James Harrington

1 week ago | therugbypaper.co.uk | James Harrington

The decision, when it came, was no great surprise. ProD2 side Biarritz, relegated for financial reasons shortly after the end of their campaign, learned on Friday that they had been reinstated on appeal – but would start next season with a three-point deduction. In a statement on its website, the club said it was, “proud and relieved” to learn of its survival in the second-tier of French rugby, which came less than a week before the players were due to start returning to training.

2 weeks ago | irishexaminer.com | James Harrington

Cruelty, thy name is ‘Top 14 Access Match’. ProD2 side Grenoble have now hosted — and lost — the last three of these annual winner-takes-all promotion-relegation play-offs against the side that finished 13th in the Top 14, each one coming a week after they lost the ProD2 final. They may have had home advantage on the day, but all the other positives were in favour of opponents Perpignan.

2 weeks ago | irishexaminer.com | James Harrington

“It’s the end of a cycle,” Ronan O’Gara declared after La Rochelle lost 32-18 at Pau on the final night of the regular Top 14 season to slip out of the top six and miss out on the play-offs for the first time since 2018. “We need new ideas, new players, new tactics, a complete overhaul, and much more consistency,” O’Gara told journalists in the post-match press conference.

3 weeks ago | irishexaminer.com | James Harrington

Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle missed out on a place in the Top 14 play-offs for the first time since 2017 as they lost 32-15 at Pau to slip down to seventh in the table, one point behind Castres. On a tense final regular season night, in which the lead at Stade du Hameau changed hands more than once, two late tries decided the result in favour of the home side, who claimed the eighth and final Champions Cup place.

4 weeks ago | irishexaminer.com | James Harrington

Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle gave themselves every chance of qualifying for the Top 14 play-offs with a bonus-point five-try 38-15 win over struggling Perpignan at Stade Marcel Deflandre. But their fifth victory in a row, ensuring they head into the final round of the regular season in sixth place – came at a price.