2011–12 Top 14 season

2011–12 Top 14 season
Countries France
ChampionsToulouse
Runners-upToulon
RelegatedBrive
Lyon
Matches played183
Attendance2,566,416
(average 14,024 per match)
Top point scorer Jonny Wilkinson (273)
Top try scorer Timoci Nagusa (11)

The 2011–12 Top 14 competition was a French domestic rugby union club competition operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR). Home-and-away play began on August 26, 2011. Two new teams from the 2010–11 Rugby Pro D2 season were promoted to Top 14 this year, Lyon and Bordeaux Bègles in place of the two relegated teams, La Rochelle and Bourgoin.

Toulouse claimed the Bouclier de Brennus as champions for the 19th time, defeating Toulon 18–12 in the final on June 9, 2012, at Stade de France in Saint-Denis. At the other end of the table, Brive and Lyon were relegated.

Competition format

Each club played every other club twice. The second half of the season was conducted in the same order as the first, with the club at home in the first half of the season away in the second. This season maintained the format introduced the previous season for the knockout stage: the top two teams qualified directly to the semifinals, while teams ranked from third to sixth qualified for a quarterfinal held at the home ground of the higher-ranked team.

The teams

Locations of the 2011–12 Top 14 teams
Team Captain Head coach Stadium Capacity
Agen Adri Badenhorst Christophe Deylaud
Christian Lanta		 Stade Armandie 14,600
Bayonne Pépito Elhorga Didier Faugeron Stade Jean-Dauger 16,934
Biarritz Imanol Harinordoquy Jack Isaac and
Jean-Michel Gonzalez		 Parc des Sports Aguiléra 15,000
Bordeaux Bègles Matthew Clarkin Marc Delpoux
Laurent Armand
Vincent Etcheto		 Stade André Moga 9,088
Brive Antonie Claassen Ugo Mola Stade Amédée-Domenech 15,000
Castres Alexandre Albouy
Sébastien Tillous-Borde		 Laurent Labit and
Laurent Travers		 Stade Pierre-Antoine 11,500
Clermont Aurélien Rougerie Vern Cotter Stade Marcel-Michelin 16,334
Lyon Matthieu Lazerges
Raphaël Saint-André		 Matmut Stadium 8,000
Montpellier Fulgence Ouedraogo Fabien Galthié Stade Yves-du-Manoir 15,000
Perpignan Nicolas Mas Bernard Goutta
Christophe Manas		 Stade Aimé-Giral 16,593
Racing Métro Lionel Nallet Pierre Berbizier Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir 14,000
Stade Français Sergio Parisse Michael Cheika Stade Charléty 20,000
Stade de France 80,000
Toulon Joe van Niekerk Bernard Laporte Stade Mayol 14,700
Toulouse Thierry Dusautoir Guy Novès Stade Ernest-Wallon 19,500
Stadium Municipal 35,472

During the regular season, three teams changed coaches a total of four times:

  • Toulon was forced to find a replacement for Philippe Saint-André once he was named to become the new head coach of the France national team, effective 1 December.[1] Bernard Laporte, a former France head coach (1999–2007), was named as Toulon's new head coach, and took over in September after Saint-André was granted an early release by Toulon.[2]
  • Perpignan sacked Jacques Delmas on 21 November, only four months after he had taken over from Jacques Brunel, who left to become the new head coach of Italy. The Catalans had lost seven of their 12 matches in all competitions under Delmas. Assistants Bernard Goutta and Christophe Manas were named as replacements.[3]
  • Bayonne sacked their entire coaching staff—director of rugby Christian Gajan, forwards coach Thomas Lièvremont and backs coach Frédéric Tauzin—on 6 December. Gajan's position was filled by Jean-Pierre Élissalde, former Japan head coach and also father of former France international and current Toulouse backs coach Jean-Baptiste Élissalde.[4] After six weeks, in which Bayonne remained near the bottom of the table with two losses and one draw in league play, Élissalde was sacked on 16 January, with former Stade Français head coach Didier Faugeron named as his replacement.[5]

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD B Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Toulouse 26 19 1 6 629 448 +181 9 87 League champions
Qualified for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup
2 Clermont 26 19 2 5 644 364 +280 7 87[b] Advance to playoff semi-finals
Qualified for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup
3 Toulon 26 14 5 7 581 393 +188 7 73 Advance to playoff quarter-finals
Qualified for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup
4 Castres 26 14 4 8 585 522 +63 5 69
5 Montpellier 26 14 1 11 601 505 +96 9 67 Qualified for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup
6 Racing Métro 26 13 1 12 569 538 +31 10 64
7 Stade Français 26 11 2 13 568 588 −20 10 58
8 Bordeaux Bègles 26 12 0 14 493 619 −126 5 53
9 Biarritz 26 10 2 14 424 518 −94 8 52[c] Qualified for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup[a]
10 Agen 26 12 1 13 479 573 −94 2 52[c]
11 Perpignan 26 9 2 15 515 578 −63 9 49
12 Bayonne 26 9 3 14 479 619 −140 6 48
13 Brive 26 7 1 18 408 488 −80 12 42 Relegated to 2012–13 Rugby Pro D2
14 Lyon 26 5 3 18 369 591 −222 5 31
Source: [6][7]
Notes:
  1. ^ Qualified by winning the 2011–12 European Challenge Cup
  2. ^ Head-to-head: Toulouse 5–4
  3. ^ a b Head-to-head: Biarritz 6–2

Due to the interplay between LNR's schedule for Heineken Cup qualification and the rules of European Rugby Cup (ERC), which operates both European cup competitions, it is theoretically possible that a team finishing as high as fourth in the league table may not qualify for the Heineken Cup. Under ERC rules, the winners of the Heineken Cup and European Challenge Cup each earn a place in the following season's Heineken Cup. If a team from France wins one of these competitions, the Top 14 will receive a seventh Heineken Cup place. However, if French teams win both cups, the Top 14 is capped at seven Heineken Cup places. Biarritz' victory in the Challenge Cup gave France an extra place for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup.

The LNR presents teams for the Heineken Cup in the following order, skipping any steps occupied by clubs outside the Top 14 or filled in a prior step.[8] The clubs involved in each step for this season are indicated in the numbered list.

  1. Champion – Toulouse
  2. Runner-up – Toulon
  3. Heineken Cup holder – Skipped (won by Leinster of Pro12)
  4. Semifinalist that finished higher in the league table – Clermont
  5. Semifinalist that finished lower in the league table – Castres
  6. Challenge Cup holder – Biarritz
  7. Additional berths based on league position – Montpellier, Racing Métro

Under LNR rules, only Top 14 clubs are eligible for European competition. This means that in the (unlikely) event that the winner of one of the two European Cups is relegated from the Top 14 in the same season, its European place will go to a current Top 14 team, based on league position in that season.[8]

Under another ERC rule, if teams from England, which is also capped at seven Heineken Cup places, win both European cups, the extra place will go to the highest-ranked non-English team in the European Rugby Club Rankings that is not already qualified for the Heineken Cup. If that club is in the Top 14, it will receive a Heineken Cup place regardless of its league position, as long as it avoids relegation.

For a team in the top six to be left out of the Heineken Cup, French teams must win both European Cups, and those teams must have finished outside the top six in the league while also avoiding relegation.

Playoffs

Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
1 Toulouse 24
4 Castres 31 4 Castres 15
5 Montpellier 15 1 Toulouse 18
3 Toulon 12
2 Clermont 12
3 Toulon 17 3 Toulon 15
6 Racing Métro 13

All times are in Central European Summer Time (UTC+2).

Quarter-finals

25 May 2012
21:00
Castres31 – 15Montpellier
Try: Lacrampe 18' c
Con: Teulet (1/1)
Pen: Bernard (5/5) 2', 33', 44', 50', 80'
Teulet (3/3) 15', 38', 72'		ReportTry: Tulou 36' m
Fakate 68' c
Con: Bustos Moyano (1/2)
Pen: Bustos Moyano (1/1) 23'
Stade Ernest-Wallon, Toulouse
Attendance: 15,203
Referee: Patrick Péchambert
26 May 2012
21:00
Toulon17 – 13Racing Métro
Try: Armitage 66' m
Pen: Wilkinson 35'
Giteau (3) 58', 62', 80'		ReportTry: Fall 27' c
Con: Descons (1/1)
Pen: Steyn 16'
Descons 32
Stade Mayol, Toulon
Referee: Mathieu Raynal

Semi-finals

2 June 2012
20:45
Toulouse24 – 15Castres
Pen: McAlister (6/6) 6', 11', 29', 51', 61', 71'
Beauxis (1/1) 39'
Drop: Beauxis (1/1) 20'		ReportPen: Bernard (3) 18', 26', 46'
Teulet 37'
Drop: Bernard (1/1) 22'
Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
Attendance: 36,121[9]
Referee: Jérôme Garcès[9]
3 June 2012
16:30
Clermont12 – 15Toulon
Pen: Parra (4/5) 8', 30', 62', 73'ReportPen: Wilkinson (5/5) 12', 22', 34', 59', 77'
Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
Attendance: 35,608[10]
Referee: Pascal Gaüzère[10]

Final

9 June 2012
18:00
Toulouse18 – 12Toulon
Pen: McAlister (6/6) 3', 21', 35', 42', 64', 68'ReportPen: Wilkinson (4/6) 1', 27', 32', 46'
Stade de France, Saint-Denis
Attendance: 79,612[11]
Referee: Romain Poite
FB 15 Clément Poitrenaud
RW 14 Vincent Clerc
OC 13 Yann David  61'
IC 12 Florian Fritz
LW 11 Timoci Matanavou
FH 10 Luke McAlister  70'
SH 9 Jean-Marc Doussain  50'
N8 8 Louis Picamoles
OF 7 Thierry Dusautoir (c)
BF 6 Jean Bouilhou  53'  62'  68'
RL 5 Patricio Albacete
LL 4 Yoann Maestri  76'
TP 3 Census Johnston
HK 2 William Servat 51' to 62'
LP 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp  76'
Replacements:
HK 16 Christopher Tolofua  53'  62'
PR 17 Daan Human  76'
FL 18 Yannick Nyanga  68'
FL 19 Grégory Lamboley  76'
SH 20 Luke Burgess  50'
FH 21 Lionel Beauxis  70'
CE 22 Yannick Jauzion  61'
PR 23 Yohan Montes
Coach: Guy Novès
FB 15 Benjamin Lapeyre
RW 14 Alexis Palisson
OC 13 Mathieu Bastareaud
IC 12 Matt Giteau
LW 11 David Smith
FH 10 Jonny Wilkinson
SH 9 Sébastien Tillous-Borde
N8 8 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe
OF 7 Steffon Armitage
BF 6 Joe van Niekerk (c)  53'  62'  68'
RL 5 Simon Shaw  61'
LL 4 Bakkies Botha
TP 3 Davit Kubriashvili 63' to 73'  73'
HK 2 Sébastien Bruno 51' to 62'  70'
LP 1 Eifion Lewis-Roberts  74'
Replacements:
HK 16 Mickaël Ivaldi  53'  62'  70'
PR 17 Laurent Emmanuelli  74'
LK 18 Christophe Samson  61'
FL 19 Pierrick Gunther  68'  70'  73'
CE 20 Geoffroy Messina
FB 21 Luke Rooney
SH 22 Fabien Cibray
PR 23 Levan Chilachava  70'
Coach: Bernard Laporte

Statistics

Top points scorers

Updated 19 May 2012

  • Jonny Wilkinson
    (RC Toulon)
  • Romain Teulet
    (Castres Olympique)
  • Martín Bustos Moyano
    (Montpellier HR)
  • Julien Dupuy
    (Stade Français)
  • Benjamin Boyet
    (Aviron Bayonnais)
Rank Player Club Points Tries Conversions Penalties Drop goals
1 Jonny Wilkinson RC Toulon 273 0 24 75 0
2 Conrad Barnard SU Agen 267 0 15 75 4
3 Romain Teulet Castres Olympique 249 0 30 62 1
4 Martín Bustos Moyano Montpellier HR 213 3 27 48 0
5 Julien Dupuy Stade Français 206 2 23 50 0
6 Benjamin Boyet Aviron Bayonnais 202 2 12 55 1
7 Lionel Beauxis Stade Toulousain 191 0 19 43 8
8 Luke McAlister Stade Toulousain 191 3 22 44 0
9 Brock James USA Perpignan 190 2 24 40 4
10 Jonathan Wisniewski Racing Métro 92 174 1 20 42 1

Top try scorers

Updated 6 May 2012

  • Yves Donguy
    (Stade Toulousain)
  • Timoci Matanavou
    (Stade Toulousain)
  • Sireli Bobo
    (Racing Métro 92)
  • Henry Chavancy
    (Racing Métro 92)
  • Blair Connor
    (Bordeaux Bègles)
Rank Player Club Tries
1 Timoci Nagusa Montpellier HR 11
2 Romain Martial Castres Olympique 10
- Yves Donguy Stade Toulousain 10
- Timoci Matanavou Stade Toulousain 10
5 Alex Tulou Montpellier HR 8
6 Lucas Amorosino Montpellier HR 7
- Sireli Bobo Racing Métro 92 7
- Henry Chavancy Racing Métro 92 7
- Blair Connor Union Bordeaux Bègles 7
10 Marc Andreu Castres Olympique 6
- Steffon Armitage RC Toulon 6
- Jean-Marcellin Buttin USA Perpignan 6
- Damien Chouly USA Perpignan 6
- Rudi Coetzee USA Perpignan 6

See also

References

  1. ^ "Saint-Andre confirmed as next France coach". ESPN Scrum. 25 August 2011. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
  2. ^ "Laporte takes charge at Toulon". ESPN Scrum. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  3. ^ "Bernard Laporte takes charge at Toulton". ESPN Scrum. 21 November 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Bayonne sack coaching staff". ESPN Scrum. 6 December 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  5. ^ "Elissalde axed by Bayonne". ESPN Scrum. 16 January 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  6. ^ "Yahoo UK | News, email and search".
  7. ^ "Rugby Radar | Provides results, fixtures and table information from the top 18 rugby tournaments around the world". Archived from the original on 2011-09-25. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
  8. ^ a b "Règlement Sportif des Compétitions Professionnelles, Article 328, Participations des clubs français en Coupes d'Europe" (PDF). Statuts et Règlements Généraux de la LNR – Saison 2011/2012 (in French). Ligue nationale de rugby. pp. 134–35. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  9. ^ a b "Top 14 2011-2012 - Demi-finales : Toulouse–Castres" (in French). L'Équipe. 2 June 2012. Archived from the original on June 5, 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  10. ^ a b "Top 14 2011-2012 - Demi-finales : Clermont–Toulon" (in French). L'Équipe. 3 June 2012. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  11. ^ "Ô Toulouse ! Ô Brennus !" (in French). L'Équipe. 9 June 2012. Retrieved 9 June 2012.
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