Captain Jack Willis opened the scoring as French champions Toulouse hammered a weakened Bordeaux-Begles 56-13 in the Top 14 on Sunday.

Exiled England flanker Willis, who last week won the French league's player of the season award for 2024-2025, crossed for a fourth-minute try before Kalvin Gourgues, Thibauld Flament, Efrain Elias and the returning Italy back Ange Capuozzo all racked up first-half tries.

Leading 35-3 at the break, Toulouse had the game wrapped up.

Bordeaux-Begles, for whom Joseph Laharrague kicked a first-half penalty, opened their try-scoring account through France centre Nicolas Depoortere before Toulouse scrum-half Paul Graou went over for the home side's sixth five-pointer.

Anthony Jelonch and Matthis Lebel also notched up tries, with Thomas Ramos hitting all eight conversions as Toulouse bounced back in style from last week's 40-26 defeat by Bayonne.

Depoortere crossed for an injury-time second try for Bordeaux, a mere consolation in a proper thrashing.

 

Le @StadeToulousain a réagi en appliquant le tarif maison avec ce nouveau large succès bonifié à domicile 🏠#TOP14 pic.twitter.com/aqQJtthkY8

— TOP 14 Rugby (@top14rugby) October 12, 2025

 

English fly-half Joe Simmonds scored 22 points to lift Pau to the summit of Top 14 on Saturday with a 47-24 success over in-form Bayonne.

Simmonds, 28, crossed for a try and kicked 17 points from the tee as Pau won for a fourth time in six games this season.

Fiji centre Sireli Maqala dotted over for the Basque visitors, who had dominated champions Toulouse last Sunday but now drop down from top spot to fifth.

"We have to take the next step," Pau centre Fabien Brau-Boirie said.

"We can't keep telling ourselves we're a small team in the league. We have to be confident in our ability," the 19-year-old added.

Pau led 20-10 at the break, thanks to tries from Gregoire Arfeuil and hooker Lucas Rey as Simmonds contributed two conversions and two penalties.

Former Exeter playmaker Simmonds then added a further 13 points in the second half to make sure of victory.

Elsewhere, Stade Francais climbed to second behind Pau after Louis Carbonel's 81st-minute penalty claimed a 26-24 victory over two-time European champions La Rochelle, who are struggling in 11th.

 

🔥 𝑽𝑰𝑪𝑻𝑶𝑰𝑹𝑬 ! Nos Béarnais s'imposent au Hameau avec le bonus offensif ! #SPAB #TOP14 #HonhaSection pic.twitter.com/WLoPnVQvpG

— Section Paloise Béarn Pyrénées (@SectionPaloise) October 11, 2025

 

Maqala's compatriot, winger Jiuta Wainiqolo, was also on the scoresheet, crossing twice as Lyon hammered bottom side Perpignan 44-19.

Castres held on for a 32-28 win at promoted Montauban while another exciting Fijian back, Vinaya Habosi, crossed as Racing 92 held on to edge Montpellier 32-25 at home.

Later, Australian centre Alex Newsome took his tally for the season to four tries with a double to inspire Clermont to a 27-10 success over a much-changed Toulon.

Argentina pair Marcos Kremer and Bautista Delguy made their first appearances of the season for Les Jaunards but winger Delguy was forced off in the second half with a concussion.

On Sunday, there is a re-run of last season's final as holders Toulouse welcome Bordeaux-Begles, who have rested the league's top try scorer, Louis Bielle-Biarrey.

Exiled England flanker Jack Willis succeeded France scrum-half Antoine Dupont as the French Top 14's player of the season for 2024/2025 on Monday.

Willis claimed the award having helped Toulouse to a record-extending 24th French title with Dupont out injured, scoring two tries in June's final.

The 28-year-old joined Toulouse in 2022 after Wasps went into administration but is unable to add to his 15 England caps as he plays his club rugby abroad.

Willis pipped his teammate Thomas Ramos, who kicked 24 points last season's Top 14 decider, and Bayonne's Fiji centre Sireli Maqala to the award.

"I want to thank all my teammates," Willis said.

"They're not just great players but great guys.

"The past three years have been a dream for me," he added.

The back-rower became the first English winner since ex-Montpellier No 8 Zach Mercer in 2022, with Dupont having secured the prize each year since then.

Bordeaux-Begles winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey took the France international award having blitzed to 12 tries in eight tests last season as Les Bleus lifted the Six Nations Grand Slam.

Toulon winger Gael Drean scooped the breakthrough player of the season award while Montauban full-back Jerome Bosviel claimed the Pro D2 prize having guided the club to promotion to the Top 14.

No 8 Teani Feleu clinched the France women's player of the season gong after Les Bleues finished fourth the Rugby World Cup.

Bordeaux lock Madoussou Fall-Raclot won the Elite 1 award having helped her club to a third-straight league triumph.

Bayonne stormed to the French Top 14 summit with a stunning five-try 40-26 victory over champions Toulouse on Sunday.

Scores from Arthur Iturria, Baptiste Germain, Esteban Capilla, Cheikh Tiberghien and Tom Spring helped the Basques gain a measure of revenge for their Top 14 semifinal defeat to Toulouse last season.

Toulouse had led midway through the second half after tries from Matthis Lebel, Theo Ntamack and Georges-Henri Colombe, but despite bringing a string of France internationals off the bench, including lock Thibaud Flament and fly-half Thomas Ramos, they wilted in the final quarter.

And they paid for a wayward kicking performance from France fly-half Romain Ntamack, who missed two conversions and a penalty.

With top spot at stake, both teams came out firing in a lively opening.

Joris Segonds kicked Bayonne in front but moments later, Romain Ntamack's delightful chip kick gave Lebel the chance to acrobatically dive over in the corner.

Almost immediately, Bayonne were back up the other end and former England international Manu Tuilagi – who had a brilliant match – sucked in defenders before captain Arthur Iturria barged over from close range.

Segonds kicked another penalty but the Bayonne backline wilted under pressure just before the half-hour mark as hulking Toulouse No.8 Theo Ntamack – Romain's brother – ghosted through a gaping gap to score in the corner.

Incredibly, though, his brother, who had hit the post with his first conversion attempt, missed again.

In stark contrast, Segonds maintained his perfect record from the tee with a third successful penalty.

Centre Tuilagi was then yellow-carded for a cynical – and crunching – tackle on Theo Ntamack having failed to retreat 10 metres from a quickly taken penalty deep inside the Bayonne 22.

Romain Ntamack finally opened his account for the day, twice piercing the sticks to level the scores at 16-16 at the break.

TUILAGI DECISIVE

A third penalty from Ntamack at the start of the second period meant Tuilagi's sin-binning had been costly, turning a six-point lead into a three-point deficit for the Basques.

Bayonne almost responded immediately, but Australian No.8 Rob Leota's score after Toulouse spilt the restart was chalked off for a knock-on by winger Spring.

The champions' forward power and Bayonne indiscipline gave Ntamack another shot at the sticks but he missed for the third time.

Toulouse continued the uncharacteristic sloppiness when another spilt restart allowed Bayonne scrum-half Germain to score in the corner after good work from Tuilagi and flanker Capilla.

On the hour, replacement prop Colombe plunged over from close range and Ramos converted in front of the posts.

But a searing break from wing Arnaud Erbinartegaray set up Capilla to score and Segonds converted to give Bayonne a 28-26 lead with 10 minutes to play.

There was no Toulouse response as Bayonne ran away with it.

A typically barrelling run from Tuilagi set up the field position for Segonds to loft a long pass out to replacement full-back Tiberghien to barge through two tacklers and stretch out to score.

And Spring finished off a sweeping move in the final minute to leave the champions stunned.

Castres' Australian lock Tom Staniforth said Racing 92 centre Joey Manu has a chance of featuring for New Zealand at the 2027 Rugby World Cup before they meet each other in the French Top 14 on Saturday.

Manu joined Racing and their big-name backline including Gael Fickou and Josua Tuisova this summer after originally switching from rugby league to union with Japan's Toyota Verblitz in 2024.

The 29-year-old from Hamilton had spent eight years in the NRL, winning the Premiership twice with Staniforth's beloved Sydney Roosters and has looked comfortable in western Paris so far this campaign.

"He's been a freak for the Roosters for 10 years or so," Staniforth said.

"He's got some phenomenal players up there to learn from and to try and progress his rugby.

"I'm sure he'll be trying to aim for that World Cup with the All Blacks in two years," he added.

Former Wallabies under-20s second-row Staniforth moved to France with Castres five years ago, making a name for himself as one the Top 14's leading tacklers before a horror ankle injury in June 2024.

The 31-year-old made his return to competitive action on September 13 having gone to England for surgery on the ankle issue and recovering from contracting the staphylococcus bacteria.

Castres have stumbled so far this season, winning just one of their opening four games.

"It was a weird feeling because you just had so many emotions," Staniforth said of his return.

"I was a bit stressed, nervous, scared a little bit just because you just want it all to go well.

"You're not really actually thinking too much about the rugby, you just want to get through it," he added.

'UNREAL' PASSION 

Since Staniforth's arrival in rugby-mad Castres, with its population of 42 000 people just to the east of Toulouse, he has become a cult-figure at Stade Pierre-Fabre, which can hold more than quarter of the town's inhabitants.

The 198cm-tall forward helped them to the 2022 Top 14 final, and his iconic mullet haircut and heroic defensive efforts have won over the ardent supporter base at the club.

"I love how passionate they are," the jovial Staniforth said.

"Coming from Australia where rugby has really struggled for the past five, 10 years.

"To come to France where people genuinely love it.

"If you're playing well, the community's happy, flags are out and everything.

"It's unreal," he added.

The next Rugby World Cup will be held in Staniforth's home country but the former Brumbies and Waratahs forward remains focused on playing for five-time French champions Castres.

"I'm really happy here in France. It's not something I'm searching for, to play for the Wallabies," Staniforth said.

"I sort of knew when I left there, that the door was closing," he added.

Another giant Australian set to bulldoze his way in the Top 14 is prop Taniela Tupou, who will join this weekend's opponents in December and fluent French speaker Staniforth had advice for the front-rower.

"Enjoy the French lifestyle. Enjoy the different type of rugby," Staniforth said.

"Just take it all in and enjoy it because it's an incredible experience.

"Learn French and just try your best to enjoy it and to get settled in quickly," he added.

Fixtures (times GMT)

Saturday

Montpellier v La Rochelle (1230), Clermont v Montauban, Castres v Racing 92, Toulon v Pau, Perpignan v Stade Francais (1435), Bordeaux-Begles v Lyon (1900)

Sunday

Bayonne v Toulouse (1905)

The French Top 14 season starts on Saturday with several additions to its galaxy of star names, while other players have switched clubs within the league.

AFP Sport looks at five new signings who could have a significant impact on the upcoming campaign:

TANIELA TUPOU (Racing 92)

The 29-year-old Australia prop will join Racing 92's rebuild after the Rugby Championship.

Tupou, described as "an Australian pit bull with hands like a fairy" by sports newspaper L'Equipe, will compete with another hulking prop in Demba Bamba for the starting tight-head shirt in Paris as Patrice Collazo begins his first full season as head coach.

Tupou said when he was signed in July he had been struggling with mental health issues brought on by the pressure of international rugby, before earning a Wallaby recall and impressing during the British and Irish Lions tour and starting in the Rugby Championship.

Tupou is one of two stand-out names to arrive at Racing alongside rugby league convert Joseph Manu after Owen Farrell's acrimonious departure during the summer.

JORDAN PETAIA (Perpignan)

The 31-time capped Australian returns to rugby from the Los Angeles Chargers where he spent a year on the NFL's International Player Pathway programme.

The talented 25-year-old, who can play across the back-line, will be looking to return to the Australia squad, with a home Rugby World Cup on the horizon in 2027 and head coach Joe Schmidt now able to select foreign-based players.

NOLANN LE GARREC (La Rochelle)

The fleet-footed scrum-half moved from Racing 92 to Ronan O'Gara's La Rochelle.

He stood out during France's three test defeats by New Zealand in July and with others injured has a chance to cement his place in the national team.

Antoine Dupont will miss France's November tests against South Africa, Fiji and Australia with a long-term knee injury while Maxime Lucu is a doubt with a thumb problem.

Le Garrec joins an ageing La Rochelle squad which has also been boosted by fellow 23-year-old and Georgia full-back Davit Niniashvili.

JIUTA WAINIQOLO (Lyon)

The 26-year-old winger switches to Lyon in a surprise move after scoring 11 tries for Toulon last season.

The Tokyo Olympic gold medallist has been one of the league's most dangerous finishers since arriving at Stade Felix Mayol four years ago.

He will be joined in the Lyon back-line by compatriot Iosefo Masi, who replaces another Fijian, Semi Radradra, after the centre's move to Japan.

IGNACIO BREX (Toulon)

Toulon, three-time Champions Cup winners, needed a replacement for New Zealand-bound Leicester Fainga'anuku and turned to 33-year-old Italy centre Brex.

The 46-time international has formed a solid partnership with Tommaso Menoncello with the Azzurri and will add experience and an efficient defensive game to Toulon's attempt to win a first Top 14 title since Jonny Wilkinson's final season 11 years ago.

Reigning French Top 14 champions Toulouse begin their bid for a fourth straight domestic crown on Sunday still as the team to beat in the world's leading club competition.

The record 24-time winners head to Clermont to launch their campaign as they aim to match the achievement of their 1994-97 side, and Bordelais in the early 20th century, by lifting four consecutive titles.

They edged Bordeaux-Begles in a dramatic final in extra-time in June to continue their recent dominance of French rugby.

"We can only been proud, and the reason we are the hunted is because we have set a standard of performances," Toulouse centre Paul Costes told AFP and radio station RTL on Monday.

"Matches are hard because teams know they have to give everything against us," he added at the Top 14 season launch in Paris.

Club captain and France skipper Antoine Dupont remains sidelined having suffered a serious knee injury in March.

The 28-year-old scrum-half is not expected back until late November but has returned to training with Toulouse this summer.

Last month he was spotted watching the Serie A football game between Como and Lazio in northern Italy, alongside girlfriend and former Miss Universe Iris Mittenaere.

"It's Toto, he's the biggest personality in our sport," 22-year-old Costes said.

"Wherever he goes he'll be seen.

"I'm sure there are other players who have gone to other football or rugby matches, who weren't filmed, it's the only difference.

"He's doing well on the whole."

MINNOWS MONTAUBAN

The biggest threat to Toulouse's recent hegemony will come from Bordeaux-Begles and their star-studded back-line, including wingers Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Damian Penaud.

Penaud, France's record try scorer, was crucial to Bordeaux-Begles' Champions Cup triumph in May and they start their season against La Rochelle on Saturday.

"I'm only thinking of this match. It's the opening game of the season, it's very important," Penaud told L'Equipe this week.

"We will do like last season, we will play both competitions fully."

Penaud's fellow winger Bielle-Biarrey finished as the league's leading scorer last term in the 22-year-old's third full season at Bordeaux-Begles, having also crossed a record eight times in the Six Nations for France.

"I admire what he does at such a young age," Penaud said of his teammate. "He's good across all aspects of the game."

At the other end of the spectrum are promoted Montauban, located an hour north of Toulouse.

The 1967 champions return to the top flight for the first time since being relegated to the third tier for financial reasons in 2010, after winning the second-tier ProD2 promotion final despite finishing sixth in the table.

Despite having the league's lowest budget of 14 million euros ($16.3 million), 31 million euros less than Toulouse, captain Fred Quercy remains confident of their survival chances.

"We'll be the squad in the Top 14 that is the closest-knit," Quercy told AFP.

"We have experienced great things.

"I think Toulouse would have been less happy after winning the Top 14 than us winning the ProD2. For them it was normal, for us it was unimaginable.

"The hairs still stand up on the back of my neck.

"I feel good, I can't wait to see what we can do in the Top 14."

FIXTURES (times GMT)

Saturday

Montauban v Stade Francais (11am), Perpignan v Bayonne (1pm), Castres v Pau, Lyon v Racing 92 (3pm), Montpellier v Toulon (5pm), Bordeaux-Begles v La Rochelle (7:05pm)

Sunday

Clermont v Toulon (7:05pm)

Former New Zealand centre Ma'a Nonu has signed a one-year contract extension with Toulon at the age of 43, the French Top 14 club announced on Monday.

Nonu signed a short-term deal with the four-time French champions last season and became the oldest player to feature in the Top 14 in March.

The two-time World Cup winner returned to Toulon earlier this year after his first spell on the French Riviera between 2015-2018 and a shorter stint in 2020-2021.

He made 103 test appearances for the All Blacks, the last of which came in 2015.

Toulon also confirmed the arrival of seven new players next season including England No 8 Zach Mercer, Italy centre Juan Ignacio Brex and highly rated young French back-rower Patrick Tuifua.

Toulon lost to eventual runners-up Bordeaux-Begles in the Top 14 semifinals last season.

The new campaign starts on 6 September.

Bordeaux-Begles announced on Thursday the return of France forward Cameron Woki on a three-year deal from next season.

Woki, who can play at lock and in the back row, left the Champions Cup winners in 2022 for a spell at Racing 92.

The 26-year-old has been named on Les Bleus' bench for their first test against New Zealand on Saturday.

South Africa back-rower Jean-Luc du Preez from Sale and former New Zealand under-20s winger Salesi Rayasi from Vannes are among Bordeaux-Begles' other signings.

Bordeaux-Begles won the Champions Cup in May but missed out on the French Top 14 following an extra-time defeat to Toulouse in last Saturday's final.

The new Top 14 season begins on 6 September.

Full-back Thomas Ramos kicked two dramatic penalty goals in extra-time as Toulouse edged Bordeaux-Begles 39-33 on Saturday to claim a record-extending 24th French Top 14 title.

Ramos' ice-cold kicks consolidated Toulouse's place as the giants of French rugby and denied Bordeaux-Begles a domestic and continental double after lifting the Champions Cup last month.

The 29-year-old slotted 24 points in total as Toulouse secured a third straight Top 14 triumph and an 11th consecutive final victory in all competitions.

They were however knocked out of the Champions Cup in the semifinals by Bordeaux-Begles last month.

"With the massive slip-up we had in the Champions Cup we couldn't let another knock-out game pass us by," Ramos said.

"Bordeaux-Begles would have deserved it too... Tonight, we didn't doubt ourselves."

Lock Guido Petti and flanker Pierre Bochaton were shown yellow cards for Bordeaux-Begles before scrum-half Maxime Lucu slotted an 80th-minute penalty to send the game to extra-time.

Lucu's kick capped an impressive comeback after they had trailed by 10 points with as many minutes to play at the Stade de France.

On-fire winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey made his first appearance for Bordeaux-Begles since June 7 after recovering from concussion in Yannick Bru's only alteration from last Saturday's semifinal win over Toulon in Bayonne.

Toulouse head coach Ugo Mola made no changes from last Friday's victory over Bayonne with scrum-half Antoine Dupont still out with a serious knee injury.

 Bielle-Biarrey blow

After a breathless opening quarter in almost 30 degrees Celsius, the sides were level at 6-6 as Lucu and Ramos traded penalties.

It was a stark difference to last season's decider between the teams when Toulouse steamrolled to a 21-0 lead after just 24 minutes in Marseille, with the Stade de France unavailable due to the Paris Olympics.

Petti was yellow carded after half an hour with Toulouse pressing Bordeaux-Begles' line.

By halftime, both defences had been breached and Toulouse held a 20-16 advantage after No 8 Anthony Jelonch and flanker Jack Willis crossed either side of winger Damian Penaud's sublime effort for Bordeaux-Begles.

Bru's hopes of winning a first Top 14 title for the club only founded in 2006 suffered a blow at the break as Bielle-Biarrey failed to return from the changing rooms, with Arthur Retiere taking his place.

Despite Bielle-Biarrey's absence Bordeaux-Begles stayed in the game, as fly-half Matthieu Jalibert scored and Englishman Willis completed a double to make it 27-23 with half an hour to go.

The frantic tempo continued going into a tense final 25 minutes as Ramos slotted his third penalty of the game, with Bochaton yellow carded for a high tackle.

Ramos kicked another three points with Bochaton still in the bin as Mola's men took a stranglehold on the final.

But Petti crossed before Lucu kicked a 40-metre penalty as the fulltime gong rang around the stadium to send the match to 20 additional minutes.

Ramos succeeded with the crucial extra-time penalties to send the Toulouse fans delirious.

Bordeaux-Begles head coach Yannick Bru said on Friday winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey will start this weekend's French Top 14 final against Toulouse after a "spectacular change" in his concussion symptoms.

Frenchman Bielle-Biarrey has scored 33 tries this season for club and country, but has been sidelined since 7 June.

After last weekend's semifinal win over Toulon, Bru ruled the 22-year-old out of Saturday's decider in Paris, but Bielle-Biarrey has been named in the line-up for the game at the Stade de France.

"At the start of this week, he met a lot of specialists; he scored 10/10 in his neurological tests," Bru told reporters.

"The central question after that was 'Louis do you want to play?'

"He said 'It's out of the question that I don't play the final with my mates'.

"It's that journey that showed us quite quickly that Louis would be present. There was a spectacular change."

Bielle-Biarrey crossed for the last of his 13 league tries earlier this month, making him the Top 14's leading scorer this season.

He starts outside another 22-year-old, centre Nicolas Depoortere.

"It's always tough to be out of the squad and miss games like that, a semifinal," Depoortere said.

"He comes back in time for the final. Having the top scorer in the Top 14 by our side tomorrow is a plus."

Bielle-Biarrey has failed to score in just two of his last 16 appearances and played a crucial part in France's Six Nations success earlier this year.

"He's a player that walks on water," Toulouse head coach Ugo Mola told reporters.

"He's explosive, he is incredibly efficient. He's a player everyone would like to have in their team."

 'NO REVENGE' 

The final comes 12 months after Bordeaux-Begles suffered a record 59-3 hammering to Mola's Toulouse in the 2024 showpiece.

Since then, Bru's side have beaten the record 23-time French champions on three straight occasions.

"We understand fully that this match will be presented as a revenge, but we've never talked about revenge," Bru said.

"That means stiffness, anger, things that blind you a little bit.

"On the contrary, in a final what's crucial is to have your eyes wide open."

One of those victories came in the Champions Cup semifinals.

Three weeks later Bordeaux-Begles lifted the continental crown, beating English club Northampton in the final at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

"It will stand for nothing," former Toulouse hooker Bru said.

"The Cardiff final is so far away, we were Champions Cup winners but it's behind us.

"We don't wake up and say 'We have to do the double' when we are having a shave.

"The double would be the consequence of something to show that we've evolved to be more consistent like Toulouse in a final."

Hooker Maxime Lamothe scored a historic hat-trick as Bordeaux-Begles beat Toulon 39-24 on Saturday to set-up a repeat of last season's French Top 14 final.

Lamothe became the first player to score three tries in a Top 14 knock-out game which helped clinch a place in next Saturday's decider in Paris against holders and record 23-time champions Toulouse.

Bordeaux-Begles will now eye a double after winning the Champions Cup a month ago and seek revenge for being hammered 59-3 in last year's domestic final.

New Zealand centre Leicester Fainga'anuku, Fiji winger Setariki Tuicuvu and Georgia prop Beka Gigashvili were Toulon's try-scorers in their first French semifinal since 2017.

Bordeaux-Begles may have won the Champions Cup last month but for prop Jefferson Poirot they remain "underdogs" for Saturday's French Top 14 semifinal with Toulon.

Poirot's side finished second in the league table at the end of the regular season having claimed their maiden major crown by powering past Northampton on 24 May.

They head to a sold-out Groupama Stadium in Lyon to face four-time French champions Toulon, who hammered Castres 52-23 in last weekend's play-off.

"I think you have to forget it altogether," former France captain Poirot told reporters on Monday.

"It would be very dangerous to think that because we have the Champions Cup we're owed something in the league.

"Right now in the Top 14 we're still underdogs, we haven't won anything.

"We're playing Toulon who have historically left their mark on the competition, unlike us," he added.

The 32-year-old Poirot will make his first appearance since the final victory over Saints after being handed a two-week suspension for his role in a post-match incident with the English club's back-rower Henry Pollock.

"I was really scared of not being able to play," Poirot said.

"I would have had a lot of regrets if I wasn't able to help the team in a moment like this one," he added.

'WASTED A BULLET'

Poirot is set to come up against good friend and former teammate in Toulon scrum-half Baptiste Serin on Saturday.

The pair used to share rooms on away trips before Serin headed to the French Riviera in 2019. The half-back's opposite number will be the equally influential Maxime Lucu, who acts as Antoine Dupont's stand-in with France.

"They are two important players for their teams," Poirot said.

"I think we have a little Lucu-dependance and they have a little Serin-dependance.

"They control the game but not in the same way.

"Max will get the team playing more, Baptiste will be a bit more of a catalyst," he added.

In the other last-four tie, Toulouse play Bayonne who won every home game this season to secure fourth spot and a first-ever appearance in the Top 14 post-season play-offs.

Toulouse, meanwhile, who last season clinched a third Champions Cup/Top 14 double, are looking to avoid just a second trophyless season since 2019.

The record 23-time French champions were knocked-out of this campaign's Champions Cup in the semis by Poirot's Bordeaux-Begles but ended top of the league table scoring a record 891 points.

"We wasted a bullet," Toulouse scrum-half Paul Graou told newspaper La Depeche du Midi this week.

"We have another title to defend," he added.

Graou has been Toulouse's first-choice No 9 since superstar Dupont suffered a serious knee injury in March.

"Antoine is an exceptional player," Graou said with Dupont not expected to return before at least October.

"We can't wait to have him back but it's up to us to take control and make sure the team plays as well as possible," the 27-year-old added.

FIXTURES (all times GMT)

Friday

Toulouse v Bayonne (7:05pm)

Saturday

Bordeaux-Begles v Toulon (7:05pm)

Former England captain Owen Farrell is returning to Saracens after spending a season in France with Racing 92, the English Premiership club announced on Monday.

The 33-year-old flyhalf, who has signed a two-year deal, previously had a 16-year spell at the London club, making his professional debut at the age of 17.

In his first stint, he won six Premiership and three European titles.

The former Saracens captain has made 256 appearances for the club, as well as 112 for England, and has won six test caps for the British and Irish Lions

"Saracens is my home and the opportunity to come back is one that excites me enormously," he said.

"Having watched from afar this season, it is clear to see that the club has incredible potential, and I can't wait to get back in the mix for the 25/26 season."

Director of rugby Mark McCall said the playmaker has "Saracens in his DNA".

"His competitive spirit is woven into the fabric of this club, and we are delighted he has chosen to come home," he said.

"He returns to a young group full of potential, players eager to learn, play, and push for success. We know he will love being part of where this group and this club are headed."

Sharp-shooting Melvyn Jaminet helped Toulon power past Castres 52-23 in Saturday's French Top 14 play-off to set up a semifinal clash with Bordeaux-Begles next weekend.

Jaminet scored the first of Toulon's six second-half tries, adding a further 22 points with his boot.

Castres had kept the home side on their toes in an evenly-matched first half, with only two points the difference in Toulon's favour at halftime.

But they were swept aside after the break, with Jaminet's 50th minute try opening the floodgates for touchdowns from Baptiste Serin, Facundo Isa, Ben White, Ma'a Nonu and Jiuta Wainiqolo.

On Friday, Bayonne crushed Clermont with a dominant 20-3 win in the first play-off to set up a semifinal showdown with reigning record 23-time champions Toulouse.

Returning to the knock-out stage of the French championship for the first time in 33 years, Bayonne mastered the wet conditions best to remain undefeated at home this season.

Clermont, champions in 2010 and 2017, never got into the game which was played in stormy weather with persistent rain preventing play from developing.

Bayonne face Toulouse next Friday in Lyon, with Toulon taking on Bordeaux-Begles 24 hours later.

The Top 14 final takes place on June 28 in Paris.

Tommaso Allan booted a late penalty earlier Saturday as Perpignan preserved their Top 14 spot by beating Grenoble, losers in French rugby's second-division final, 13-11 in a promotion playoff.

In a tense game of repeated lead changes, Romain Trouilloud had booted the hosts ahead with sixth minutes to play. The Perpignan pack forced one last penalty and Allan converted.

Perpignan had finished 13th out of the 14 teams in the top flight to give themselves one more chance, away to the losers of the D2 final.

Grenoble topped D2 but had lost the final of the six-team playoff for the third time to force them into another do-or-die match.

The defeat also marked the second time in three years that Perpignan had beaten Grenoble in the playoff.

Bayonne crushed Clermont with a dominant 20-3 win in Friday's French Top 14 playoff to set up a semifinal showdown with reigning champions Toulouse.

Returning to the knockout stage of the French championship for the first time in 33 years, Bayonne mastered the wet conditions best to remain undefeated at home this season.

Clermont, champions in 2010 and 2017, never got into the game which was played in stormy conditions with persistent rain preventing play from developing.

The winner of the tie at a sold-out Stade Jean-Dauger will now face record 23-time champions Toulouse next Friday in Lyon.

Bayonne's hopes of reaching the last four had been dealt a blow with former England centre Manu Tuilagi sidelined with a rib issue.

But they were dominant throughout, with flyhalf Joris Segonds scoring two penalties and a drop goal, his fourth of the season, in the first half.

Clermont's Argentinian veteran Benjamin Urdapilleta, in his final professional appearance, accounted for their only points with a penalty for 9-3 after 27 minutes.

Flyhalf Camille Lopez came off the bench after 55 minutes for the hosts and proved decisive against his former team with his first kick setting up Tom Spring to finish behind the line (14-3).

"We weren't up to the task in many areas," said Clermont manager Christophe Urios.

"It's not a problem of adaptation, it's more a problem of attitude, behaviour, and solidity.

"The best team won. My overwhelming feeling is one of bitterness."

On Saturday, Toulon host Castres with a semifinal spot against Bordeaux-Begles at stake.

The Top 14 final takes place on 28 June in Paris.

Toulon entertain Castres in the French Top 14 play-offs on Saturday with centre Leicester Fainga'anuku hoping his time on the Cote d'Azur is extended for at least another week.

Fainga'anuku will end his two-year stay at Toulon at the end of the season before going back to the Crusaders.

The 25-year-old arrived at Stade Mayol after the 2023 Rugby World Cup and has scored 15 tries in 38 appearances for the southern outfit.

"The real reason for my departure is that with my partner Terena we have a son and we think it's important that Zaya can spend time with family and friends back at home," Fainga'anuku told newspaper L'Equipe this week.

"We love Toulon but we owe that to our son," he added.

Fainga'anuku's return to New Zealand will offer him the chance to add to his seven test appearances with All Blacks coach Scott Robertson barred from selecting players based abroad.

The Tonga-born midfielder has kept in touch with Robertson during his spell in the Top 14 as he helped Toulon to a third-placed finish in the table.

"He likes to know how things are going for me here," Fainga'anuku said of Roberston.

"We talk in a friendly way.

"I like a lot that he's left the door open for me with the All Blacks," he added.

'CONTRASTING FEELINGS'

This weekend, Fainga'anuku will have his focus on claiming a semifinal spot against Bordeaux-Begles with a win over Castres, who were in sixth place at the end of the regular season.

The Top 14 final takes place on June 28 in Paris.

"I have contrasting feelings," Fainga'anuku said.

"I'm excited to go home but at the same time, I will miss life here," he added.

In the other play-off, Bayonne return to the knock-out stages of the French top division for the first time since 1992 as they host Clermont, champions in 2010 and 2017.

The Basque outfit avoided the relegation play-off last season by just eight points but are the only unbeaten outfit at home in the competition this term.

The winner of the tie at a sold-out Stade Jean-Dauger will face record 23-time champions Toulouse next Friday in Lyon in the other semi.

Bayonne's hopes of reaching the last four have been dealt a blow with former England centre Manu Tuilagi sidelined with a rib issue to face Les Jaunards.

"It's going to be fricking incredible," Bayonne's English lock Alex Moon told this week's Rosbifs Rugby Podcast about the game.

"They're a big team, it's about getting the body fresh because it's going to be physical" the 28-year-old added.

Elsewhere this weekend, second-tier Grenoble face the Top 14's Perpignan in the promotion play-off.

It's the Pro D2 outfit's third straight involvement in the fixture after a loss to Montpellier last season and defeat to the Catalans two years ago.

Fixtures

Friday

Bayonne v Clermont (8:05pm)

Saturday

Grenoble v Perpignan (4pm)

Toulon v Castres (8:05pm)

Ex-New Zealand scrumhalf Tawera Kerr-Barlow will leave La Rochelle to join fellow French side Stade Francais next season, the Parisian club announced on Wednesday.

Kerr-Barlow has signed a two-year deal in the French capital.

The 34-year-old joined La Rochelle in 2017, months after playing the last of his 29 All Blacks tests.

🆕 Tawera Kerr-Barlow sera parisien en 2025 !

L’ex-international All Black s’engage avec le club de la capitale pour deux saisons.

Bienvenue Tawera ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/bLyXve66CH

— Stade Français Paris (@SFParisRugby) June 11, 2025

He lifted the Champions Cup in 2022 and 2023 with La Rochelle.

Stade Francais, who finished in 12th place in the Top 14 this season, already have Kerr-Barlow's fellow ex-New Zealand half-back Brad Weber in their squad.

The 14-time champions also announced the arrival of prop Thierry Paiva – a former teammate of Kerr-Barlow at La Rochelle.

Namibia's Gerswin Mouton has experienced a path less trodden by most professional rugby players, but that will count for nothing as he aims to help fire Grenoble to the French Top 14 on Saturday.

Since the 25-year-old winger was dropped by the Bulls after high school, he has studied politics while playing at university in Johannesburg, featured at a World Cup and signed a short-term contract in Israel.

This weekend, in-form Mouton and his Grenoble side face unfancied Montauban in the final of France's second-tier Pro D2, 80 minutes away from the promised land of the Top 14, the world's richest league.

"It's what I've been striving for my whole career," Mouton told AFP on Wednesday.

"It took me seven years to get to this point.

"So if we can pull it off this weekend, it will be truly a dream come true for me with all the sacrifice and everything that I had to make."

Mouton, who can also slot in at centre, made the first of his nine test appearances for the Welwitschias in 2022 before scoring twice at the World Cup in France a year later.

His performances earned him a contract at Tel-Aviv Heat in Rugby Europe's Super Cup but they played all their games abroad following an attack on Israel launched by Hamas on 7 October 2023 from the Gaza Strip.

"I didn't really spend time in Israel because of everything that was happening at that time," Mouton said.

"We travelled quite a lot.

"We went to Portugal, Spain, and then we stayed in Cyprus for a few weeks," he added.

'AMAZING'

Mouton joined Grenoble, nestled in the French Alps and their snow-capped mountains, this season and has scored 14 tries, including 10 of them in his last six games.

At the end of the campaign, his focus will turn to Namibia, ranked 25th in the world, and July's qualifying tournament for the 2027 World Cup, weeks after hosting Italy in a one-off test.

"Once the weekend is out of the way, I can start focusing on that," Mouton added.

"But I'm quite excited for what's to come because we're going to play Italy in Namibia. That's quite a big deal for us."

The politics graduate from Wits University will have a Namibian reunion at a sold-out Stade Ernest-Wallon, the 19 000-capacity home of French giants Toulouse, this weekend.

Experienced lock Tjiuee Uanivi is set to feature for Montauban, who only stayed in the second-tier thanks to winning a relegation play-off last season.

"It will be quite nice to play against him," Mouton said.

"I really don't want to lose because he will rub it in my face when we have to go back to Namibia."

Saturday offers Mouton's club, French first division champions in 1954, a chance at redemption.

They finished top of the table after the regular season having tasted defeat in two straight Pro D2 finals as they eye a return to the Top 14 after relegation in 2019.

"I think for the club it will be more personal because of the past two years," Mouton said.

"So if we can go and pull this one off this year, it will be amazing."

Fixture

Saturday

Grenoble v Montauban (5:30pm)

Former French rugby powerhouse Biarritz have been relegated to the third tier over concerns about their financial situation, France's national rugby league announced on Monday.

The league said in a statement it had "demoted the club for financial reasons to the French national championship (third tier) at the end of the 2024/2025 season".

The body further justified its decision, citing Biarritz's "worsening financial situation and the uncertainties surrounding their ability to continue operating".

The club, which played in the second division this season, have also been deducted six points for next season.

Biarritz said immediately they would appeal.

"The club intends to cooperate fully with the competent authorities by providing all the necessary evidence of its good faith, rigorous management and legitimacy to play in the Pro D2 (second division)," Biarritz said in a statement.

The Basque country club finished the season in mid-table, thus avoiding relegation on the pitch.

Biarritz reached the Champions Cup final in 2010 and won the Challenge Cup two years later, but have since fallen on hard times.

They were relegated to the second tier of French rugby in 2014 and only returned to the first division Top 14 for one season, in 2021-2022.

Last year, Biarritz were taken over by a trio of former players led by Shaun Hegarty, who sought out prominent financial backers to ensure the club's status in the second division.