Ronan O'Gara rues La Rochelle indiscipline - 'The most penalties of my entire career'
La Rochelle's French flanker Oscar Jégou (C) runs with the ball during the French Top14 rugby union match between Stade Rochelais (La Rochelle) and Racing 92 at The Marcel-Deflandre Stadium in La Rochelle, western France, on September 19, 2026. (Photo by XAVIER LEOTY / AFP via Getty Images)
Ronan O’Gara was left to rue La Rochelle’s indiscipline after Racing 92 stopped the Maritimes’ early Top 14 season winning run in its tracks, winning 20-10 and spoiling the centenary celebrations of Stade Marcel Deflandre.
“Playing the way we did today, we should never expect to win a match,” O’Gara told journalists after the match. “At 10-0, we were playing well – it was important to keep scoring, but we didn’t.
“We didn’t score again for 50 minutes… [and] we conceded the most penalties of my entire career, even though we’d been talking about discipline all week, because Racing are a powerful side and love a bit of a tussle.”
This wasn’t a match for the annals of either side – though Racing, coming into the game at the bottom of the table and having shipped 112 points in their first two outings, will take the morale-boost of their 10-20 victory.
The formbook pointed to a straightforward victory for the hosts, who had picked up narrow wins over Toulouse and Toulon in their first two outings of the season. But the visitors applied the early pressure – and Nolann Le Garrec’s 19th-minute penalty and 32nd-minute try came against the run of play.
Those were the only scores of a first-half punctuated by handling errors and poor attacking organisation from both sides.
The game desperately needed something special. It came in the 53rd minute when Max Spring gathered an ill-directed Antoine Hastoy clearance and ran nearly untouched for 70m to score. Another error, right there.
It was the moment the visitors’ needed as much as it was a coach-killer for the hosts. Even so, it took Racing until the 74th minute to take the lead, via a Geronimo Prisciantelli penalty.
And their match-deciding score for Romain Taofifenua in the 80th minute owed everything to a blunder by Levani Botia – who made a hash of a quick penalty five metres from the Racing line. From a scarcely deserved shot at victory to nothing in 15 seconds. No wonder O’Gara was disappointed.
Toulouse have won two in a row after their opening weekend loss at La Rochelle. In Saturday’s prime-time match they came from 13-0 down after a 20-minute Vannes storm to win 23-29 at a packed Roazhon Park in Rennes.
Lyon are the last unbeaten Top 14 side standing after beating Pau at Stade Gerland. Backrow Sam Simmonds scored twice to condemn his brother’s side to a 51-25 defeat.
Tomas Albornoz fired an after-the hooter drop kick just wide of the uprights as Toulon fell to their third so-near, so-far losing bonus-point defeat in as many matches. This one was at Castres, where the home side held on to win 29-27.
Former Harlequin Lennox Anyanwu – who signed a contract extension this week – and ex-Toulouse star Dimitri Delibes both scored twice as Montpellier picked up a bonus-point 50-13 win over Perpignan at the Septeo Stadium.
And a double for Mateo Carreras helped Bayonne to a five-pointer at home against Clermont. The scoreboard stopped moving at 46-24.
Bordeaux have rested winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey for Sunday’s match against Stade Francais at Stade Chaban Delmas, with 19-year-old Hugo Avogadro set to make his first Top 14 start.
But, on the whole, the home squad has a familiar look with Maxime Lucu at scrum-half, Nicolas Depoortere at centre, Damian Penaud on the wing, as well as Cameron Woki and Tom Willis in the back row.
Stade Francais coach Paul Gustard, however, has chosen to ring now fewer than 13 changes to the side that lost at Clermont last weekend – with only captain Jeremy Ward and flanker Matthieu Hirigoyen remaining in the starting line-up. Ex-Vannes veteran Fabrice Metz, who announced his retirement at the end of last season, makes his first appearance in Stade's second row.
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