Nanterre (AFP)

Racing 92 straightened the shot at the Arena, where it became very responsive, winning in pain against Montpellier (29-25) on Saturday in the first matches of the 11th day of the Top 14, marked by the new defeat of the leader Lyon in Castres (29-12).

It's a small event: Racing 92 won at home in the championship, which had not happened since the beginning of September. In the meantime, he had been held in check three times (defeats against Lyon and Bordeaux-Bègles, draw against Agen). A scenario that almost happened against Montpellier, led the whole game but returned twice to a point (13-12 and 26-25) for the first of its world champion opener Handré Pollard.

Strong in defense, the South African launched Anthony Bouthier well on the 3rd Hérault test but left points en route (8) in the practice of shooting (4/7). "It's rather encouraging, now we're going to give him time to integrate perfectly into the group," said his coach Xavier Garbajosa, who is still waiting for his first away success. A defensive bonus, that's already it for the MHR, temporarily 3rd.

In a very tight midfield, Racing, excellent in the European Cup but disappointing in the Top 14, climbed back to 9th place, tied on points with Bayonne (8th) and Castres (10th).

The Basques are frustrated after conceding a draw (6-6) against Brive, in the duel of the promoted, in the last minute on a penalty from Thomas Laranjeira. The people of Castres were smiling after an improved success over a prestigious opponent: the leader, Lyon.

After a thundering start to the season - 7 wins in a row - the Lou, previously beaten in Montpellier (33-8), marked time with a second heavy defeat in a row. The parenthesis of the European Cup, where he recorded 3 losses in 4 days, seems to have taken him out of his positive cycle. With the end of its winning streak in Clermont, the Lou had only 2 successes in 8 matches, the two competitions combined.

When the leader has a kick, the champion is in great shape: Toulouse won its 7th row match (European Cup and championship combined) in Agen (13-8), winning for the first time outside, and temporarily climbs to 3rd place.

The meeting was interrupted for ten minutes due to a power failure. The mayor of Agen Jean Dionis accused the strikers of being at the origin of this nuisance, claiming to have known by EDF and Enedis that it was a "wild cut".

Results of the 11th day:

Saturday

Bayonne - Brive 6 - 6

Castres (bo) - Lyon 29 - 12

Racing 92 - Montpellier (bd) 29 - 25

Agen (bd) - Toulouse 8 - 13

Sunday

(12:30 p.m.) Stade Français - Pau

(4:50 p.m.) Bordeaux-Bègles - La Rochelle

(9 p.m.) Toulon - Clermont

© 2019 AFP