Top 14: Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle close gap on leaders Toulouse with big win over Bordeaux

The match was played on a difficult pitch at the venue of Ireland’s World Cup opener against Romania in September.

BIG WIN: La Rochelle Head Coach Ronan O'Gara

Levani Botia’s close-range touchdown early in the second-half broke the deadlock as Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle closed the gap on Top 14 leaders Toulouse with a muscular 36-6 win over Bordeaux on a difficult pitch at the Matmut Atlantique.

Until Botia picked up the ball close to the line after Gregory Alldritt’s charge from the back of a 5m scrum, there had been little for the 42,000 sell-out crowd to cheer about in the stadium’s final dress rehearsal before Ireland’s World Cup opener against Romania on September 9, other than the fact the pitch was cutting up at scrums.

An interminable first-half was notable only for UJ Seuteni’s 14th-minute try being overturned - following a lengthy debate with the TMO - because Will Skelton had smacked his way out of a ruck a couple of phases earlier.

But there were hints that La Rochelle were starting to win the contacts. That impression proved accurate in the second period, as they enjoyed the better of the possession and territory stats.

On the rare occasions Bordeaux threatened - they crossed La Rochelle’s line twice inside a minute just after the hour - they were unable to touch down.

The visitors made them pay - and showed them how it was done - as Joel Sclavi crashed over seven minutes from time to take them out of reach before winger Pierre Boudehent sealed the deal and the bonus point.

La Rochelle now take a four-match winning-run into their Champions Cup round-of-16 match against Gloucester next Saturday.

“We are in a fight with ourselves,” Brive coach Patrice Collazo admitted after his side shipped six tries and had two players - Setareki Bituniyata and Marcel van der Merwe - sent off as they lost 38-10 at Clermont.

“We have to fight until the end. It's not over yet.” Despite Collazo’s defiance, it’s hard to see how Brive will claw back the nine points separating them from Perpignan, let alone the 12 they currently need to overtake Pau. Relegation seems certain.

Toulon climbed into the top six with a 27-23 win on the road. But an injury to Cheslin Kolbe, who left the pitch on a buggy, after scoring their second try, overshadowed their win.

Manager Pierre Mignoni later told reporters his star player had suffered a sprain, rather than anything more serious, adding “we are waiting on tests to see how serious it is”.

Toulouse are also counting the personnel cost of a 27-17 derby defeat at Castres. Coach Ugo Mola rested most of his Six Nations internationals ahead of next week’s Champions Cup match against Bulls at Ernest Wallon.

But he now has doubts over scrum-half Paul Graou, lock Richie Arnold, centre Sofiane Guitoune and fullback Melvyn Jaminet, who all left Stade Pierre Fabre with injuries.

Champions Montpellier boosted their hopes of taking the defence of their first-ever domestic title into the play-offs, coming back from 22-10 down after 50 minutes at Perpignan to win 22-23.

Bayonne dropped to seventh after a 20-30 loss against Pau. It will officially go down as their first home defeat of the season, though the match was switched from fortress Stade Jean Dauger to sell-out the 40,000-seat Reale Arena in San Sebastián - which hosts the Top 14 semi-finals later this year.

Racing 92 welcome Christian Wade and Cameron Woki to the squad for Sunday’s revenge mission against Stade Francais at Stade Jean-Bouin.

The last time the two sides met, on Christmas Eve at La Defense Arena, Sekou Macalou guided Stade to a 48-10 win.