Top 14 (R4): Toulouse go top as Lyon fall

Toulouse waited for the final match of round four to move to the top of the Top 14 for the first time this season. On the same weekend, Lyon lost their unbeaten record and Toulon finally won.

The champions now have 15 points, one more than Lyon and Pau. Behind them, Bayonne sit on 13 after their win at Racing, and Vannes are still the only team without a single point.

Toulouse turn round a start at fourteen

The rematch of June’s final started badly for Toulouse. Teddy Thomas was sin-binned early for a deliberate knock-on, Alexandre Roumat followed in the 15th minute for a high tackle on Arthur Vincent, and the champions spent most of the first twenty minutes a man down. Montpellier took only an Adam Hastings penalty from it. “At half-time there will be nobody left watching Canal,” Ugo Mola said on Canal+ after twenty minutes.

What followed proved him wrong. Théo Ntamack opened the scoring from a five-metre scrum, Teddy Thomas made amends from a Romain Ntamack kick, and Romain finished a counter-attack from inside his own half just before the break to make it 19-8. Antoine Dupont then scored twice in two minutes after the restart, his first tries of the season, which take him to 50 in the Top 14. Teddy Thomas completed his brace in the 62nd minute. Six tries to three, try bonus included.

For the first time, the two Ntamack brothers scored in the same match. They had shared a team sheet thirty times since 11 September 2022, the date of Théo’s first Top 14 appearance, without managing it. The number 8, now on ten Top 14 tries, also gave the pass for Dupont’s first try. His very first league try, in August 2023, also came against Montpellier.

Toulouse did it without seven of their forwards, including Emmanuel Meafou, Clément Vergé, François Cros, Jack Willis and Anthony Jelonch. Montpellier fielded only two starters from the final, Arthur Vincent and Ali Price. Toulouse now have the best defence in the league (83 points conceded) and the best points difference (+61).

Round four results

Lyon fall at Jean-Bouin

After three rounds, Lyon stood alone with three wins. They left Jean-Bouin beaten 31-10, and Stade Français took their first try bonus of the season along the way.

Toulon climb out after losing three matches by four points

Toulon had lost their first three matches by 1, 1 and 2 points, four in total. This time they won by eighteen against Vannes, with the try bonus, against a promoted side that rested almost all of its regular starters.

Perpignan end four straight defeats against UBB

Perpignan had not beaten Bordeaux-Bègles since October 2024. They did it with five tries, two of them scored a man down, and a defence that held despite 60% possession for the visitors. UBB remain unbeaten at home but have taken nothing from their two away trips.

Bayonne get off the mark away from home

Bayonne had not won away from Jean-Dauger since March. They did it at Créteil, where Racing 92 play their relocated home games and have now lost twice in a row. Patrice Collazo pointed out that his side will play “eight months out of eleven away from home” until April.

Pau keep rolling, Clermont take five points

Pau beat La Rochelle 39-17 with the bonus, eight days after their collapse at Lyon, and Rodrigo Marta scored his sixth try in four starts. Pau remain the league’s best attack with 161 points. Clermont won 20-6 against a Castres side their own manager judged short of commitment, and still took the try bonus in a tight game. Alivereti Raka, playing his first match of the season, scored his 105th try for Clermont, his 81st in the Top 14, to become the third-highest try scorer in the club’s history, level with Napolioni Nalaga and André Dubertrand.

The table after four rounds

Pau have a better points difference than Lyon but sit behind them: when clubs are level, the LNR separates them on head-to-head results, and Lyon won 51-25 at the Hameau in round three. Montpellier, Stade Français and Perpignan, on nine points, are ranked the same way. The rule also leaves Toulon bottom of the eight-point group despite a difference of plus fourteen, because Castres and La Rochelle both beat them.

Round five is played on 3 and 4 October.