilkinson ready for Toulon's showdown with Stade Toulousain

18 September 2009

Round 1 review: Brive lead Top 14 after Thompson try sets up bonus point win
Round 2 review: Stade Toulousain crush Brive; Montpellier stun Perpignan
Round 3 review: Wilkinson's boot fires Toulon up to third; Perpignan beat Toulouse
Round 4 review: Toulon and Toulouse share top spot as Stade Francais crash again
Round 5 review: Stade Francais slip into bottom two; Clermont beat Toulouse
Round 6 review: Stade Francais start Delmas era with emphatic win

Top 14, Round 7 fixtures (Current league position in brackets)

Bayonne (12th)

Montpellier (10th)

Jean Dauger, 18/09/09, 20.35

Bayonne desperately need a confidence boosting win after losing four of their opening six games, although all four have been on their travels. Both ‘home’ matches - one was played in northern Spain - have been safely won, though, with the Basques racking up an impressive 91 points in their combined victories over Stade Francais and Bourgoin. More attacking flair will be the order of the day against Montpellier, who themselves have yet to register an away victory in three attempts so far – a fact acknowledged by Benoit Paillaugue: “We must be more mature; stop being wolves at home and lambs away,” he admitted this week. Bayonne prop Renaud Boyoud should be back, together with wingers Filimone Bolavucu and Clement Lagain, and fly-half Manny Edmonds. Full-back Pepito Elhorga is out though with his leg injury sustained against Biarritz likely to sideline him for up to three weeks. Former All Blacks lock Ross Filipo is also doubtful with a neck injury. Montpellier winger Jacques Boussuge is out for a month after injuring his groin in training, South African centre Grant Rees is replaced by Geoffrey Dumayrou and scrum-half Julien Tomas remains unavailable due to sprained knee. Paillaugue will therefore start as scrum-half with French international Francois Trinh-Duc at fly-half. Prop Juan Figallo is back in the squad, along with Scottish prop Bruce Douglas.
Last season:
Bayonne 42 Montpellier 9
Montpellier 20 Bayonne 11
Verdict: Bayonne win

SCA Albi (14th)

Clermont Auvergne (1st)

Stade Municipal d'Albi, 19/09/09, 14.30

Five games gone and five defeats, but if SCA Albi were hoping for a change in fortune it seems unlikely to happen on Saturday as they welcome leaders Clermont Auvergne. 'Les Jaunards' have lost just once in their opening six games - a narrow away defeat at Toulon - and coach Vern Cotter has the luxury of including a trio of internationals for the trip to Albi who have yet to feature at all this season - Julien Bonnaire, Julien Malzieu and Marius Joubert. That means skipper Aurélien Rougerie can take a well earned rest, a scenario that Albi coach Eric Béchu can only dream about at present as he contemplates life at the bottom of Top 14 with 17 players still unavailable through injury. Yet, despite all that, Albi emerged with a cherished defensive bonus from last weekend's valiant 19-13 defeat at Stade Toulousain, and Béchu would undoubtedly settle for a similar outcome tomorrow. 
Last season: SCA Albi were in ProD2
Verdict: Clermont win

Stade Francais (9th)

Bourgoin (11th)

Jean Bouin, 19/09/09, 14.30

New coaches Jacques Delmas and Didier Faugeron got off to the perfect start last weekend with a bonus point win against previously unbeaten Castres, and the visit of Bourgoin gives them further hope for another five-pointer. The cash-strapped visitors may have rumbled both Biarritz and Perpignan at home this season, but their away form has been less convincing with heavy defeats at Castres and Bayonne. Last season Stade spanked them 53-3 at the Jean Bouin and with confidence returning it's possible the league's highest scorers - averaging over 33 points per game - could inflict a similar hammering. Stade lock Arnaud Marchois is out after spraining his left ankle in the 44-18 win against Castres and fellow second row Pascal Papé must wait for the outcome of a league disciplinary hearing on Friday to find out if he can play or not – following angry words with the referee after the Montauban home defeat. Pierre Vigouroux could play in his place, in tandem with the impressive and (so far) ever-present Tom Palmer. Bourgoin’s Samoan flanker Tim Cowley could be in visitors' squad after 10 months out with neck injury, but full-back Florian Denos is out after picking up an injury against Perpignan. Props Arnault Tchougong and Karena Wihongi are both absent, along with flanker Sylvain Nicolas.
Last season:
Stade Francais 53 Bourgoin 3
Bourgoin 25 Stade Francais 32
Verdict: Stade Francais win

Brive (8th)

Biarritz (5th)

Stade Amédée Domenech, 19/09/09, 16.25

It may be too early in the season to start talking about 'must-win games' but Brive need to start putting results on the board if their lofty ambitions are to be realised. Away defeats at Stade Toulousain and Perpignan are one thing, but dropped home points - they drew 9-9 with Clermont - are not to be countenanced, specially by a club which has invested so heavily over the past 18 months. The visit of Biarritz presents the perfect opportunity to reassert some authority, although they will have to do it without long-term absentee Riki Flutey, and French full-back Alexis Palisson. England centre Jamie Noon is showing signs of settling in after a difficult start, while scrum-half Shaun Perry has been in sparkling form despite niggly injuries. Flanker Antonie Claassen has been passed fit to resume, and English fly-half Andy Goode could also make the squad. The form of his deputy - Luciano Orquera - has epitomised Brive's hit and miss results so far this campaign, and he can't afford to be as profligate as last week's one from six kicks against Montauban, which eventually cost Brive dearly despite outscoring their hosts by three tries to one. Biarritz centre Arnaud Mignardi is definitely out after a training ground injury to his right knee required surgery on Thursday - he is likely to be sidelined for three weeks - but international scrum-half Dimitri Yachvili is in the squad for the first time this campaign after cutting his foot while moving an aquarium at home in pre-season. He is expected to start on the bench, but his presence alone will lift the Basques as they seek to build on successive wins against Stade Francais and Bayonne. The visitors will start with an entirely new front row after the coaches opted to begin with Eduard Coetzee, Romain Terrain and Mosese Moala. Yann Lesgourgues begins at scrum-half, with Valentin Courrent at fly-half, while young winger Paul Couet-Llanes is in the starting XV, with Nicolas Brusque replacing the injured Iain Balshaw at full-back.
Last season:
Brive 19 Biarritz 15
Biarritz 24 Brive 5
Verdict: Draw

Perpignan (3rd)

Montauban (7th)

Stade Aimé Giral, 20/09/09, 14.30

Away defeats at Montpellier (12-18) and Bourgoin (6-17) have blotted the champions' copybook so far this season, but the visit of Montauban starts a run of five home games in six league matches as they seek to consolidate their form at fortress Stade Aimé Giral. Marc Raynaud's team may have been an extra day to recover from their midweek exertions against Castres - this match has been moved back to Sunday to help accommodate them - but the Catalans are still bound to be fresher as they attempt to banish their surprise defeat at Bourgoin last Friday. Fly-half Gavin Hume has been ruled out after sustaining a broken finger in that match, but Guillaume Vilaceca should be available after coming off for a mild neck sprain. Scrum-half Nicolas Durand should also be included.  
Last season:
Perpignan 19 Montauban 9
Montauban 6 Perpignan 9
Verdict: Perpignan win

Castres (6th)

Racing-Métro 92 (13th)

Pierre Antoine, 20/09/09, 14.30

Castres, like Montauban, will undoubtedly be feeling the aftershock of Wednesday's gripping 18-18 tie, and it remains to be seen how much their heroic 14-man display took out of them. Racing will arrive pumped up for action and buoyed by an impressive - if ultimately fruitless - display against Clermont Auvergne last week. The Paris club look better than their current 13th-placed standing and their powerful pack should again be to the fore as they go in search of away win number two. They certainly need to break their three-match losing streak, and with Castres in the midst of a difficult six-match programme in three weeks Sunday could present an ideal opportunity. This will be Racing's fifth away game in their opening seven matches, but the future looks brighter with six of their next nine games back in Paris. A win here would set them up perfectly for a steady climb of the table, but Castres have shown indomitable spirit so fart this campaign as the influence of Laurent Labit and Laurent Travers becomes increasingly obvious. Castres centre Romain Cabannes misses out after tearing a thigh muscle in Wednesday’s draw.  
Last season: Racing-Métro 92 were in ProD2
Verdict: Racing-Metro win

Toulon (4th)

Stade Toulousain (2nd)

Stade Vélodrome, 20/09/09, 16.05

Last, but by no means least, is the weekend's blockbuster encounter between fourth-placed Toulon and second-placed Stade Toulousain at Olympique Marseille's Stade Vélodrome. Ticket sales point to a possible 60,000 sell out and after successive last-minute defeats (against Montauban and Montpellier) Toulon need to get back to winning ways to maintain their early-season momentum. Fond memories of last year’s 14-6 win against Stade (at the same venue) should help with preparation, as should the returns of several key players - including Jonny Wilkinson - who were rested last weekend. The key to Toulon’s impressive start this year has been collectivity, with the forward pack driven on by the excellent back row combination of Joe van Niekerk, Juan Fernandez Lobbe and Joe El Abd. The half-back partnership of Pierre Mignoni and Wilkinson is also coming along nicely, and the England fly-half will need his kicking boots on as they seek to lay down a marker against the 17-time champions. Prop Davit Kubriashvili has been included after passing medical tests, as has fellow prop Saimone Taumoepeau, although the latter is still weighing up whether to play or not owing to his religious beliefs and the game being played on a Sunday afternoon. Toulouse, meanwhile, arrive without a host of injured stars - including Byron Kelleher, Maxime Médard, Clément Poitrenaud, Maleli Kunavore, David Skrela and Alberto Vernet Basualdo - and on the back of a less than inspiring 19-13 home win against basement boys Albi. Guy Noves has stressed the need for Stade to concentrate on getting the basics right this week, but their inconsistent form must be worrying Europe's most successful coach with the forthcoming Heineken Cup lurking on the horizon. He could probably have done without Kelleher claiming the headlines all week following his drunken exploits, but the club has backed the former All Blacks scrum-half in a style that would no doubt have Sir Alex Ferguson purring with approval. Whether they can emulate Manchester United's 'them against us' siege mentality remains to be seen.
Last season:
Toulon 14 Stade Toulousain 6
Stade Toulousain 19 Toulon 18
Verdict: Toulon win

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