Latest
Overview
Season so far
Tournament record
Grenoble are five points behind Pool leaders Stade Francais Paris - who need just a point to qualify - and will want to finish the group stages with a fourth win to give them some momentum before resuming domestic duties. - 17/01/2013 18:20
Grenoble are five points behind Pool leaders Stade Francais Paris – who need just a point to qualify – and will want to finish the group stages with a fourth win to give them some momentum before resuming domestic duties.
Grenoble returned to European action this season after a five year absence and they tackle I Cavalieri Prato at Stadio Enrico Chersoni looking for the double over the Italians.
They won the Round 1 encounter on French soil 59-3 thanks to five of their nine tries coming from replacements as they used their bench early on.
Wing Nicholas Laharrague added four conversions and the French club will be looking for something of a repeat in the return tie.
Match Facts
- Grenoble have only ever won back-to-back away games once before in this competition, beating Leeds Tykes and Beziers in 2004.
- The French side have a 100% record against Italian sides in this competition, accruing an aggregate score of 135-19 in the process.
- Since defeating Connacht Rugby on their European debut in October 2010, Cavalieri have lost 16 consecutive matches in this tournament, conceding an average of 49 points per game.
-
The Italian club have notched up 54 points in their two home games so far this season, being edged out by London Welsh by one point while losing by 14 to Stade Francais Paris.
Pour sa dernière rencontre européenne de la saison
Grenoble completed the group stages of their campaign with a comfortable 47-0 victory over I Cavalieri Prato at Stadio Enrico Chersoni.
That took them to 20 points and level with Stade Francais Paris but with the latter still to play London Welsh in the Pool 5 evening match to settle the battle for honours and quarter-final qualification.
Grenoble went top courtesy of their superior points difference in the head-to-head matches between the Top 14 rivals but Paris need just a point to qualify and deny Grenoble.
Howver, Grenoble, 59-3 winners in their Round 1 contest, made sure they did what they needed to do and made a fantastic start with lock Florian Faure, full back Joaquim Tucalet and centre Aloisio Butonidualevu crossing for tries in the first quarter to leave Prato struggling from the off.
And there was no let up from the Top 14 team in general and all-action hooker Larent Bouchet in particular as the front row forward went over for a quick-fire brace in the space of just three minutes.
Not to be totally overshadowed by a forward, Tucalet got his second and Grenoble’s sixth for a clear 40-point lead at the break, with the bonus safely under lock and key.
The only real action for the first 25 minutes of the second period was the flood of activity from both replacement benches as the scoring came to a halt before substitute centre Rida Jaouho got Grenoble’s seventh, Nicolas Laharrague adding his sixth conversion, to remind Stade they still have some work to do.
LIVE - TEST - Commentary