Round 24 of the French Top 14 concluded on Sunday. There was a healthy contingent of Americas players involved and Argentines were point scorers. Teams are fighting for points as the season winds down; only two rounds of the regular season remain.
The second placed Montpellier have their eyes on the play-offs. They were 36-33 away winners against Castres on Saturday. The road victory means Montpellier are nine points inside the play-offs zone. The victory featured 11 points from the boot of Argentine Domingo Miotti. He played inside contemporary Puma, Justo Piccardo. The form shown this season from Miotti suggests a Pumas recall is forthcoming.
Pau sit one competition point below Montpellier and are tied for third spot together with Stade Français. Pau’s pathway to the play-offs was simplified this weekend as the team held on to defeat Clermont 24-19 in what was a home match for the team featuring Argentine forwards Julián Montoya and Facundo Isa. Pumas speedster, Bautista Delguy was a try-scorer for Clermont.
The 13th placed Perpignan are not competing for a place in the play-offs; rather, Perpignan have recovered from a disastrous start to the season to now be clear of the automatic relegation that is bottom spot. The team is now, effectively, preparing for the Access Match to determine whether the club remains in the Top 14 or falls to the Pro D2.
Perpignan’s performance on Saturday suggests they will be heavy favorites to retain their status in the Top 14. The Catalans used Bordeaux to the limit in a match in which the lead regularly changed hands. Bordeaux held on to win 37-32. Pumas forwards Joaquín Oviedo and Ignacio Ruiz played for Perpignan with the latter scoring a try.
Saturday action concluded with Racing 92 at home against Toulon. It was a must-watch match for fans of Los Pumas a the starting fly halves were both Pumas. Gerónimo Prisciantelli played 10 for Racing 92 against Tomás Albornoz for Toulon.
Racing 92 were the better team on the day and pulled away to win the contest 43-28. The outcome sees Racing 92 in 7th position in the Top 14 standings, just two points behind Clermont and three points behind Bordeaux.
Gerónimo Prisciantelli scored a try and was also the goal-kicker for Racing 92. He scored a total of 19 points. In contrast, Melvyn Jamient rather than Tomás Albornoz had the goal-kicking responsibilities for Toulon. The Pumas starting 10 did kick a conversion in the second-half.