After a long delay, international rugby in the northern hemisphere resumed this weekend – tremendous news for fans and cash-strapped unions that have sold the broadcast rights, not necessarily so good for certain clubs.
The end-of-year Test season kicked off as Scotland beat Georgia on Friday. Ireland thumped Italy yesterday afternoon and on Saturday evening France met Wales at an empty Stade de France in an out-of-extended-window warm-up for their delayed Six Nations match against Ireland next weekend. The four-matches-per-side Autumn Nations Cup kicks off in November.
Away from those bright international lights, a series of very different-looking Top 14 squads met in the latest round of domestic competition. It’s the first day of a brave-face new world for clubs, as they deal with not being able to select French internationals for about half of the remaining 20-odd matches of the season.
Even allowing for the three-match per player limit on international matches this autumn – and it appears Fabien Galthie and the national side’s coaches are effectively preparing to select two separate squads for the six games between now and December –French clubs could be without their internationals for up to 11 games between now and the end of the 2021 Six Nations.
England players, too, will be unavailable to their clubs for the same number of games –half the regular Premiership season. And that’s without taking into account agreed post-international breaks that have to be taken before the end of the season.
Up to the end of the Autumn International window in early December alone, French domestic and international fixtures clash on five out of seven weekends.
Officially, there are only two such clashes during the 2021 Six Nations, but an existing agreement between the French Rugby Union and the clubs means Fabien Galthie is not obliged to release players to their clubs during international rest weekends. There can be the square root of no doubt he will exercise his right to keep his internationals in camp.
It is no wonder, then, that clubs are describing this as a second World Cup year in a row. The LNR have filed a complaint with the European Commission over the legality of World Rugby’s extension of the international window and, with it, regulation 9 which obliges clubs to release players called up to their national sides.
Sports law experts expect the case to fail, but it’s an indication of the concern clubs have that box office players will be denied to them at an impossibly difficult time.
Toulouse are one of the French clubs set to be worst affected by international call-ups this season. They supplied seven players to the France squad for the Wales game, and while their starting XV on Saturday afternoon was recognisably Ugo Mola’s Toulousain, their bench was filled with academy and fringe players – Tristan Tedder only returned from a loan spell with Beziers this week.
Under Mola, Toulouse have raced ahead of the curve on academy player integration. The young squad trains alongside the senior side every week. It wasn’t enough, however, as Lyon successfully stifled their attack with a ferocity at every breakdown that was reminiscent of Exeter in the Champions Cup semi-final. Lyon’s Jean-Marc Doussain scored 11 points against his old club as Pierre Mignoni’s side won 16-7 to become the first visiting team to win at Ernest Wallon in two years.
The Top 14 weekend kicked off on Friday night as Toulon entertained Castres. Defences dominated in an arm-wrestle at Stade Mayol as the hosts won 19-6. The game’s sole try, started deep in his own 22 by Gervais Cordin, who decided to run rather than clear, and ended 20 seconds later when Duncan Paia’aua dotted down under the posts, was worth the entrance fee. Much of the remaining 79-and-a-half minutes was pretty forgettable.
If Toulon-Castres was unmemorable, the 11-try 79-pointer between Clermont and Pau was remarkable. Five of those tries came in the last quarter, with three of those scored after 77 minutes had passed – including, importantly, the bonus-point score for the hosts, who won 50-29.
Racing owner Jacky Lorenzetti was forced to watch the match he has described as his ‘favourite’ of the Top 14 – the derby against Stade Francais in isolation at home, after contracting Covid-19.
Chances are he will have enjoyed what he saw. At the end, at any rate. Thirteen of the 16 points scored in the last ten minutes gave Racing a 27-25 win – the third time in as many seasons they have taken the points at Stade Jean Bouin.
Bayonne, too, had to issue a statement about the coronavirus situation at the club following unsubstantiated reports of a ‘cluster’ at the club. There were two recent cases reported, but no more over a seven-day period, allowing their trip to Agen to go ahead as planned.
Former New Zealand Sevens star Joe Ravouvou had already scored a superb solo try for the visitors when Agen lock Victor Moreaux was sent off after just seven minutes for dangerous play. The hosts refused to go quietly into the evening, but despite tries from Nathan Decron and Camille Gerondeau, their winless streak continued as they lost 26-15.
Montpellier reported a coronavirus scare of their own, with three positive tests, on Thursday. But it was not enough to call off this Sunday’s match against Brive because only two tests were among members of the senior playing group.
JAMES HARRINGTON
