This Week's Biggest Matches on Rugby Pass

The weekend’s four most mouthwatering matches from the Aviva Premiership and Top 14 … Probably

Aviva Premiership: Northampton v Bristol (Saturday, January 7, 11pm HKT)

While Newcastle v Bath could be an entertaining and high-scoring affair, and second face third as Saracens entertain Exeter, for sheer tension and drama, you could do worse than look at the teams at the other end of the table. It would be disingenuous to say that basement club Bristol are on ‘a run’ – two wins in two would not normally constitute ‘a run’ but after 10 defeats in 10, it marks a definite turnaround in fortunes. They edged past Sale by a single point at the AJ Bell Stadium last week – and would take a similar result this week, especially as nearest rivals Worcester are at Gloucester, and Sale – who are nervously looking over their shoulders at the looming relegation zone after that loss – are at Harlequins.

Top 14: La Rochelle v Castres Olympique (Sunday, January 8, 3.45am HKT)

La Rochelle’s Stade Marcel Deflandre is a fortress. Visiting sides rarely breach its defences. So far this season eight Top 14 teams have tried – all have failed, though three came close and returned home heads held high with a hard-earned draw. And second-placed La Rochelle are a team on fire. They have notched 40 points in their last three games, against Gloucester in the Challenge Cup, and against Bayonne and Grenoble in the Top 14. Accepting the Deflandre challenge this week are fifth-placed Castres Olympique – who themselves ran in seven tries in a 47-18 demolition of Bayonne last time out. There’s not much to choose between the two sides – La Rochelle have scored 394 points and conceded 285, while Castres have scored 392 and conceded 300. So expect a high-scoring encounter as the second and third-most potent attacks in the Top 14 go head to head.

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Aviva Premiership: Wasps v Leicester Tigers (Sunday, January 8, 11pm HKT)

In his worst nightmares, Leicester’s interim boss Aaron Mauger could not have dreamt of a more difficult start to his tenure in the Tigers’ big chair. On top of news that Manu Tuilagi is out for the rest of the season, he faces a mission impossible at free-scoring Premiership leaders Wasps, who have won five out of their last six games in all competitions. Dai Young’s side scored more than 100 tries in the 2016 calendar year, including 48 in the current campaign alone – to put Newcastle’s professional-era 85-tries-in-a season record set in 1998-99 in sight (even Richmond’s 96 tries in a 26-game campaign is not out of reach); while long-forgotten England man Christian Wade equalled Mark Cueto’s 90-Premiership-try record, and also set a new mark for individual touchdowns in a single year – 19. It could be a tough first match-day at the office for Leicester’s new man in charge.

Top 14: Clermont v Toulon (Monday, January 9, 4am HKT)

Two of the biggest teams in French rugby round up the weekend’s action at Stade Marcel Michelin. And it is set to be a juicy encounter, because 2014 champions Toulon are something of a bogey side for Clermont, who – like La Rochelle – have an unbeaten home record to defend in front of their vociferous and passionate fans. But Toulon – in a competition where away wins are historically as rare as hens’ teeth – have one of the best away records of any team in the French league … and have beaten their rivals six times in their last seven meetings, including a ground-shaking 35-9 thumping in the Auvergne last season.