23 April 2010
|
Doubtful starter:
Jonny Wilkinson
Photo: Michael Paler |
The dramatic events of
last weekend's
fixtures resolved many of Top 14's unknowns, but this
Saturday's final round still has plenty of permutations to
ponder.
All six play-off spots have now been
taken, but which two teams progress through to the semis now
looks like a four-horse race between Toulon, Perpignan,
Clermont Auvergne and Castres.
The latter have slipped somewhat in
recent weeks and must win away to Stade Toulousain to have
any chance of finishing in the top two, but with Heineken
Cup semis occupying the minds of Guy Noves' team it is not
out of the question.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
There is also the small matter
of home advantage in the quarter-finals to play for, with
much jockeying to be done for the teams finishing between
third and fifth. Only sixth-placed Racing-Métro 92 cannot
change position, but they still have the tasty prospect of a
Paris double over city rivals Stade Francais to contemplate.
Read More... |
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21 April 2010
|
Mass exodus:
Bourgoin
Photo: Michael Paler |
The ongoing exodus from Bourgoin
has continued with confirmation that international fly-half
Benjamin Boyet has signed to join Bayonne next
season.
Boyet's departure for the Basque country
had been long-expected, with the 30-year-old joining the
likes of
Toulon-bound duo Jean-Philippe Genevois and Karena Wihongi
as the Bourgoin squad undergoes major renovation.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
The Isere club has
been walking a financial tightrope all season and a
squad-wide decision to take a 17% wage cut back in September
has effectively triggered release clauses for the majority
of players.
Fijian winger Albert
Vulivuli, 24, could be the next to leave with Racing-Métro
ready to swoop, while others expected to head for the exit
include Sylvain Nicolas (Stade Toulousain), Arnaud Tchougong
(Perpignan), Jean-Francois Coux (Montpellier) and David
Janin (Montpellier).
Read More... |
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21 April 2010
|
Brive encounter:
Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
It's
been the longest drawn out exit of the season but French
media reports have now confirmed that Riki Flutey has
played his last game for Brive.
The
injury-plagued England centre has opted for a swift return
whence he came (London Wasps) after a failed season in
France during he managed just five matches for Brive.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
According to both L'Equipe and rugbyrama.com
Flutey's two-year contract has been terminated 12 months
early after both he and the club agreed it was the best way
forward.
Flutey
arrived amid a torrent of headlines and hopes that he would
help take the Limousin club forward, but his restricted
appearances and failure to integrate means that his
departure will not be mourned - not by the fans anyway.
Read More...
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18 April 2010
|
Aiming high:
Jonny Wilkinson
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon are the new leaders of Top
14 after they maintained their unbeaten 'home' record with a
33-23 win against defending champions Perpignan at
the Stade Vélodrome.
A sell-out 60,000-strong crowd cheered on
Philippe Saint-Andre's team as they registered a ninth
successive victory (eight in the league) to claim top spot,
with Jonny Wilkinson kicking 23 points in addition to a
first-half try-double from Australian full-back Luke Rooney.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Wilkinson landed five penalties, two
drop-goals (including a late effort from 50m) and a conversion as Toulon registered a crucial
home win against the Catalans - and morning leaders.
Pierre Berbizier's Racing-Métro 92
were also in celebratory mood after they rallied from 6-19
down to beat Biarritz 29-22 and secure the sixth and
final play-off berth.
Read More... |
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By Colin Spiro, 18 April 2010
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"I'm very, very
pleased," - Haskell
Photo: Michael Paler |
More than a
few eyebrows were raised when James Haskell didn’t even make
the bench for
Stade Francais’ Heineken Cup quarterfinal at
Stade Toulousain last weekend, but his shock non-selection
was just the latest incident in an action-packed year since
the England flanker signed from London Wasps last summer.
There was
the initial outcry – largely from the British media – when
he first announced his switch; the early burst of tries that
put him back on Martin Johnson’s radar; the rooftop nude
modelling for Stade’s infamous Dieux de Stade calendar;
the
public tug-of-war between the RFU and Stade president Max
Guazzini; and now his bizarre non-selection for Stade’s
biggest game of the season.
The latter
two now appear inextricably linked with the rumour mill
suggesting Guazzini got his revenge on Haskell for the
player opting to remain in England during a blank weekend in
the Six Nations – and thereby missing Stade’s 0-29 home
drubbing by Stade Toulousain in Top 14. The club remains
adamant it was a tactical decision – albeit a mighty strange
and costly one – while the player himself has (not
unnaturally) kept his own counsel, except to confirm to
frenchrugbyclub.com that he was “100% fit and ready for selection”.
Read More...
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17 April 2010
|
Injured again: Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
Riki
Flutey's troubled debut season with Brive has
finished as it began - with the player sidelined by a
shoulder injury.
The
England international - who is reportedly still keen on a
return to the UK - has managed just five matches for the
French club this season, one more than he's played for
England.
He was
initially ruled out at the start of the campaign after
requiring surgery for the injury he picked up while on duty
with the British and Irish Lions. He did manage to play one
match after returning to Brive at the conclusion on the Six
Nations, but it now seems that further surgery could be on
the cards after aggravating the same shoulder.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
The 30-year-old was
trumpeted as a marquee signing when he joined from Wasps in
the close season but Brive will feel they have been
short-changed after the Kiwi-born centre has managed just
five games for the Limousin club during a trying campaign.
Read More... |
15 April 2010
|
Aiming high:
Jonny Wilkinson
Photo: Michael Paler |
Focus returns to Top 14 this weekend
following last week's Heineken dramas, and what a set of
fixtures we have in store for the penultimate round of
league games.
The ongoing battle for sixth-spot reaches
a potentially decisive climax with seventh-placed Biarritz
travelling to Paris to take on current incumbents
Racing-Métro, while eighth-placed Brive hover in the wings
hoping to take advantage of any slip ups when they go to
13th-placed Bayonne.
Further up the table we have a mighty
top-two clash in Marseille as Toulon host Perpignan in front
of 60,000 passionate fans, while just below them
fourth-placed Clermont welcome Castres.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Read More... |
14 April 2010
|
Vindicated:
Guy Noves
Photo: Colin Spiro |
Stade Toulousain coach
Guy Noves has revealed that he urged his payers to up their intensity at
half-time in their
weekend victory over Stade Francais.
"What did I say to them?
I said it was necessary to play faster, as you must do in European
quarter-finals" he said.
"We wanted to have Byron
[Kelleher] passing the ball much faster because their defence was well
drilled - especially in the first half - and the slow ball allowed them to
get in position. In the first half we were playing at Top 14 pace, and that
wasn't enough," he told the Stade Toulousain website.
Noves has come in for
unaccustomed media flak this season due to Toulouse's sometimes indifferent
league form, but the experienced coach was clearly in bullish mood following
Sunday's 42-16 victory.
Read More... |
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14 April 2010
|
Friends reunited:
Philippe Saint-André
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon head coach Philippe Saint-André has been
handed the honour of taking charge of the Barbarians
for their two summer internationals against England and
Ireland.
Saint-André will team up with former Sale Sharks colleague
Kingsley Jones for the tour, and has already used his Toulon
connections by helping persuade Paul Sackey and
Carl Hayman (who will both join Toulon in the summer) to
don the famous Barbarians' shirt.
Former
Toulon player - and Barbarians regular - Jerry Collins is
also in the squad, and the world's most famous invitational
club has further confirmed that England outcast Danny
Cipriani would play for them before heading off to take up
his contract with Super 15 franchise Melbourne Rebels.
Read More...
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13 April 2010
|
Paris favourite:
Mark Gasnier
Photo: Michael Paler |
The battle
to save financially crippled Montauban continues to
twist and turn, although one of three rescue packages now
appears dead in the water.
Over the
weekend it emerged that FDIC - sponsors of Toulouse FC -
could come to their aid with a
€3m cash
injection, but on Monday the company denied it would be able
or willing to finance such a deal.
Two other
possibilities remain in the offing, although neither has so
far found favour with Montauban Mayor Brigitte Barèges.
And unless something can be hashed out quickly it
remains likely that
Montauban
will be relegated to ProD2 due to the
€1.7m
shortfall in this season's budget.
That
bombshell news came after Montauban was one of three Top 14
clubs - and six in total - that was hauled before the
all-powerful DNACG earlier this month.
Read More... |
08 April 2010
|
Paris
switch? Leinster's
Brian O'Driscoll
Photo: Michael Paler |
Ireland captain Brian
O'Driscoll has raised the prospect of following Leinster
coach Michael Cheika across the Channel to Stade Francais
- although not until after the 2011 World Cup.
The highly decorated
centre has previously been linked with a switch to Biarritz
(in 2005) and said he was "open" to the idea of playing in
Paris once his current contract with the Irish Rugby
Football Union (IRFU) runs out. "I don't rule anything out,"
he said in an interview with the Irish Independent.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
Leinster's current boss
Cheika was recently announced as Stade Francais' new head
coach for 2010/11 after a turbulent season for the French
giants in which they have consistently struggled for
results.
Read More... |
04 April 2010
|
Riding
high: Perpignan
are in pole position
Photo: Michael Paler |
Defending champions Perpignan put
down a significant marker for the play-offs as they won
17-11 at Castres on Saturday night.
The victory was built on first-half tries
from from Farid Sid (after eight minutes) and Henry Tuilagi
(33), with the latter crucially scored while Perpignan were
down to 14 men after Ovidiu Tonita's yellow card.
Full-back Jerome Porical knocked over
both conversions to earn them a 14-8 half-time lead after
Mathieu Nicolas had replied with a try for the hosts.
Romain Teulet missed that conversion, but
did bring Castres back to within three points after a
penalty either side of half time, but Catalan fly-half Gavin
Hume added a drop-goal after 58 minutes to seal the win.
Read More... |
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02 April 2010
|
Try-scorer: Jean Bouilhou (c)
grabbed Toulouse's third
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulouse
28 (10)
Racing 23 (9)
They
were made to work extremely hard, but Stade Toulousain
eventually overcame a determined Racing-Métro thanks to
tries from Clément Poitrenaud, Yoann Maestri and Jean
Bouilhou.
Stade
went into the game still smarting from last week's 26-10
loss at Biarritz and having been defeated in two of their
past three home games. But this win lifted them above Toulon
into fourth and sets them up perfectly for next weekend's
Heineken Cup quarterfinal against struggling Stade Francais.
Read More...
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By Ollie Phillips, 01 April 2010
|
Happier
times: Ollie Phillips scoring against
Bath in this season's Heineken Cup
Photo: Michael Paler |
[FRC columnist Ollie Phillips, IRB Sevens Player of the
Year, Stade Francais winger and FRC columnist Ollie
Phillips talks about finance, injury, Max Guazzini, the
Heineken Cup and birthday boy James Haskell].
Much has
been written and said about Stade Francais in recent weeks
but as far as we’re concerned what’s happened has happened
and all we can do is try and win our remaining four games –
starting with Clermont Auvergne at the Stade de France on
Saturday.
Read More...
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31 March 2010
|
Upwardly mobile:
Racing-Métro
Photo: Michael Paler |
The increasingly tense finale to Top 14
ratchets up a further notch this weekend with all still to
play for throughout the congested table. Joint leaders
Castres and Perpignan go head-to-head at the Stade Pierre
Antoine, while Biarritz (at home to Montauban) and Brive (at
home to Bourgoin) retain hopes of a play-off slot as they
pray for sixth-placed Racing-Métro to slip up at Stade
Toulousain.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Third-placed Clermont Auvergne,
meanwhile, travel to Paris for the latest installment of
Stade Francais' soap-opera of a season. The capital club
suffered the indignity of being called before the DNACG this
week, capping a woeful month that saw them lose successive
games to Brive (24-16), Stade Toulousain (29-0) and
Perpignan (44-23).
Read More... |
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29 March 2010
Montauban appear destined for ProD2 after club president
Patrick Vianco confirmed they will be relegated on financial
grounds if they fail to find the
€1.7m
shortfall in this season's budget.
The
bombshell news comes after Montauban was one of three Top 14
clubs - and six in total - that was hauled before the
all-powerful DNACG on Tuesday. The DNACG is the league's
financial watchdog and has the power - as it did with SCA
Albi in 2007/8 - to relegate.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
Read More...
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30 March 2010
|
Out for the season:
Yves Donguy
Photo: Michael Paler |
Springbok lock Bakkies Botha is said to have held
constructive talks with Toulon at the weekend over a
proposed move to the French club following the 2011 World
Cup.
The
30-year-old - currently recuperating from an Achilles
rupture - had dinner with club captain and fellow South
African Joe van Niekerk on Friday night as the pair watched
Toulon win 13-9 at Bourgoin.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Botha's
agent Gerrie Swart confirmed the pair had met but denied
Bulls star had also held talks with club president Mourad
Boudjellal.
There
seems little doubt, however, that Toulon want to sign Botha
- considered one of the world's best second row forwards.
Read More... |
29 March 2010
|
Where did it all go
wrong?
Photo: Michael Paler |
On-field
disaster is being aped by off-field catastrophe at Stade
Francais, with the capital club currently showing an
operating loss of
€2.5m
for the 2009/10 season.
The
alarming budget shortfall has caught the ever-eager eye of
the DNACG - French rugby's financial watchdog - and Stade
Francais are one of six clubs that have been summoned to
appear before it's high council on Tuesday, according to
Midi Olympique.
Stade Francais' unfolding season of
woe
Montauban
and Bourgoin are the other two Top 14 sides to have been
called in, along with three others from ProD2.
But it is
Stade's plight that will set alarm bells ringing throughout
French rugby as they one of the country's acknowledged
giants, and have long been held up as a template for
off-field expansion.
Read More... |
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29 March 2010
|
Aussie Rebel?
Mark Gasnier
Photo: Michael Paler |
Stade Francais' Mark
Gasnier looks increasingly likely to return to Australia
at the end of the season, with new Super 15 franchise
Melbourne Rebels leading the chase for the former rugby
league international.
Rebels coach Rod Macqueen has admitted
that he's already met Gasnier, while ongoing discussions with the ARU are
believed to be nearing a deal that help finance the player's return.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
Queensland Reds - coached by former
Gasnier's former Stade boss Ewen McKenzie - and the Brumbies are also in
contention for the player's signature, although Melbourne remain favourites.
"We still remain very
interested in acquiring Mark's services," confirmed Rebels
chief executive Brian Waldron. "I think as time goes on the
decision gets closer for him."
Read More...
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29 March 2010
|
Where did it all go wrong?
Stade's James Haskell
Photo: Michael Paler |
The 2009/10
season has proven a tumultuous one for French giants Stade
Francais, with the flamboyant Paris outfit stumbling from
one crisis to another, both on and off the field.
Rarely have they been out
of the French (or international) headlines, with last week’s
announcement that Leinster’s Michael Cheika will become
their third head coach in less than 12 months just the
latest in a seemingly never-ending stream of eye-catching
stories to emerge from the club.
Their latest defeat -
a 44-23 hammering by Perpignan
- means they are currently languishing in ninth position in
Top 14 with just three matches to go and are set to miss out
on the end-of-season play-offs for the first time since
2000/01. And this despite the number of clubs involved in
those play-offs being expanded from four to six this season.
Read More... |
27 March 2010
|
Rocket man:
Francois Steyn
Photo: Michael Paler |
Defending champions Perpignan ran
in seven tries against rudderless Stade Francais as
they hammered the Parisians 44-23 at the Stade Aimé Giral.
This latest defeat was their third on the
spin - and their 12th overall in the league this season -
and effectively ended their slim play-off hopes, especially
with Racing-Métro seeing off Brive 25-18.
Two Lionel Beauxis successes gave Stade
an early 6-0 lead, but they found themselves 24-9 down at
half time after the Catalans responded with four tries.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Fit-again Jerome Porical celebrated his
return with the opening try - which he converted himself -
before Gerrie Britz, Farid Sid and David Marty all followed
suit.
Read More... |
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26 March 2010
|
Toulon bound:
Carl Hayman
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon are back in the headlines just days after
completing the stunning transfer of New Zealand's Carl
Hayman. Now the big-spending Top 14 side is being linked
with two more international stars, with South Africa's
Bakkies Botha and former All Blacks captain Reuben
Thorne the latest to be tipped to join.
Reports
in France claim Botha (30) will be in Toulon this weekend to
sort out details on a two-year deal that would start after
the 2011 World Cup, while Thorne (35) is said to be on the
verge of agreeing a deal for next season.
Botha
almost joined Toulon at the beginning of 2008/9 but the
already agreed transfer from the Bulls was finally scuppered
when the South African Rugby Union refused to sanction the
move.
Read More...
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26 March 2010
|
Comeback king:
Tana Umaga
Photo: Michael Paler |
Domestic rivalries are renewed in Top 14
this weekend as the ongoing nerve-jangler of a season
reboots in France. Tense and tetchy squabbles can be
expected throughout the country as various endgame scenarios
are played out in front of packed houses and blazing Spring
sunshine.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
Play-off positions and the
scrap to avoid relegation means all the round 23 fixtures
carry extra importance, with the only resolved issue to date
being that SCA Albi will return whence they came (ProD2) at
the end of the season.
But even they could yet have a
significant say in who else joins them as they host
13th-placed Montauban in a game the visitors dare not lose.
Elsewhere, the dogfight for the sixth and final play-off
slot heats up with seventh-placed Brive travelling to
current incumbents Racing-Métro, while outsiders Stade
Francais go to defending champions Perpignan and
almost-out-of-it Biarritz host Stade Toulousain (across the
border in northern Spain).
Read More... |
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24 March 2010
|
Centre of attention:
Brive's Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
Brive
CEO Simon Gillham has denied that either Munster or
London Wasps has contacted the French club with a view to
signing England centre Riki Flutey.
Reports
of
Flutey’s imminent departure have been
doing the rounds for weeks now, but Gillham said
that as far as he was concerned the England centre would
remain at Brive next season to see out the final year of his
contract.
Flutey,
30, has only played four matches for Brive since signing
last summer – due to injury and international calls – and
has been widely reported as being unsettled at the French
club.
Brive
are currently pushing to try and secure the final top six
slot in Top 14, but as things stand would miss out on the
play-offs and qualification for next season’s Heineken Cup.
Read More...
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24 March 2010
|
Comeback king:
Tana Umaga
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon assistant
coach Tana Umaga is set to make his playing return on
Friday when he will come out of retirement (aged 36) for the
club’s away game at Bourgoin.
Umaga is still awaiting
his playing licence from the LNR, but is likely to start on
the wing as a direct replacement for the injured Christian
Loamanu.
“He has lost none of
his timing and demonstrated the enthusiasm of a junior,”
said Toulon head coach Philippe Saint-André. “If I thought
he wasn’t fit to play then I wouldn’t pick him,” he added.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
The
former New Zealand captain
agreed to strap
on his boots once more after Loamanu
dislocated a hip setting up a try in the club's recent
league win over Castres.
Read More...
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24 March 2010
|
Toulon bound:
Carl Hayman
Photo: Michael Paler |
Carl
Hayman has further explained his decision to sign for Toulon
and put his future financial security ahead of possible
World Cup glory.
The
former All Blacks prop had been widely tipped to return to
New Zealand at the end this season – when his three-year
contract expired with Newcastle Falcons – but has instead
agreed a lucrative deal with Top 14’s cash-rich Toulon as he
joins the likes of Jonny Wilkinson, Sonny Bill Williams and
Juan Sebastien Lobbe at the Cote d’Azur club.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
“There’s
a time in one’s life and one’s career when you have to be a
bit selfish sometimes and think of yourself,” explained the
30-year-old prop. “I’ve done good service to the All Black
jersey and been at the coal face just about every week in my
bloody career when I was in New Zealand. I played about 80
minutes every week, so I’ve done my bloody dash,” he told
Sky Sports.
Read More... |
20 March 2010
|
Toulon bound:
Carl Hayman
Photo: Michael Paler |
Former All
Blacks prop Carl Hayman, 30, will be unveiled as
big-spending Toulon's latest star signing, according
to reports emerging from Newcastle.
Hayman -
considered one of the world's best tighthead props - will
follow in the footsteps of Jonny Wilkinson and Tom May in
signing for the Cote d'Azur club after spurning the
opportunity to return home and claim a place in the All
Blacks' 2011 World Cup squad.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
The
financial riches and cultural lifestyle on offer proved too
great to refuse for the Newcastle Falcons captain, with club
chairman Dave Thompson admitting defeat in his efforts to
retain Hayman.
"We did
everything we possibly could to keep Carl," Thompson told
The Journal. "We offered Carl the best possible deal we
could muster, and it's a shame he has decided to look
elsewhere, but we fully respect and understand that choice,"
added Thompson.
Read More... |
19 March 2010
|
Answering the call:
Michael
Cheika
Photo: Michael Paler |
Stade
Francais have named Leinster boss Michael Cheika as
their new director of rugby.
Cheika,
who played for Stade in the 1991/2 season, comes in after it
was confirmed that current head coach Jacques Delmas would
not have his contract renewed in the summer.
Cheika
guided Leinster to Heineken Cup success last season and had
already confirmed that he would be departing the Irish
province at the end of 2009/10 - with his successor being
Clermont Auvergne No 2 Joe Schmidt.
He will
take over a club that has suffered a traumatic season both
on and off the pitch this season.
The
43-year-old Australian has signed a three-year deal with
Stade Francais, confirmed a statement on the club website.
"Michael Cheika will, of course, be involved in recruiting
for next season," it added.
Read More... |
19 March 2010
|
Comeback king:
Tana Umaga
Photo: Michael Paler |
All
Blacks legend Tana Umaga is set for a sensational playing
return with Toulon after signing as a 'medical joker' until
the end of the season.
The
36-year-old former New Zealand captain has agreed to strap
on his boots once more after Toulon winger Christian Loamanu
dislocated a hip setting up a try in the club's recent
league win over Castres.
Umaga's
playing return has echoes of last season when (as then head
coach) he decided the best way to oversee Toulon's fight
against relegation was to take to the field again.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
/
Top 14
Transfers
His
on-field presence for the last nine games proved decisive as
the Cote d'Azur club successfully staved off the drop, with
Umaga scoring a try and earning wide-scale plaudits for his
level of play.
Read More... |
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19 March 2010
|
What's going on?
Stade Francais turmoil
Photo: Michael Paler |
Stade
Francais will announce their third head coach within a
year following confirmation that Jacques Delmas will
not have his contract renewed in the summer.
Delmas
was brought in after Australian Ewen McKenzie was sacked in
September, but with Stade currently languishing in eighth
position - and likely to miss the end-of-season play-offs -
owner Max Guazzini has run out of patience.
The
Paris giants are due to announce a new 'sporting director'
today (Friday), with former head coach Fabien Galthié
expected to take the role.
"It's
hard but it's part of the job," Delmas told French newspaper
Sud-Ouest.
Read More...
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|
By Joe El Abd, 18 March 2010
|
'Huge
inspiration':
Tana Umaga
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon flanker and FRC columnist Joe El Abd
this week talks about the incredible atmosphere of the Stade
Félix Mayol, Christian Loamanu's horrific injury and the
prospect of Tana Umaga returning to the playing field in the
closing stages of the season.
I
mentioned
in my last blog how Toulon
are never too far from the headlines with regards to all the
incoming transfers for next season. Well, over the past
couple of weeks Toulon have hit the headlines again, but
this time for a number of different reasons.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
Firstly,
last Friday night saw the team
beat table- topping Castres 19-6 at
the Stade Félix Mayol. The atmosphere on the
night was even more electrifying than normal and the win
puts us in a strong position to achieve an all-important top
six finish and a place in the end of season play-offs.
Read More... |
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18 March 2010
|
Trying times: Stade Francais
have had a traumatic season
Photo: Michael Paler |
Reports
in the French press claim Stade Francais owner Max Guazzini
has run out of patience with head coach Jacques Delmas
and will not renew his contract in the summer.
Delmas -
who led Biarritz to two French championships and a Heineken
Cup final - was only brought in after previous head coach
Ewen McKenzie was sacked in September
2009.
Top 14 Table 2008/9
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Top 14 Transfers
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ProD2 Transfers
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Top 14
Fixtures 2009/10
/
Stade
began brightly under Delmas' stewardship but have struggled
in recent months and now find themselves sitting eighth in
the league and facing the prospect of missing out on the
end-of-season play-offs for the first time since 2000/01 -
and that despite the format being extended to include six
rather than four teams.
Read More...
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|
15 March 2010
|
Wanted:
Carl Hayman
Photo: Michael Paler |
All
Blacks prop Carl Hayman is reportedly the latest big-name
signing being lined up by Top 14's Toulon.
The
Newcastle Falcons star is said to be weighing up offers from
both Toulon and the New Zealand Rugby Union as he
contemplates whether to return home in time to make the All
Blacks' World Cup squad.
News of
their interest in one of the world's most prized props comes
in the same week that the club has confirmed that backs
coach Tana Umaga will definitely leave at the end of the
season to take up a player-coaching role with Counties
Manukau back in New Zealand.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
Umaga
was previously head coach of the Top 14 outfit as he
presided over their rise from ProD2 two seasons ago, but
stepped back to allow Philippe Saint-André to take over
after struggling in their first season back in the top
flight.
Read More...
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14 March 2010
|
Successful return: Stade Toulousain's
Vincent
Clerc scored on his comeback from injury
Photo: Michael Paler |
It
promised to be a fascinating set of fixtures and so it
proved as Round 22 of Top 14 further underlined the highly
competitive nature of this season’s French league.
Toulon,
Bourgoin, Bayonne, Brive and Montauban all recorded vital
victories but the relegation and play-off issues remain as
unresolved as before the weekend, with the only certainty
now being that SCA Albi will return to ProD2 after just one
season back in the top flight.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
Beaten
leaders Castres remain top of the pile, but just four points
now separate them from fifth-placed Toulon, while at the
other end of the table a mere three points separates 13th-placed
Montauban from 10th-placed Bourgoin as the
relegation battle simmers towards boiling point.
Read More... |
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12 March 2010
|
Centre of attention:
Brive's Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
Brive
CEO Simon Gillham has reiterated that want-away England
centre Riki Flutey will remain at the Limousin club
next season.
Flutey,
30, has been heavily linked with a summer move away – to
either Munster or his former club London Wasps – but Gillham
insists that the Kiwi-born player will remain in France. “He
is under contract until June 2011,” he stressed.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
Gillham’s unequivocal stance follows a report in London’s
Evening Standard paper earlier this week which claimed
Flutey had agreed to rejoin Wasps. It said the London club
had found extra cash to finance the deal after seeing
fly-half Danny Cipriani sign for Melbourne Rebels.
Read More...
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12 March 2010
|
Now or never: Stade Francais must pull
together for an end-of-season push
Photo: Michael Paler |
The big chill returned to
France this week but the on-pitch temperatures are set to
rise as another crucial weekend of fixtures are played out
in Top 14. The twin issues of relegation and the fight for
play-off places again dominate the agenda, with the likes of
Stade Francais, Brive and Biarritz battling to secure a top
six spot while Bourgoin, Bayonne, Montauban and Montpellier
continue to fight off the drop.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
/
Top 14
Fixtures
As
things stand leaders Castres and second-placed Clermont
Auvergne will head straight through to the play-off
semi-finals, while Perpignan, Stade Toulousain, Toulon and
Racing-Metro will fight it out to secure the other two
places via the quarter-final play-offs. Sixth-placed Racing
are six points clear of their nearest rivals – Stade
Francais – with two other teams – Brive and Biarritz – a
further two points behind. Missing out on the play-offs (and
Heineken Cup qualification) would be a major blow for all
three of those sides, and with only four rounds to go after
this weekend they have absolutely no room for more dropped
points.
Read More... |
06 March 2010
|
Toulouse hero:
David Skrela
Photo: Michael Paler |
He
dominated the headlines all week but in the end James
Haskell was probably thankful that he didn’t play for
Stade Francais on Saturday after the Paris side crashed
to a humiliating 0-29 'home' defeat at the hands of Stade
Toulousain in front of a sold out crowd at the Stade de
France.
The loss
was their third at home this season and leaves them staring
into the abyss of non-qualification for either the Top 14
play-offs or next season’s Heineken Cup. They could yet
avoid the latter by surging to European victory this season,
but they have the little matter of an away quarter-final
against Stade Toulousain to negotiate first, and given this
evidence there isn’t much ground for optimism.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
The Paris
side was simply outplayed throughout by Guy Noves’ team,
with former Stade Francais fly-half David Skrela ensuring
there was let up by bagging five penalties and two
conversions for a 19-point match haul against his old team.
Read More... |
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04 March 2010
|
Club v Country:
James Haskell
Photo: Michael Paler |
Stade
Francais president Max Guazzini has labelled James Haskell a
'hostage' as the RFU continues to release the player for
weekend club duty.
Guazzini
is reportedly furious at the RFU's intransigence and has
repeatedly asked for the English governing body to produce
evidence that a written agreement was inserted in Haskell's
original contract.
The RFU
maintain the 24-year-old remains under Martin Johnson's care
and have curtly rebuffed Guazzini's pleas that Haskell be
allowed to play in Saturday's crunch match against Stade
Toulousain. Haskell himself - according to reports in
today's Daily Mail - is said to be willing to play and is
now considering his options as both sides turn up the heat.
Read More...
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04 March 2010
|
The main stage: Stade Toulousain travel to
Paris after successive home defeats
Photo: Michael Paler |
The
unseemly public squabble between Stade
Francais and the RFU over James Haskell's
availability has overshadowed the rugby news in France this
week, but the focus must now turn to the actual games, with
a mouthwatering fixture list ready to whet the appetite of
even the most satiated supporter.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
/
Top 14
Fixtures
The action kicks off on Friday
with a re-run of last year's play-off final as Clermont
Auvergne (2nd) take on defending champions Perpignan (3rd)
at the Stade Marcel Michelin, while on Saturday Stade
Francais entertain Stade Toulousain at a sold-out national
stadium in the latest version of Top 14's self-styled
'classico'.
Read More... |
03 March 2010
|
Club v Country:
James Haskell
Photo: Michael Paler |
Stade
Francais have demanded that England release James Haskell
for their weekend game against Stade Toulousain, with the
Paris club denying there is any agreement in place with the
RFU to allow the 24-year-old to rest.
The club
versus country clash is the first real test of relations
between the RFU and French clubs, and while it remains an
isolated spat at present there are bound to be many
interested onlookers.
The
problem stems from the fact that France has released all of
its squad back their respective clubs for this weekend's
games, with club coaches expecting a similar arrangement
from England. But the RFU has opted to retain the England
starting XV against Ireland, meaning the likes of Haskell,
Jonny Wilkinson (Toulon) and Riki Flutey (Brive) remain
under Martin Johnson's control.
Read More...
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|
03 March 2010
|
Centre of attention:
Brive's Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
While
Stade Francais and the RFU continue their ongoing power
struggle over James Haskell, the English governing body
could yet play an integral role in helping finance Riki
Flutey's return from France.
Flutey
is known to be unhappy at Brive and looking for an escape
clause back to Britain, with Irish province Munster and
former club London Wasps both keen to bring him 'home'.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 leading scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
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Top 14
Transfers
But the
New Zealand-born centre still has a year remaining on his
contract with Brive, and was last week told he was staying
put by club CEO Simon Gillham. That 'hands-off' warning
followed earlier reports that Flutey had agreed a two-year
deal to join Munster.
Read More...
|
02 March 2010
|
Crucial input:
Jonny Wilkinson
Photo: Michael Paler |
With six
more rounds to go there is a theoretical maximum of 30
points still to play for in Top 14, so as the season draws
to its climax FRC takes a peek at the future to see what it
could behold.
There
are two distinct areas of interest with the first (which we
are looking at today) being who
will make the top six, thereby qualifying for the newly
expanded league play-offs as well as next season's Heineken
Cup. Realistically there are nine teams trying to claim the
six slots, with the current incumbents being pursued by the
not inconsiderable trio of Stade Francais, Brive and
Biarritz.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
The
other main focal point is relegation, with two teams set to
depart for ProD2 in the summer. Basement club SCA Albi were
promoted via the play-offs last season, but their struggles
have been aplenty in Top 14 this season. With 17 defeats
from 20 they are all but mathematically down, so the real
question is which team will join them?
Read More... |
|
By Joe El Abd, 01 March 2010
|
Wanted
man:
Shane Williams
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon flanker and FRC columnist Joe El Abd
this week talks about the French transfer system and reveals
why he believes Welsh winger Shane Williams is set to become
the club's latest high-profile signing.
For most
rugby clubs in Europe the last four months of the campaign
are the most interesting of the season. For one, it is the
time where everything gets decided. Whether you are
competing for championships, trying to fight off relegation
or competing in European competition you really are entering
the ‘money’ end of the season. If this wasn’t enough the
second aspect which makes it interesting is all the
speculation surrounding the movement of players between the
clubs around Europe. At a club like Toulon such speculation
is never too far from the headlines.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
So far
we have
confirmed the signings of Dean
Schofield and Paul Sackey from the English
Premiership and three players Jean-Philippe Genevois,
Karena Wihongi and Clement Baiocco from the French Top 14. I
have played against the English players many times before
during my time at Bristol and I must say that I think both
are shrewd signings by Philippe Saint-André. Both have been
at their respective clubs for some time now and I am sure
that both will be excited by the new challenge being offered
by Toulon.
Read More... |
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28 February 2010
|
Bourgoin joy
Photo: Michael Paler |
Defiant
Bourgoin boosted their Top 14 survival hopes with a battling
12-6 home win against relegation rivals Bayonne.
Fly-half
Alberto De Bernardo was the hosts' hero, kicking all 12
points as Bourgoin bounced back from last weekend's
disappointing home defeat by Stade Francais.
The
Argentine No 10 kicked three penalties and a drop-goal as
Bourgoin registered a potentially crucial victory that saw
them leapfrog their visitors into 12th position.
It was
only Bayonne's second defeat in six games under new head
coach Christian Gajan, but the ramifications could be huge
after the Basques slipped back into the dreaded drop-zone.
There
are just six more league games to be played and Bourgoin's
win has now dragged both Montauban and Montpellier into the
relegation drama, with just four points separating 13th from
10th as the battle for survival hots up.
Read More...
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|
26 February 2010
|
Uncertain future:
Battling Bourgoin
Photo: Michael Paler |
There
may only be one match in Top 14 this weekend – due to the
RBS Six Nations – but it is a game of huge significance as
13th-placed Bourgoin play host to 12th-placed
Bayonne in what has effectively become a relegation
showdown.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
/
Top 14
Fixtures
The
Stade Pierre Rajon will be sold out for the re-scheduled
round 18 match – originally postponed on January 9th
due to snow – and with the two teams separated by a singular
point it is a game neither side can afford to lose. There
are just six league matches left after this encounter and a
defeat could send either on their way to ProD2 come the
summer.
Visitors
Bayonne arrive boosted by four wins in five games since
Christian Gajan became their third head coach of the season,
with last weekend’s 22-16 triumph at Montpellier enough to
lift them (temporarily at least) above Bourgoin, and out of
the dreaded drop zone. A second successive away win would
hoist them further ahead (by at least five points), and
Bayonne also have the knowledge that their next match is at
home to basement boys SCA Albi.
Read More...
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25 February 2010
|
Wing wizard:
Shane Williams
Photo: Michael Paler |
Big-spending Top 14 side Toulon are putting together a £1m
two-year deal to lure Welsh winger Shane Williams away from
the Ospreys, according to press reports.
The
Western Mail claims Williams, 33, will be offered a
basic £500,000 per season salary, with the Ospreys
compensated an additional £200,000 in the shape of a
transfer fee for allowing the winger to leave with one year
still remaining on his contract.
Top 14 Table
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Top 14 try-scorers
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Top 14 Results
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Top 14
Fixtures
The
report further claimed that Ospreys had already prepared the
ground for Williams' departure by signing Dragons winger
Richard Fussell.
The huge
financial offer for Williams could tempt the former IRB
Player of the Year to sign for one final pay day before
retiring, and it would also satisfy Toulon president Mourad
Boudjellal's quest to bring in another international star.
Read More... |
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24 February 2010
|
Staying put:
Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
England
centre Riki Flutey has been told to stay and honour
his two-year contract at Brive.
The
want-away England star had reportedly agreed a two-year deal
with Irish province Munster - as well been offered a
three-year deal to return to former club London Wasps - but
must now stay in France for at least one more year.
The
30-year-old has only played four games for Brive since
joining in the summer, with a shoulder injury and
international duties severely curtailing his appearances.
It is
understood Flutey has struggled to settled in France since
his move and is unhappy at the direction the club is
currently moving in. Specifically he was not impressed by
their decision to release England fly-half Andy Goode -
initially on a loan deal to Natal Sharks and then to take up
a three-year contract with Worcester Warriors.
Read More... |
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23 February 2010
|
Homeward bound?
Mark Gasnier
Photo: Michael Paler
|
Rugby
league converts Mark Gasnier and Sonny Bill
Williams are both set to leave France in the summer to
further their respective World Cup claims.
Gasnier
and Williams are both at the end of their two-year contracts
- with Stade Francais and Toulon respectively - and know
that they must return down under if they are to fulfil their
dreams of becoming dual internationals in time for the 2011
World Cup.
Gasnier
has apparently been made an offer from the Australia Rugby
Union (ARU) to help subsidise any move home, while Williams
is keen to represent the All Blacks.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
Read More... |
23 February 2010
|
Au revoir: Brive fly-half
Andy Goode
Photo: Michael Paler |
Brive
fly-half Andy Goode has confirmed he will not be
returning to the French club after his loan stint with Super
14's Natal Sharks.
Goode -
who announced his temporary move to
South Africa last week - will instead move back
to England to take up a contract with Worcester Warriors in
the Guinness Premiership.
Top 14 Transfers 2010/11
News of
his departure also comes just days after it was reported
that Brive and England colleague
Riki Flutey will also be leaving the
French club in the summer after signing a two-year deal with
Ireland's Munster.
It
continues on ongoing overhaul of the Brive squad, with the
dual goals of reducing a large wage bill and putting more
emphasis on recruiting French players.
Read More... |
|
21 February 2010
|
Au revoir:
Riki Flutey
Photo: Michael Paler |
England
centre Riki Flutey is leaving Brive to take up
a two-year contract with Irish province Munster.
The
30-year-old has been lined up to help fill the void created
by the imminent departures of South Africa's Jean de
Villiers and New Zealand's Doug Howlett, according to media
reports in France.
Top 14 Table
/
Top 14 try-scorers
/
Top 14 Results
/
Top 14
Fixtures
Flutey
has played just four matches for Brive since joining in the
summer, with a shoulder injury and international calls
severely curtailing his input. The player is said to be
unhappy about the recent departure of English fly-half
Andy Goode -
who signed a loan contract with Natal
Sharks last week - and his departure would also
help reduce the club's heavy wage bill.
Read More... |
|
20 February 2010
|
Try-scorer:
Francois Steyn
Photo: Michael Paler |
Castres have regained the Top 14 lead despite a
last-ditch penalty by Jonathan Wisniewski denying them
victory away to fellow high-flyers Racing-Métro 92.
The
visitors fought back from 18-9 down at half-time after tries
from Francois Steyn and Henry Chavancy had put the Parisians
in charge, with Wisniewski also chipping two penalties and a
conversion.
Castres
full-back Romain 'Robocop' Teulet kept the away side in
contention with two of his team's three first-half
penalties, and he went on to add four more and a drop-goal
after the interval as they looked to clock a significant
away victory.
The last
of his seven successful kicks came six minutes from time to
put Castres 24-21 ahead, but Wisniewski had the last word as
he landed an injury time reply that left both teams with a
share of spoils. But their frustration at being denied the
win was then tempered by news that morning leaders
Perpignan had gone down 16-13 away to Montauban,
thus enabling Castres to re-take the summit by a solitary
point.
Read More...
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18 February 2010
|
Eye on the ball:
Brive's Shaun Perry
Photo: Michael Paler |
Top 14 returns this
weekend with a crucial round of fixtures set to be played
out without any of France's 23-man Six Nations squad
participating. This will obviously affect some teams more
than others, with Stade Toulousain (seven absentees) and
Clermont Auvergne (five) the two hardest hit by the LNR's
decision.
Stade Toulousain boss Guy
Noves made his feelings clear on the matter this week -
especially regarding the availability
of Jean-Baptiste Poux - and the visit of Toulon
to the 17-time champions is one of the standout fixtures
scheduled for Saturday.
Elsewhere, there are a
number of critical clashes with Biarritz entertaining Brive
in a match that could major implications for two sides both
seeking to make up ground for a coveted top six finish.
Read More... |
18 February 2010
|
Winging in:
Paul Sackey
Photo: Michael Paler |
Toulon have confirmed that England winger Paul Sackey
has signed a two-year contract with them.
The
30-year-old
last week announced his intention to
leave London Wasps in the summer and the Top 14
outfit has now announced that he will be joining the likes
of Jonny Wilkinson and Juan Sebastien Lobbe as Philippe
Saint-André continues to strengthen his squad.
Sources
close to the club have said that Sackey's move has now put
an end to speculation they might also sign Welsh wing wizard
Shane Williams.
Top 14 Table
/
Top 14 try-scorers
/
Top 14 Results
/
Top 14
Fixtures
The
England international joins a multinational squad that also
features former Springbok Joe Van Niekerk and fellow
Guinness Premiership arrival Dean Schofield.
Read More... |
