Top 14 Round-up: Ronan O’Gara’s substitutes earn La Rochelle confidence-boosting win

Elsewhere Munster’s Champions Cup opponents next weekend, Bayonne, warmed up for their trip to Thomond Park with a 32-19 bonus point win at their fortress Jean Dauger.

Sat, 02 Dec, 2023 - 22:04

James Harrington

Ronan O'Gara's La Rochelle warmed up for their clash against Leinster next weekend in the opening game of their Champions Cup defence with a confidence-boosting win against Perpignan on Saturday.

A second-half influx of French internationals did the job for O’Gara’s side, as they kicked up a gear after a sluggish first period to pick up a more-than-useful five-try bonus-point 35-6 win over 13th-placed Perpignan.

Following a slow start to the season, the Rochelais desperately needed a victory before they welcome Leinster next Sunday but the first-half, despite the welcome return of Will Skelton and Dillyn Leyds from injury, was nothing to write home about.

The hosts made repeated errors in crucial areas, and were perhaps fortunate to head into the dressing rooms at halftime 7-6 in front, with the visitors’ fly-half Tommaso Allan missing a relatively straightforward penalty with the last kick of the opening period.

French frontrows Pierre Bourgarit and Reda Wardi came on at the start of the second period, along with ex-All Black Tawera Kerr-Barlow, followed shortly by Jonathan Danty, Antoine Hastoy and Thomas Lavault. And the mood of the match altered.

A penalty try on 52 minutes was followed, four minutes later, by a spectacular NFL-style score from Bourgarit. Judicael Cancoriet dived over to extend their lead further just after the hour, before Wardi completed the scoring nine minutes from time.

Hastoy was realistic in his immediate post-match assessment: “Five points was the target,” he told broadcaster Canal Plus. “We lacked fight in the first half but the big guys did a huge job in the second. To be consistent over 80 minutes is the objective but the five points will give us a lot of confidence.”

Munster’s Champions Cup opponents next weekend, Bayonne, warmed up for their trip to Thomond Park with a 32-19 bonus point win at their fortress Jean Dauger, condemning bottom-of-the-table Montpellier to their eighth defeat in a row, leaving the under-new-management 2022 Top 14 champions nine points adrift of safety.

Damian Penaud scored twice, taking his domestic tally to seven in four matches, as Bordeaux – who head to Connacht for their Champions Cup opener – won 29-23 after snowploughs had cleared the pitch to ensure the match could go ahead at a wintry Oyonnax. Penaud’s international team-mate Louis Bielle-Biarrey made the most of embarrassing confusion in the in-goal area to score the crucial try three minutes from time.

Castres climbed to provisional second in the table, level on 28 points with leaders Racing 92, as they beat struggling Lyon 29-14 at Stade Pierre Fabre.

Toulon, meanwhile, climbed to third with a comfortable 36-13 win over Pau. Fly-half Enzo Herve had a brace inside the opening 10 minutes, and captain Esteban Abadie scored the bonus-point try with the clock in the red at the end of the match.

Stuart Lancaster’s Racing 92, without star signing Siya Kolisi after his winning debut last week and clearly with the Champions Cup in mind, lost an edgy affair at Clermont 23-18.

Antoine Dupont has been named on the bench as Toulouse head to Paris for the Classico against Stade Francais, as the ninth round of the Top 14 season draws to a close on Sunday.