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The Six Nations is taking a breather this weekend, but there’s still a full schedule of Aviva Premiership and Top 14 rugby to enjoy. Here are five matches you probably shouldn’t miss.
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Top 14: La Rochelle vs Stade Francais (Saturday, February 18, 9.45pm HKT)
The fans at La Rochelle’s Stade Marcel Deflandre are so passionate and partisan that, by comparison, the crowd at the Principality Stadium during the weekend’s Wales-England Six Nations’ encounter were indulging merely in gentle ripples of polite and restrained applause. To be fair to the rabid Rochellais faithful, they have plenty to shout about this season. They are top of the table, and playing some astonishing rugby. Expect another exhibition as they entertain struggling 2015 champions Stade Francais.
Aviva Premiership: Bath vs Harlequins (Saturday, February 18, 11pm HKT)
It’s a little more than just fourth against sixth in the Aviva Premiership, as Bath welcome Quins to the Rec. The hosts ended a three-match Premiership losing run against Northampton last time out, while the visitors have only lost once since New Year’s Day – but have not won three in a row away from home since 2013. They have, however, beaten Bath in their last three meetings. Something has to give.
Top 14: Pau vs Grenoble (Sunday, February 19, 1.30am HKT)
The Top 14 usually has one surprise team that surpasses all expectation. Castres beat a star-studded Toulon in 2013 to lift the Brennus; Oyonnax – having avoided relegation by eight minutes the previous season – finished sixth in 2014 to book their place in the following season’s Champions Cup; Stade Francais, for all their history, were unexpected champions in 2015. This year, the French domestic competition has two shock sides: current leaders La Rochelle, and Simon Mannix’s Pau, who are currently in the play-off places and on a five-match winning run that has seen them claim some notable scalps. Another Pau win against relegation dogfighters Grenoble at Stade Hameau seems likely, but the visitors won’t want to give up their Top 14 survival hopes just yet.
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Aviva Premiership: Newcastle Falcons vs Northampton Saints (Sunday, February 19, 11pm HKT)
Kingston Park has hosted its fair share of close Premiership encounters of the epic kind this season, as Dean Richards continues to build something a little special in north-east England. But at the moment something is amiss. The Falcons appear stuck in the mid-season doldrums, with just one win in their last four games. Northampton, meanwhile, are looking to kickstart a run that hit the buffers last time out against Bath – but with a number of key players away on international duty, they could find a return to winning ways hard to come by.
Top 14: Montpellier vs Toulouse (Monday, February 20, 12midnight HKT)
The last game of the rugby weekend pits two forward-thinking powerhouses against each other as third-place Montpellier entertain seventh-placed Toulouse. For both sides, a place in the top six is a must in a competition so tight that just five points (ie. a bonus-point win) separates third, which comes with home advantage in the play-off barrage matches and a place in the Champions Cup next season, and eighth, which means no play-offs and a berth in Europe’s second-tier Challenge Cup.
