Heineken Cup runners-up Biarritz have suffered a double injury blow ahead of the opening round of Top 14 matches on Friday.

French internationals Damien Traille and Imanol Harinordoquy both look set to sit out their home clash with Montpellier.

Traille, who missed the Heineken Cup final due to a broken arm, is definitely out after picking up a hamstring injury, while Harinordoquy sat out training on Monday due to painful ribs.

A scan has revealed the latter has damaged cartilage and he is thus highly doubtful for the Montpellier game.

The loss of two of their most influential players is a major headache for Biarritz, especially as the club has had just one warm-up match for the new season.

Top 14 Fixtures 2010/11

Stade Francais will also begin the season a player down following confirmation that scrum-half Noel Oelschig will be suspended for their home match against Bourgoin.

Oelschig has been called before the LNR's disciplinary committee on August 18 after being shown a straight red during Stade's recent pre-season defeat at Toulon. The South African, who was on as a second-half substitute at the time, has now been provisionally banned by his club pending the hearing.

New Stade boss Michael Cheika will be hoping this is not a sign of things to come as it was a string of injuries and suspensions that largely undermined the Paris club during last season's tale of woe. At least he should have his first-choice scrum-half available after Julien Dupuy's impressive form since his own return from a six-month ban for eye gouging.

Bayonne are also counting the cost of pre-season 'friendlies' after they announced that new signing Troy Flavell will be out for at least a month after damaging a hamstring in their recent win against Saracens. The former All Blacks lock now looks set to miss Bayonne's opening four league games.

Byron Kelleher, another former All Black, will also miss the opening round of Top 14 matches after failing to recover in time from a broken jaw sustained while playing for the Barbarians against Ireland earlier in the summer. Kelleher is now back in training but he is so far behind - in terms of match fitness - that he will not be considered for Stade Toulousain's Friday opener against newcomers SU Agen.

With Jean-Baptiste Elissalde retired and Frédéric Michalak still injured that leaves youngster Nicolas Bézy and new Argentine signing Nicolas Vergallo to battle it out for the No 9 shirt.

Former Stade Toulousain player Finau Maka, meanwhile, has agreed a one-year deal with ProD2 outfit Aix-en-Provence, while former Brive player Régis Bianco is apparently on the verge of joining Tarbes as a 'medical joker'.

And yet another former All Black is also in the news following confirmation that Andrew Mehrtens has signed a three-year deal with fallen giants Béziers. Mehrtens played in Top 14 for Racing-Métro 92 last season but the arrival of Juan Martin Hernández forced the ever-green 37-year-old to look for a new club after his contract was not renewed. At one stage he was rumoured to be joining Stade Francais, but this week's announcement has confirmed Béziers as his new destination.

Mehrtens, who won 70 caps for the All Blacks, told rugbyrama that he opted for Béziers due to the history of the club and admitted that he was now looking forward to "a very nice challenge".

Top 14 Transfers 2010/11

Finally, France's selection committee will meet on October 27 to pick the squad for the Autumn internationals against Fiji (Nov 13), Argentina (Nov 20) and Australia (Nov 27). All those picked will join up with with head coach Marc Lièvremont in Marcoussis on November 5th, the day after round 12 of Top 14. 

Top 14, Season 2010/11, Round 1:
Stade Toulousain v SU Agen (Stade Ernest Wallon, 13/08/10, 18.45)
Brive v Racing-Métro 92 (Stade Amédée Domenech, 13/08/10, 19.00)
Biarritz v Montpellier (Parc des Sports Aguiléra, 13/08/10, 19.00)
Toulon v Bayonne (Stade Félix Mayol, 13/08/10, 19.00)
Stade Francais v Bourgoin (Stade Jean Bouin, 13/08/10, 19/00)
Perpignan v Clermont Auvergne (Stade Aimé Giral, 13/08/10, 21.00)
La Rochelle v Castres (Stade Marcel Deflandre, 14/08/10, 20.45)

Pre-Season friendlies:

July 23
Bayonne 43 Bourgoin 24

July 24
Aurillac 7 Brive 33
Toulon 30 Lyon OU 18
SU Agen 26 RC Narbonne 5

July 25
La Rochelle 17 Grenoble 17

July 29
Lyon OU 13 Stade Francais 12

July 30
La Rochelle 10 Stade Toulousain 29
SU Agen 17 Brive 12
Bourgoin 20 Clermont Auvergne 40
Toulon 39 Racing-Métro 10
Pau 28 Castres 33
Montpellier 56 Carcassonne 17
Perpignan 32 RC Narbonne 21 

August 4
Bayonne 27 Saracens 17

August 5
Toulon 25 Stade Francais 22
Stade Toulousain 17 Bourgoin 7
SCA Albi 13 Tarbes 3

August 6
Biarritz Olympic 21 La Rochelle 7
Brive 29 Leicester Tigers 17
Perpignan 29 Racing-Métro 30
Lyon OU 25 Oyonnax 0
Clermont Auvergne 26 Sale Sharks 8
SU Agen 31 Leeds 6

August 7
Montpellier 32 Aurillac 19
Castres 34 Colomiers 8
FC Auch Gers 3 Pau 33
SCA Albi 58 v Provale Select XV 7
Dijon 12 St Etienne 32