Top 14 Preview: Clermont

The History

Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne was launched in 1911 by Marcel Michelin, son of André, who founded the Michelin tyre company. The club was intended to provide entertainment for the many workers employed by the organisation. Their story since has been littered with near-misses. ASM did enjoy success in the Challenge Yves du Manoir and Challenge Cup, but they finished runners-up in the French championship ten times before finally winning in 2010.

In the Heineken Cup, Clermont have lost a final, semi-final and a quarter-final in recent years. The common perception is that ASM lack the mental edge to win big games, but their 2010 success has been quickly forgotten. In that same time frame, Toulon have lost four finals and won one trophy, but not once has their winning mentality been questioned. Of course it is the manner of Clermont’s defeats which see them labelled as ‘bottlers’ too, but they will continue to challenge for titles.

The Setting

The city of Clermont-Ferrand sits in the Auvergne region of central France, with a population of 141,000. While it is an industrial area, the city has a growing student population of 30,000 and Clermont’s supporters are amongst the friendliest in the world. The Stade Marcel-Michelin is ASM’s home, with space for 18,030 people. With the stands almost leaning over the pitch, the atmosphere is never anything less than fervent. ASM hold a French record of 60 consecutive victories at home, they simply don’t do losses at the Stade Marcel-Michelin.

Last Season

Two superb wins over Leinster have been forgotten amidst Clermont’s end-of-season failure. (c) Andy Patterson.

The campaign promised so much as Clermont played scintillating rugby throughout the season. Top try-scorers by 12 in the Top 14, Vern Cotter’s side topped the regular season table. In the Heineken Cup their 31 tries were unmatched, and they looked like champions-to-be. Everything came unstuck on the home straight though, with the loss to Toulon in the H Cup final followed by a pitiful effort against Castres in the Top 14 semi-final. Flanker Julien Bonnaire summed it up in simple terms: “Let’s call a cat a cat. Last season was a failure. Now we must redeem ourselves.”

Ambitions

ASM approach this season in a strange state following Cotter’s frank criticism of the players and the club’s recruitment policy in the aftermath of the failed season. The New Zealander has agreed to join Scotland at the end of this season, and the impression was that he was attempting to get himself released early by speaking out. However, bridges have apparently been rebuilt and Clermont are focused on winning a trophy. They have the squad to compete on two fronts, but the truly burning desire is Heineken Cup success.

While they have shown a strong tendency to lose high-pressure play-off games, writing Clermont off before the season has even started would be foolish.

The Coach

Cotter is hoping for more days like this one in 2010. (c) Ville de Clermont-Ferrand.

Cotter is a former number eight who played for Counties Manukau as well as four French clubs. His coaching career took in Bay of Plenty and the Crusaders (as forwards coach where he won Super Rugby titles in ’05 and ’06) before Clermont made him head coach for the ’06/07 season. ASM lost the next three Top 14 finals before finally earning a Bouclier de Brennus in 2010. Cotter is as hard-nosed as you would expect from a Kiwi back-row but also encourages his players to offload and attack from their own half.

Cotter’s challenge this season is to ensure that Clermont are better equipped for knock-out games. The sheer quality in their squad means they will feature in the latter stages of both competitions. Pre season at ASM has focused on decision making, demanding that the players work through their options in various match specific scenarios. Cotter told Midi Olympique that ASM “need be capable of better adapting to the context, and if we must, making our plans simpler and more pragmatic.”

Transfer Activity

Clermont were the quietest Top 14 club in terms of transfers this summer, with just three new faces. Having originally agreed a deal to join in June, Mike Delany was drafted in late last season on a medical joker basis and greatly impressed in three starts. Unfortunately, the one-time All Black outhalf has had to undergo shoulder surgery and will miss the opening three months of the season. That meant Clermont had to search for another outhalf, with the experienced Gavin Hume the result.

The 33-year-old South African spent the last nine seasons with USAP, winning a Top 14 title in 2009. Hume has been sharp for ASM in pre season and offers solid back-up to Brock James. The only other addition is scrumhalf Thierry Lacrampe (25) from Castres, who will compete with Ludovic Radosavljevic for a place on the bench behind Morgan Parra. Familiar names leaving Clermont include David Skrela, who drops into the Pro D2 with Colomiers, and Anthony Floch, who joins Montpellier in search of game time.

Key Players

Wesley Fofana is amongst the best centres in world rugby and probably Clermont’s greatest asset. The 25-year-old runs perceptive lines and aided by sizzling pace and a violent fend, the French international is a nightmare for opposition defences. his ability to pick out weak defenders in the defensive line is unrivaled.  While Fofana’s passing game still has some way to go, he is an attacking threat from any situation. Alongside him is captain Aurélien Rougerie, a one-club man and a passionate leader.

Wingers Sitiveni Sivivatu and Napolioni Nalaga provide a guaranteed supply of tries. Sivivatu was exceptional last season, roaming into midfield and often taking the ball as first receiver. The former All Black has the footwork and power to beat tackles every time he touches the ball. Nalaga is more of a direct proposition, but he is near to unstoppable from close range. In between them, Clermont have the luxury of choosing between Lee Byrne’s kicking game and experience or Jean-Marcellin Buttin’s languid, creative brilliance.

Brock James has been the focus of much of the criticism aimed at ASM. (c) Frank Nieto.

Morgan Parra is the archetypal French scrumhalf, directing his forwards, place-kicking and strutting around when he is in control. After ending the season in very poor form, the 24-year-old decided not to tour with France this summer and will benefit from a full pre season schedule. Joining him in the halfback charnière is Brock James, the much maligned Australian. His famous incidences of big-game failure make him an obvious target, but at his best James is a superb outhalf.

Julien Bonnaire remains crucial at the age of 34 through his lineout excellence, work-rate and leadership. Alongside him, number eight Damian Chouly is a strong ball carrier but needs to become more prominent in the high-stake games.

Irish Connection

In a giant tight five featuring French internationals Thomas Domingo and Benjamin Kayser, the key man is Scottish international Nathan Hines. He was certainly among the best locks in Europe last season and would have added greatly to the Lions tour. At 36, the body has started to feel the knocks that little bit more, but Hines never gives anything less than total commitment. Smashing rucks, winning lineouts and shoving at scrum time are the norm for any lock, but what sets Hines apart is his superb handling and passing ability.

Possible Starting XV

15. Byrne/Buttin, 14. Sivivatu, 13. Rougerie, 12. Fofana, 11. Nalaga, 10. James, 9. Parra, 8. Chouly, 7. Vosloo/Lapandry, 6. Bonnaire, 5. Hines, 4. Cudmore, 3. Zirakashvili, 2. Kayser 1. Domingo

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Photos: Andy Patterson, Ville de Clermont-Ferrand, Frank Nieto.

Heineken Cup Round 6 Previews

Connacht vs. Harlequins @ The Sportsground

Friday 20th January (20.00) Sky Sports 1

Danny Care has been involved in off-the-field controversy recently but starts at 9 for Harlequins. (c) Vincent Cornelius.

Connacht make just one change from the team that went down bravely against Toulouse last weekend. Ronan Loughney comes back in at tighthead meaning Dylan Rogers drops to the bench. Connacht’s injury list is crippling at the moment so Elwood doesn’t really have the option to change much else. He will expect a similar effort to last week and hope that Connacht can take the chances they create. Several try-scoring opportunities were left behind in Toulouse.

Harlequins also make a single change to their starting team. Wing Tom Williams has stayed in England with his first child on the way. Sam Smith is his replacement. Fullback Mike Brown was recently named Aviva Premiership Player of the Month for December and will have to be watched closely. Matt Hopper is a livewire at 13. Chris Robshaw captains the side at openside flanker.

Connacht will hope to go out of the Heineken Cup with a bang tonight. Harlequins come to Galway still in the hunt for a quarter-final spot so it would be massively surprising to see Eric Elwood’s men end their losing streak. However, Connacht will give everything to the cause in search of a first Heineken Cup win. The Sportsground is a sell-out as Connacht fans hope to see another performance like that against Toulouse last week. A Connacht win would be mean Ulster definitely going through to the quarter-finals, as one of the best placed runners-up. Here’s hoping!

Verdict: Harlequins, just.

Connacht: 15 Gavin Duffy (capt.), 14 Fetu’u Vainikolo, 13 Kyle Tonetti, 12 Dave McSharry, 11 Tiernan O’Halloran, 10 Niall O’Connor, 9 Paul O’Donohoe, 1 Brett Wilkinson, 2 Adrian Flavin, 3 Ronan Loughney, 4 Michael Swift, 5 Mike McCarthy, 6 John Muldoon, 7 Ray Ofisa, 8 George Naoupu.
Subs: 16 Ethienne Reynecke, 17 Dennis Buckley, 18 Dylan Rogers, 19 Mick Kearney, 20 Eoin McKeon, 21 Dave Moore, 22 Miah Nikora, 23 Henry Fa’afili.

Harlequins: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Ugo Monye, 13 Matt Hopper, 12 Jordan Turner-Hall, 11 Sam Smith, 10 Nick Evans, 9 Danny Care, 1 Joe Marler, 2 Chris Brooker, 3 James Johnston, 4 Tomas Vallejos, 5 George Robson, 6 Maurie Faasavalu, 7 Chris Robshaw (capt.), 8 Nick Easter.
Subs: 16 Joe Gray, 17 Mark Lambert, 18 Tim Fairbrother, 19 Ollie Kohn, 20 Luke Wallace, 21 Richard Bolt, 22 Rory Clegg, 23 Tom Casson.

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Leinster vs. Montpellier @ The RDS

Saturday 21st January (13.30) Sky Sports 1

Leinster are hoping for fireworks on Saturday. (c) Art Widak.

Joe Schmidt has made several changes to the team that secured a quarter-final spot with a 23-16 win in Glasgow last weekend. After being left out of the Ireland set-up, Jamie Hagan comes in for Mike Ross as tighthead. Damien Browne replaces Devin Toner in the second-row while Richardt Strauss is in for Sean Cronin at hooker. Rhys Ruddock is at blindside flanker, with Shane Jennings dropping to the bench.

In the backs, Isaac Boss is preferred to Eoin Reddan at scrumhalf this time around. Jonathan Sexton continues at 10 despite picking up an ankle injury last weekend. In the centre, Gordon D’Arcy is partnered by Eoin O’Malley this week, with Fergus McFadden moving to the right wing. David Kearney drops out of the squad completely.

Despite already being out of the tournament, Montpellier have named their strongest available side. They have included French international half-back pairing Julien Tomas and Francois Trinh-Duc. In the back row, Fulgence Ouedraogo and Mamuka Gorgodze are key men. Ex-Ulster man Timoci Nagusa starts on the right wing.

A  bonus-point win for Leinster would guarantee them a home quarter-final and that should certainly be their target. A normal 4 point win would secure that home QF spot too, unless Ulster get a bonus-point win in Clermont. Although Montpellier have surprisingly named a full-strength team, Leinster have more than enough to comfortably overcome the French side.

Verdict: Bonus-point win for Leinster.

Leinster: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Fergus McFadden, 13 Eoin O’Malley, 12 Gordon D’Arcy, 11 Isa Nacewa, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Isaac Boss, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Sean O’Brien, 6 Rhys Ruddock, 5 Damian Browne, 4 Leo Cullen, 3 Jamie Hagan, 2 Richardt Strauss, 1 Cian Healy.
Subs: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Heinke Van der Merwe, 18 Mike Ross, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Shane Jennings, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Fionn Carr.

Montpellier: 15 Lucas Amorosino, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Yoan Audrin, 12 Paul Bosch, 11 Martin Bustos Moyano, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc, 9 Julien Tomas, 8 Alex Tulou, 7 Mamuka Gorgodze, 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 5 Mickael Demarco, 4 Drickus Hancke, 3 George Jgenti, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Na’ama Leleimalefaga.
Subs: 16 Rassie van Vuuren, 17 Juan Figallo, 18 Maximiliano Bustos, 19 Joe Tuineau, 20 Vassili Bost, 21 Benoit Paillaugue, 22 Santiago Fernandez, 23 Geoffrey Doumayrou.

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Clermont vs. Ulster @ Stade Marcel Michelin

Saturday 21st January (15.40) Sky Sports 1

Clermont are unbeaten at home in over two years. (c) Chris Brown.

This could be the game of the weekend. Two in-form teams, some world-class players, a sold-out 18,000 crowd,  and the winner goes through to the quarter-finals. What more could you want?

Ulster coach Brian McLaughlin has made just one chance to the team that hammered Leicester last weekend. Darren Cave has been ruled out for up to six weeks with a foot injury sustained in that win. Ian Whitten is his replacement. Elsewhere it’s as you were. Johann Muller captains the side from the second-row once again.

The Clermont team looks incredibly strong on paper. Welshman Lee Byrne is at fullback. Sitiveni Sivivatu and Julien Malzieu make up a potent-looking back-three. Aurelien Rougerie and the supremely talented Wesley Fofana start in midfield. Half-backs Morgan Parra and David Skrela make up a strong back-line. Up front, there’s six more internationals including Julien Bonnaire at No.8 and Nathan Hines in the second-row.

A win for Ulster would most likely get them a home quarter-final. And a win is certainly possible, especially if the northern province can recreate the performance of last weekend. Clermont are unbeaten in the Stade Marcel Michelin since November 2009. In the last 36 games there, only seven of the visiting teams have picked up losing bonus points. Even if they lose, Ulster can still top the group if – 1) they prevent Clermont getting a try-scoring bonus point 2) get a losing bonus point themselves and 3) either score more tries than Clermont in the game or lose by less than five points.  Whatever happens, this one will be well worth watching.

Verdict: Clermont by 2 or 3 points, so Ulster to go through.

Clermont: 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 13 Aurélien Rougerie, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Julien Malzieu, 10 David Skrela, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Julien Bonnaire (capt.), 7 Julien Bardy, 6 Gerhard Vosloo, 5 Nathan Hines, 4 Julien Pierre, 3 Clément Ric, 2 Benjamin Kayser, 1 Lionel Faure.                                                        Subs: 16 Ti’i Paulo, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Daniel Coetzee, 19 Jamie Cudmore, 20 Alexandre Lapandry, 21 Kevin Senio, 22 Brock James, 23 Regan King.

Ulster: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Ian Whitten, 12 Paddy Wallace, 11 Craig Gilroy, 10 Ian Humphreys, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Pedrie Wannenburg, 7 Chris Henry, 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Johann Muller (capt.), 3 John Afoa, 2 Rory Best, 1 Tom Court.                                                            Subs: 16 Andi Kyriacou, 17 Callum Black, 18 Adam Macklin, 19 Lewis Stevenson, 20 Willie Faloon, 21 Paul Marshall, 22 Nevin Spence, 23 Adam D’Arcy.

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Northampton vs. Munster @ stadium:mk

Saturday 21st January (18.00) Sky Sports 1

Munster look to make it six wins from six in Pool 1. (c) Ivan O'Riordan.

Another massive game in the final round of Heineken Cup pool games. Munster secured a quarter-final spot by beating Castres last weekend but will be hoping for the win that would guarantee them a vital home QF. Northampton are out of this tournament but still have a chance of dropping into the Amlin. Revenge will be on the cards for them too after Ronan O’Gara’s late drop-goal in Thomond Park derailed their season.

Munster have been forced into making one change from last week. Niall Ronan’s season is over, with the openside set for surgery on his cruciate injury. Donncha O’Callaghan replace Ronan, meaning Donnacha Ryan moves back to the blindside. Peter O’Mahony switches to openside. David O’Callaghan comes onto the bench for the first time in Heineken Cup.

The Saints have dropped Chris Ashton after he announced his decision to join Saracens next summer. Jamie Elliot takes his place on the wing. Ryan Lamb is back at outhalf after Steven Myler started against the Scarlets last weekend. Lee Dickson returns at scrumhalf while James Downey starts at inside centre.

There’s a temptation to write off Munster for this one. They have been winning games all season but their performances have been far from complete, by their own admission. Northampton will be desperate to get one over on Munster and do have something to play for in terms of Amlin qualification. But writing Munster off is always a dangerous game. They may not be playing the best rugby in the tournament but it hasn’t prevented them from winning yet. A tough one to call.

Verdict: Northampton by 5 points.

Northampton Saints: 15 Ben Foden, 14 Jamie Elliott, 13 George Pisi, 12 James Downey, 11 Vasily Artemyev, 10 Ryan Lamb, 9 Lee Dickson, 8 Roger Wilson, 7 Phil Dowson, 6 Calum Clark, 5 Mark Sorenson, 4 Samu Manoa, 3 Brian Mujati, 2 Dylan Hartley (capt.), 1 Soane Tonga’uiha.

Subs: 16 Brett Sharman, 17 Alex Waller, 18 Paul Doran Jones, 19 Christian Day, 20 Ben Nutley, 21 Martin Roberts, 22 Stephen Myler, 23 Scott Armstrong.

Munster: 15 Denis Hurley, 14 Johne Murphy, 13 Keith Earls, 12 Lifeimi Mafi, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Ronan O’Gara, 9 Conor Murray, 8 James Coughlan, 7 Peter O’Mahony, 6 Donnacha Ryan, 5 Paul O’Connell, 4 Donncha O’Callaghan, 3 BJ Botha, 2 Damien Varley, 1 Wian du Preez.
Subs: 16 Denis Fogarty, 17 Marcus Horan, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Mick O’Driscoll, 20 Dave O’Callaghan, 21 Tomas O’Leary, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Danny Barnes.

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Photos courtesy:  Vincent Cornelius, Art Widak, Chris Brown, Ivan O’Riordan.