Get Newsletter

Montpellier thrash weakened Racing

Bismarck du Plessis and brother Jannie dotted down either side of a Francois Steyn try with Fijian wing Timoci Nagusa also crossing, as Montpellier completely dominated right from the start at the Altrad Stadium.

ADVERTISEMENT

Benjamin Fall touched down early in the second half before the home side were awarded a penalty try as the onslaught continued, with further scores from Jesse Mogg, Mickael Ivaldi and a second from Nagusa.

Etienne Dussartre's second-half try was scant consolation for Racing, as Jake White's Montpellier secured a fourth straight win to tighten their grip on a play-off place and draw to within four points of Racing at the top.

With an eye on next month's European Champions Cup quarterfinal against holders Toulon, Racing opted to rest All Blacks legend DanCarter along with Welsh scrumhalf Mike Phillips and Argentine speedster Juan Imhoff.

Racing were also without six international stars away on Six Nations duty, while Montpellier were missing flyhalf Francois Trinh-Duc who was due to start for France against England in Paris.

Montpellier caught Racing napping early when Bismarck du Plessis received a return pass from fellow South African Pierre Spies after a quick lineout to burrow over in the corner.

Springbok Steyn ploughed over three minutes later as Montpellier scrumhalf Benoit Paillaugue restarted play quickly following a penalty, with Spies then stealing a Racing lineout as Jannie du Plessis forced his way over.

ADVERTISEMENT

Nagusa darted in for Montpellier's fourth try with just 24 minutes gone, while any hopes of Racing regrouping after the break were obliterated as Fall strolled in to make it 32-0 less than a minute after the restart.

A penalty try soon followed before Mogg ran over as Carter's replacement, Remi Tales, coughed up the ball after a crunching tackle deep inside Racing territory.

Dussartre knifed through the hosts' defence to prevent Racing from being whitewashed, but Montpellier refused to let up as Ivaldi added another try before Nagusa chased down his own kick to dot down and complete a stunning demolition.

Earlier, defending champions Stade Francais snapped a run of three successive defeats with a 33-20 victory at home to play-off hopefuls La Rochelle. Djibril Camara scored a pair of tries with Willem Alberts and Julien Arias also touching down before a late effort from Paul Williams ensured Stade a welcome bonus point.

ADVERTISEMENT

Top 14 results:

Stade Francais 33-20 La Rochelle

Montpellier 60-7 Racing

Top 14 table:

(played, won, drawn, lost, points for, points against, bonus points, total points)

Racing 92      18 13 1  4 397 362  5 59

Clermont       17 11 1  5 482 285 12 58

Toulon         18 11 0  7 556 327 13 57

Montpellier    18 12 0  6 492 402  7 55

Bordeaux       18 11 2  5 390 320  4 52

Toulouse       17  9 2  6 434 269  8 48

Castres        17  9 0  8 393 338  7 43

La Rochelle    18  8 0 10 393 403  8 40

Brive          17  8 1  8 311 333  4 38

Grenoble       17  7 0 10 411 483  5 33

Stade Francais 18  7 0 11 356 408  3 31

Pau            17  6 1 10 264 448  2 28

Agen           17  3 0 14 328 530  3 15

Oyonnax        17  3 0 14 279 578  2 14

Agence France-Presse

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Write A Comment