When the full-time whistle sounded at Stade Marcel-Deflandre, La Rochelle fans groaned as many of their rugby heroes fell to the ground.
La Rochelle have gone for an aggressive 7-1 split on the bench for their Champions Cup showdown with Leinster, though they will be without their towering Wallaby lock Will Skelton.
La Rochelle player ratings: La Rochelle demonstrated why they are two-time Champions Cup winners, showing composure and grit in a hard-fought 24-20 away victory.
Ronan O'Gara has laid to rest any concerns that he may rest some of his La Rochelle stars for their opening match of the Investec Champions Cup by naming a formidable outfit to run out at Bath's Rec on Friday.
Leinster and La Rochelle have named their teams for Saturday’s Heineken Champions Cup final in Dublin, the Irish province making two changes from their semi-final win over Toulouse and the defending champions two as well after their victory over Exeter.
French rugby is on the crest of a wave and they know they can afford to take an understrength squad to Japan and rest their biggest names
Toulon loose forward Charles Ollivon leads a 42-man France team chosen on Monday by coach Fabien Galthie for two Tests against Japan next month.
Ronan O’Gara conjured up a coaching masterclass to inspire La Rochelle to a last-gasp 24-21 Heineken Champions Cup final victory over four-time champions Leinster at Stade Velodrome in Marseille.
Delayed due to the global pandemic, the 2021 U20 Six Nations took place in Cardiff over the last month and we have a review of all six teams.
We have scoured the globe for 10 of rugby's top young talents to keep an eye on in 2021, with age-grade rugby having been cancelled in 2020.