French Column – By James Harrington
Racing 92’s veteran centre Henry Chavancy reached a remarkable career milestone on Saturday when he came on to replace Dan Lancaster in the 62nd minute of yesterday’s Top 14 match against Clermont in unusual surroundings.
The 36-year-old France international marked his 400th appearance for the Ile de France club in all competitions when he ran out onto the pitch at Stade Dominique Duvauchelle in Créteil – home of French fourth-tier football side Union Sportive Créteil-Lusitanos – a ground Racing will call home while the temporary Olympic and Paralympic Games swimming pool at La Defense Arena is disassembled.
Such longevity in rugby is rare. Rodrigo Capo Ortaga broke the 400 mark for Castres, while Thibault Privat racked up 380-plus appearances in a career taking in spells at Clermont, Montpellier and Lyon.
He has played his entire 17-year professional career at Racing 92 – starting out with the ciel-et-blanc when they were in the ProD2 in 2007, and has both a ProD2 and a Top 14 winners’ medal to his name.
And the most experienced active player in the Top 14 today – who scored a try in a losing cause in his 399th club appearance against Castres last weekend – has more records in sight.
Record Looming
Injuries and selections willing, he could, this season, overtake Iosefa Tekori’s record of 326 Top 14 appearances. Yesterday’s outing was his 314th in the French top flight.
And it was a victorious one.
Henry Arundell scored his second try of the season, while Nolan Le Garrec touched down on his return from injury as Racing ran in four tries to beat Clermont 33-20.
Kick-off for the match between Stade Francais and Vannes was brought forward two hours at the request of local authorities to avoid a clash with an Olympic and Paralympic Games celebration parade on Paris’s Champs-Elysees.
Paul Gustard’s hermetic defence was the source of Stade’s success last season, sending them to second in the table, and into the semi-finals – where they were beaten by Bordeaux.
So far this season, however, it’s proved rather porous.
Bordeaux scored six tries against them in last week’s opener at Stade Chaban Del-mas, and, rather more worryingly perhaps, Vannes ran in five at Stade Jean Bouin yesterday afternoon.
Not that their defence seemed to be a problem early on.
Joe Marchant scored his first Top 14 try in the eighth minute – Stade’s second of the afternoon – as the Paris side raced into a four tries to two 24-10 half-time lead.
But they shipped three further scores in the second period as the Breton side proved they’re really not planning just to make up numbers in the French top flight.
It made for a nervy finish for the Parisians, as Vannes outscored them 21-10 in the closing minutes to claim their first Top 14 point, six days after hosting champions Toulouse.
Toulon come from behind
Enzo Herve kicked 21 points as a fairly dismal Toulon came from behind to pick up their first win of the season as they beat an ill-disciplined Castres 30-28 at Stade Mayol.
The visitors shipped 20 penalties, and had two players sin-binned, but still led 23-28 with two minutes left on the clock, before Setariki Tuicuvu skirted over in the corner to leave Herve a tricky conversion to claim the winners’ four points. His aim, and his boot, were both true.
“It was a difficult match, Castres came to play,” Herve said after the match. “They had us on the back foot all game. Now we have to stay calm, humble and keep working.”
“Pau became the first side to break the 50-point barrier this season in a 10-try thriller”
It’s a result, however, the visitors will rue. Better discipline would, most likely, have seen them claim a valuable win on the road – both sides clearly have plenty to work on ahead of next weekend’s matches: Castres are at home to Perpignan, while Toulon travel to Paris to face Stade Francais.
Other fixtures
It has been 10 years since Beziers’ Stade Raoul-Barrière last hosted a Top 14 match.
In 2014, then-champions Castres lost a season opening ‘home’ match against Stade Francais. For superstitious rugby fans, that may be an omen.
Certainly Perpignan supporters may be more likely to believe it after they lost their relocated ‘home’ match – with Stade Aime Giral unavailable during works to install a hybrid pitch – against Montpellier 7-26. Madosh Tambwe scored for the second match in a row following his inter-season switch from Bordeaux.
Pau became the first side to break the 50-point barrier this season. Scrum-half Thibault Daubagna, scored twice, and Aymeric Luc ran in the bonus-point try – his second of the afternoon – after the hooter, as Sebastien Picqueronies’ side beat Bayonne 51-29 in a thoroughly entertaining 10-try encounter.
Baptiste Couilloud’s impressive try-scoring form continued as Lyon beat Bordeaux 28-26 in Saturday’s final match at Stade Gerland.
The visitors’ young backrow Marko Gazotti, meanwhile, put in another impressive performance and must, surely, be under the international selectors’ microscope.
But it was Lyon’s Leo Berdeu who had the final word. He landed a difficult penalty after the hooter to retake the lead a minute after Damian Penaud had edged the visitors in front.
Tonight’s closing match of the second weekend promises to be a belter, as Ugo Mola’s Toulouse entertain Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle at Stade Ernest Wallon.
The home side have won 10 of the past 13 matches between the two sides – while their last meeting, on the final day of last season, ended in a 31-31 draw. Expect another close encounter of the tense kind: the average score when these clubs face off is 25-19.
But fans will have to wait a while longer for the expected return from injury of back row Anthony Jelonch. He was not named in the 23 for tonight’s match – but could now feature in their squad for Saturday’s trip to Montpellier.
O’Gara, meanwhile, has gone experimental for La Rochelle’s Haute-Garonne away day.
Antoine Hastoy gets a rare start at 15, with Ihaia West preferred at 10 for the second week in a row.
New second row signing Kane Douglas starts for the first time, while noted defensive liability Teddy Thomas moves from the wing to outside centre.
