Top 14 round-up: Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle earn hard-fought win over Toulon

Meanwhile having shipped 64 points and 10 tries at Bordeaux last weekend, nomadic Racing 92 conceded another eight touchdowns in a 48-31 defeat to Lyon

Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle doubled down on last Sunday’s home win over Toulouse with a hard-fought 21-20 victory over Toulon. Pic: Emilian Baldow/Sportsfile.

Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle doubled down on last Sunday’s home win over Toulouse with a hard-fought 21-20 victory over Toulon at Stade Mayol.

Tolu Latu’s suspension following his red card last weekend, as well as injuries to Nolann Le Garrec, Oscar Jegou and Davit Niniashvili forced O’Gara into several personnel changes.

Pierre Bourgarit started in the middle of the front row, Levani Botia, Matthias Haddad-Victor and Paul Boudehent formed an all-new and combative backrow.

Valentin Bouju, 19, made his Top 14 debut at nine with no safety net on the bench, and Dillyn Leyds moved to fullback, making room for Nathan Bollengier on the left wing.

Hosts Toulon were forced into a late change, with Pierre Damond coming in at hooker for Teddy Bobigny, who withdrew due to sickness.

Two points – courtesy of a 40th-minute Melvyn Jaminet penalty – separated the two sides at the end of an intense opening period. Toulon fly-half Mateo Garcia got the try-count off the mark in the eighth minute, after Antoine Hastoy had opened the scoring off the tee for La Rochelle.

Jack Nowell responded for the visitors five minutes later, and Mathis Ferte scored Toulon’s second in the 16th minute. After that early flurry of points, the scoreboard went dark until Jaminet’s first points of the game at the break.

It was a similar story in the second half, as kickers Hastoy and Jaminet struggled with their radars. Replacement Watisoni Waqanisaravi scored his first Top 14 try six minutes into the second half to take La Rochelle into the lead, and Baptiste Serin responded five minutes later.

After Hastoy landed a 53rd-minute penalty to give La Rochelle the narrowest of leads, the scoreboard lulled again – despite the best, frantic, lactic-affected efforts of both sides.

Having shipped 64 points and 10 tries at Bordeaux last weekend, nomadic Racing 92 conceded another eight touchdowns at their main temporary home this season, Creteil’s Stade Dominique-Duvauchelle in a 48-31 defeat to Lyon. Jiuta Wainiqolo and Arthur Mathiron shared four of the visitors’ eight tries, while Joey Manu hit back with a brace for the ciel-et-bleu. But they head into the third week of the season bottom of the table.

France international Theo Attissogbe and Portuguese flyer Rodrigo Marta each scored two of Pau’s 10 tries – all converted by fly-half Joe Simmonds – in a 70-28 rout of Bayonne at Stade du Hameau. The visitors’ away day was never going to be easy, but was made all the more difficult when Yohan Orabe was sent off four minutes into the game for a badly timed aerial challenge.

Adam Hastings started his first match for last season’s losing finalists Montpellier, and marked the occasion with a try as they bounced back from last weekend’s home loss with a win on the road, beating Vannes 26-12 at Stade de la Rabine.

Veteran backrow Peceli Yato scored twice in the final 10 minutes to close out Perpignan’s first win of the season, a 43-29 victory over Castres at Stade Aime Giral.

As at Lyon on the opening weekend, so it was on Saturday as Clermont initially struggled at home – particularly in the set piece – against Stade Francais. But, three second-half tries following a bench rejuvenation helped them to a 25-16 victory after a first-half best forgotten.

Jack Willis walks straight back into the Toulouse side after recovering from injury for Sunday’s primetime blockbuster match against Bordeaux at Stade Ernest Wallon. Veteran props Cyril Baille and Dorian Aldegheri, and second row Joshua Brennan also return to the hosts’ starting line-up.

Bordeaux boss Yannick Bru, meanwhile, has rung the changes. Martin Page-Relo starts at scrum-half, with Maxime Lucu moving to the bench.

Centre Dan Du Plessis is set for his first Top 14 outing in place of Nicolas Depoortere, and 19-year-old prop Amir Hattouma has been named on the bench as the Champions Cup holders manage a minor front-row injury crisis.