Cast yourself back to June 17th when Stade Rochelais was merely 2½ minutes from marking the grandest day of their 126-year history. They’d set foot in Stade de France for the typical ostentation and festivity around the French Championship final, where both teams were ceremoniously introduced to President Emmanuel Macron before commencing the game. Their Champions Cup trophy was already safely tucked away, and having been victorious in 13 out of their last 14 matches, they were seemingly poised to secure a glorious double.
They were leading reigning champions Toulouse by a score of 26-22 as the 77th minute ticked over. In the 74th minute, Romain Ntamack had expertly kicked a penalty into the corner leading into a touch-and-goal. The enthusiast fans of La Rochelle were eagerly envisioning the club’s inaugural Bouclier de Brennus, while Toulouse’s loyal followers accepted an impending defeat.
But astonishingly, Ntamack intercepted ruck ball within the Toulouse 10m line, skillfully outmaneuvered UJ Seuteni and Dillyn Leyds, then surged past him and Brice Dulin. Raymond Rhule rushed to intervene, but Ntamack was unstoppable.
This event undoubtedly claims its place as one of the most suspenseful and impressive matches within the illustrious French championship’s history. After the upset, a flabbergasted Ronan O’Gara could only gaze blankly ahead on the pitch, much like his team players and their followers.
However, subsequent to last May’s devastation, the team’s performance in the campaign so far has been noticeably lacklustre, an issue exacerbated by the pressures of the World Cup. At the analogous point in the preceding season, La Rochelle had secured four more wins (17 versus 13) and suffered four fewer losses (eight as opposed to a dozen), when considering both the Top 14 and Champions Cup collectively.
Nevertheless, James Coughlan, a former Munster number eight who has dedicated the last ten years to French club rugby as both a player and a coach with stints at Pau, Aix, Brice, and Toulon, doesn’t suggest that O’Gara’s team are psychologically hampered by their humbling defeat last June.
He commented, “I don’t believe so. They’ve surely put that behind them. In my conversation with Donnacha Ryan, the forwards coach at La Rochelle, he said: ‘James, if we had nine more chances to play that final, we would win the game. It’s just that Ntamack did something extraordinary.’”
“Perhaps there were lingering wounds, yet they managed to overcome them. They took some time off, possibly a holiday, and I believe they were able to move forward, with the World Cup providing a certain distraction. My worry resides more with the French players who took part in the World Cup, over the setback of La Rochelle losing that final.”
Nine victories from ten home games in the Top 14 at their stronghold Stade Marcel Deflandre have been registered this season, making it 11 victories from 13 overall. On the flip side, they’ve suffered nine defeats from ten on the road in the Top 14. Yet, they have chalked up two victories from three in their Champions Cup away fixtures, along with ten back-to-back knockout match victories in this same tournament. To quote Coughlan, these stats really “do the talking.”
“Cup fixtures don’t revolve around league performances, it’s about devising a sound strategy and ‘Rog’ is a master at that. He has shown this skill time and time again, in places like La Rochelle, Marseilles, and Dublin,” Coughlan notes, referring to the semi-final and two final victories over Leinster in the past triad of seasons.
This was vividly demonstrated last May at the Aviva, where despite Leinster storming into a 17-0 lead with three tries in the first 12 minutes, and a comfortable 23-7 lead just after thirty minutes, they were subsequently bested by a 20-3 comeback.
“The striking part in Dublin was the absence of any panic. They stuck to their original strategy, which indicates that he has a team that has unwavering belief in the plan he presents. If you’re able to persuade a group by saying: ‘Even if Leinster gets ahead, they’ll eventually buckle, they’ll buckle, they’ll buckle,’ and they trust in your words, it proves his credibility.”
In the game’s concluding set piece, 24-year-old substitute lock Thomas Lavault opted for a tail throw from substitute hooker Quentin Lespiaucq-Brettes before La Rochelle dispatched the ball beyond the dead-ball line to end the game.
I conveyed to Donnacha about his bravest throw-in at a lineout I had ever witnessed during a match. The risky nature of the move, especially at such a significant time in the game, demonstrated to me that the players have faith in their coaching staff, because the decision ended up bringing home the victory.
In the past two Champions Cup knockout phases, there have only been two victories for the visiting team in 23 contests. Both were clinched by La Rochelle, each by a narrow one-point margin. Last Saturday saw them bouncing back from a 16-point deficit to triumph over the Stormers in Cape Town. Following this, O’Gara directed the team straight to Cork, a move that Coughlan labels masterful.
This season, La Rochelle has had a mixed performance, but they appear to be improving. Even when they were trailing 16-0 against the Stormers, they remained composed, which mirrored their performance in the previous May’s final. Despite the challenging scenario, the team continued with their strategies, leading to yet another impressive recovery.
However, throughout the competition, La Rochelle has had its fair share of problems, primarily due to inconsistency. According to Coughlan, this issue has been highlighted by ‘Rog’, particularly after their 28-17 defeat to struggling Lyons in February. Despite being ahead of the French team 14-3 in just the first 15 minutes of the match, La Rochelle’s game deteriorated considerably.
In his discussion with the press, O’Gara admitted not being disheartened given how well they had practiced. He confessed the team’s focus being diverted to property prices on the Île de Ré instead of the game itself. He questioned their priorities – in terms of being rich in real estate versus match accolades.
O’Gara criticised the team’s performance, citing a lack of anything positive. He lamented the defeat, describing it as a catastrophic ordeal for the club. He dismissed excuses such as player absence and expressed disappointment in their inability to capitalise on their early lead against a vulnerable LOU [Lyons]. This, he remarked, was a true reflection of their training performance.
Coughlan expressed dissatisfaction with how the club was portrayed on the previous Saturday, accusing it of failing to demonstrate respect for its fans and its own values, referring to it as downright disgraceful. There are other possible hitches in La Rochelle’s operations as Coughlan notes Antoine Hastoy’s missed kicks that shouldn’t have been and Skelton’s lack of substantial presence. Although Skelton has only started in nine of La Rochelle’s matches this season, he has been present in all of their five Champions Cup matches.
Coughlan shows some worry about Leinster’s substitute front-row and Andrew Porter’s need to put in over 70 minutes of play for both region and nation. In his observation, whenever Joel Sclavi comes on, he always manages to score. Interestingly, despite appearing as a backup in 26 of his 38 games over the past two seasons, Sclavi scored a key last-minute close-range try, securing his ninth try in that period. A revelation pointing towards something more.
Coughlan suggests that La Rochelle’s forwards, other than their imposing size, have been successfully set by Donnacha in the scoring zone. Beyond defeating La Rochelle with a 16-9 win last December at Stade Deflandre, Coughlan suggests another inspiring factor for Leinster – Ireland’s impressive win against France in Marseilles. He wonders if such a morale-boosting victory would give the Leinster team additional confidence.
Given that 10 Leinster XV starters played in the 38-17 victory, along with five others from the matchday 23, it’s likely. Noteworthy players such as Jonathan Danty, Reda Wardi, Uini Atonio, Paul Boudehent, and Grégory Alldritt all contributed that evening.
However, Alldritt was missing in Leinster’s win in December. Taking advantage of the post-World Cup, Alldritt emerged refreshed after a two-month break. Conversely, influential players like Rhule, Wardi, and hooker Pierre Bourgarit remain out of action due to injuries.
In the eyes of Coughlan, Joe McCarthy’s rise has been a game-changing factor. In his opinion, McCarthy particularly shone in the Deflandre match back in December, even though he was issued a yellow card, albeit for the right reason. This was because he showed determination by never retreating.
To Coughlan, formerly the number eight at Munster, Leinster’s half-back situation seems to be more stable with Gibson-Park, who he asserts is performing at par with some of the best ‘9s’ globally, the only exception being their competitor in Toulouse.
Coughlan opines that if he were in Leinster’s coaching team, he would study South Africa’s strategical win over France – a similar game plan with an identical type of players. He believes that they have one of the key figures [Jacques Nienaber] who formulated that plan to tackle the robust pack of French forwards.
Coughlan also indicated towards Eben [Etzebeth]’s high ball on the edge, speculating that something similar might be part of their strategy. He praised the new coach [Nienaber] who has built a reputation for devising such specific plans and the team’s capability to proceed and clench the victory.
Coughlan has successfully forecasted the last four encounters between these teams and his prediction for the next one is in favour of Leinster. He couldn’t pin down the reasons but mentioned the 17-0 lead they lost in the finals, expressing confidence that they must’ve learned from it. Conceding the possibility of being incorrect, he nonetheless feels that Leinster will just about manage to pull through.