# 2012–13 Top 14 season

The 2012–13 Top 14 competition was a French domestic rugby union club competition operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR). Two new teams from the 2011–12 Pro D2 season were promoted to Top 14 this year, Grenoble and Stade Montois in place of the two relegated teams, CA Brive and Lyon OU. Home-and-away play began on 17 August 2012 and continued through to 5 May 2013. The regular season was followed by a three-round playoff involving the top six sides. The final was contested at the Stade de France between Toulon and Castres; the match was won 19–14 by Castres to earn them their first title since the controversial final in 1993.

## Teams

| Club | Full name | City (department) | Stadium |
| SU Agen | Sporting Union Agen Lot-et-Garonne | Agen (Lot-et-Garonne) | Stade Armandie |
| Aviron Bayonnais | Aviron Bayonnais | Bayonne (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) | Stade Jean Dauger |
| Biarritz Olympique | Biarritz Olympique Pays Basque | Biarritz (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) | Parc des Sports Aguiléra |
| Union Bordeaux Bègles | Union Bordeaux Bègles | Bordeaux (Gironde) | Stade Chaban-Delmas (Bordeaux) Stade André Moga (Bègles) |
| Castres Olympique | Castres Olympique | Castres (Tarn) | Stade Pierre-Antoine |
| ASM Clermont Auvergne | Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne | Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-Dôme) | Stade Marcel-Michelin |
| FC Grenoble | Football Club Grenoble Rugby | Grenoble (Isère) | Stade Lesdiguières |
| Stade Montois | Stade Montois | Mont-de-Marsan (Landes) | Stade Guy Boniface |
| Montpellier Hérault Rugby | Montpellier Hérault Rugby | Montpellier (Hérault) | Stade Yves-du-Manoir |
| USA Perpignan | Union Sportive Arlequins Perpignanais | Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales) | Stade Aimé Giral |
| Racing Métro | Racing Métro 92 | Colombes (Hauts-de-Seine) | Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir |
| Stade Français Paris | Stade Français Club Athlétique des Sports Généraux Paris | Paris, 16th arrondissement | Stade Charléty |
| RC Toulonnais | Rugby Club Toulonnais | Toulon (Var) | Stade Mayol |
| Stade Toulousain | Stade Toulousain | Toulouse (Haute-Garonne) | Stade Ernest-Wallon |
* ↑ Bayonne took one match across the Spanish border to Estadio Anoeta in Donostia-San Sebastián in 2012–13.
* ↑ Biarritz has historically taken at least one home match per season to the Anoeta, but has not done so since the 2010–11 season.
* ↑ In 2012–13, Bordeaux Bègles played eight of their 13 home matches at the larger Stade Chaban-Delmas and only five at their traditional home of Stade André-Moga.
* ↑ In 2012–13, Grenoble played four home matches at the city's largest venue, Stade des Alpes.
* ↑ In 2012–13, Perpignan played one home match at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona.
* ↑ Racing took two 2012–13 home matches to Stade de France.
* ↑ Stade Français' offices are in the 16th arrondissement, although they are currently playing in the 13th arrondissement.
* ↑ Stade Français' traditional home, Stade Jean-Bouin, is closed while a new stadium is built on the site; the new Jean-Bouin is expected to open for the 2013–14 season. The club also regularly takes at least three home matches per season to Stade de France; in 2012–13, they played three at Stade de France plus one at Grand Stade Lille Métropole in Villeneuve d'Ascq.
* ↑ Toulon took one home match to Stade Vélodrome in Marseille in 2012–13, resuming a past practice that they skipped in 2011–12.
* ↑ Toulouse often takes high-demand home matches to the city's largest sporting venue, Stadium Municipal. Two of their 2012–13 home matches were played there.

### Team information

| Club | Last Promotion | Budget 2012–13 million EUR | Position in 2011–12 season | Coach(es) | Stadium | Capacity |
| SU Agen | 2010 | 13.2 | 10 | Philippe Sella Mathieu Blin David Darricarrère | Stade Armandie | 14,000 |
| Aviron Bayonnais | 2004 | 17.9 | 12 | Christophe Deylaud Christian Lanta | Stade Jean-Dauger | 16,934 |
| Biarritz Olympique | 1996 | 17.3 | 9 | Laurent Rodriguez Serge Milhas John Isaac | Parc des sports d'Aguiléra | 15,000 |
| Bordeaux Bègles | 2011 | 11.9 | 8 | Raphaël Ibañez Régis Sonnes Vincent Etcheto | Stade André-Moga | 09,088 |
| Castres Olympique | 1989 | 15.6 | 4 | Laurent Labit Laurent Travers | Stade Pierre-Antoine | 11,500 |
| ASM Clermont Auvergne | 1925 | 25.5 | 2 | Vern Cotter Franck Azéma | Stade Marcel-Michelin | 18,030 |
| FC Grenoble | 2012 | 14.9 | 1 (Pro D2) | Fabrice Landreau Sylvain Bégon Franck Corrihons | Stade Lesdiguières | 12,000 |
| Stade Montois | 2012 | 6.2 | 3 (Pro D2) | Marc Dantin Stéphane Prosper | Stade Guy-Boniface | 22,000 |
| Montpellier HR | 2003 | 17.5 | 5 | Fabien Galthié Mario Ledesma Stéphane Glas | Stade Yves-du-Manoir | 14,700 |
| Stade Français | 1997 | 22.8 | 7 | Richard Pool-Jones Christophe Laussucq David Auradou | Stade Charléty Stade de France | 20,000 |
| USA Perpignan | 1911 | 14.4 | 11 | Marc Delpoux Giampiero de Carli Patrick Arlettaz | Stade Aimé-Giral | 14,593 |
| Racing Métro 92 | 2009 | 21.7 | 6 | Gonzalo Quesada Simon Raiwalui | Stade Yves-du-Manoir Stade de France | 14,000 |
| RC Toulon | 2008 | 21.8 | 3 (finalist) | Bernard Laporte Pierre Mignoni Olivier Azam | Stade Mayol | 15,000 |
| Stade Toulousain | 1907 | 34.9 | 1 (Champion) | Guy Novès William Servat Jean-Baptiste Élissalde | Stade Ernest-Wallon Stadium municipal | 19,500 |

## Table

2012–13 Top 14 season :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Clermont Auvergne | 26 | 19 | 1 | 6 | 779 | 418 | +361 | 8 | 5 | 91 | Semi-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 2 | RC Toulon | 26 | 18 | 1 | 7 | 779 | 456 | +323 | 11 | 5 | 90 | Semi-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 3 | Stade Toulousain | 26 | 17 | 0 | 9 | 702 | 501 | +201 | 7 | 4 | 79 | Home quarter-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 4 | Castres Olympique | 26 | 15 | 2 | 9 | 599 | 489 | +110 | 4 | 6 | 74 | Home quarter-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 5 | Montpellier Hérault | 26 | 16 | 0 | 10 | 570 | 520 | +50 | 5 | 4 | 73 | Away quarter-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 6 | Racing Métro | 26 | 16 | 0 | 10 | 512 | 431 | +81 | 2 | 7 | 73 | Away quarter-final play-off places and qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 7 | USA Perpignan | 26 | 13 | 0 | 13 | 593 | 607 | −14 | 2 | 7 | 61 | Qualified for 2013–14 Heineken Cup |
| 8 | Aviron Bayonnais | 26 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 467 | 609 | −142 | 1 | 6 | 57 | |
| 9 | Biarritz Olympique | 26 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 505 | 540 | −35 | 2 | 5 | 57 | |
| 10 | Stade Français | 26 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 578 | 691 | −113 | 2 | 2 | 54 | |
| 11 | FC Grenoble | 26 | 12 | 0 | 14 | 480 | 606 | −126 | 1 | 5 | 54 | |
| 12 | Bordeaux Bègles | 26 | 8 | 1 | 17 | 561 | 584 | −23 | 4 | 9 | 47 | |
| 13 | SU Agen | 26 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 423 | 709 | −286 | 0 | 7 | 31 | Relegated to Rugby Pro D2 |
| 14 | Stade Montois | 26 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 374 | 761 | −387 | 1 | 7 | 16 | Relegated to Rugby Pro D2 |
* Competition points earned in head-to-head matches
* Points difference in head-to-head matches
* Try differential in head-to-head matches
* Points difference in all matches
* Try differential in all matches
* Points scored in all matches
* Tries scored in all matches
* Fewer matches forfeited'
* Classification in the previous Top 14 season Notes:
* 1 2 Montpellier 5–5, 31–29
* ↑ Qualified barring highly unlikely circumstances
* ↑ Qualified by winning the Heineken Cup
* 1 2 Bayonne 6–3
* 1 2 Stade Français 5–4

## Playoffs

| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | 1 | Clermont | 9 | | | |
| 4 | Castres | 25 | 4 | Castres | 25 | | | |
| 5 | Montpellier | 12 | | | | 4 | Castres | 19 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Toulon | 14 |
| | | | 2 | Toulon | 24 | | | |
| 3 | Toulouse | 33 | 3 | Toulouse | 9 | | | |
| 6 | Racing Métro | 19 | | | | | | |
All times are in Central European Summer Time (UTC+2).

### Quarter-finals

* 10 May 2013 21:00
| Toulouse | 33–19 | Racing Métro |
| Try: Fickou 18' m Picamoles 54' c Con: McAlister (1/2) Pen: McAlister (7/7) 3', 28', 40', 48', 58', 68', 75' | | Try: Matadigo 36' m Chavancy 55' m Pen: Wisniewski (3/3) 5', 12', 61' |
* Stadium Municipal, Toulouse Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Jérôme Garcès
* 11 May 2013 14:40
| Castres | 25–12 | Montpellier |
| Try: Claassen 46' c Con: Kockott (1/1) Pen: Kockott (5/9) 25', 30', 39', 53', 63' Drop: Talès (1/1) 13' | | Pen: Paillaugue (4/4) 2', 19', 34', 58' |
* Stade Pierre-Antoine, Castres Attendance: 11,500 Referee: Romain Poite

### Semi-finals

* 24 May 2013 21:00
| Toulon | 24–9 | Toulouse |
| Try: Rossouw 2' m D. Armitage 72' c Con: Wilkinson (1/2) Pen: Wilkinson (3/4) 10', 54' 70' Drop: Wilkinson (1/1) 64' | Report | Pen: McAlister (3/3) 6', 30', 43' |
* Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes Attendance: 36,726 Referee: Pascal Gaüzère
* 25 May 2013 16:30
| Clermont | 9–25 | Castres |
| Pen: Delany (3/3) 28', 46', 59' | Report | Try: Cabannes 63' c Con: Kockott (1/1) Pen: Kockott (6/8) 9', 19', 36', 40', 44', 53' |
* Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes Attendance: 36,242 Referee: Christophe Berdos

### Final

* 1 June 2013 21:00
| Toulon | 14–19 | Castres |
| Try: D. Armitage 80'+1 m Pen: Wilkinson (3/6) 7', 47' 67' | Report | Try: Kockott 40'+1 c Con: Kockott (1/1) Pen: Kockott (2/3) 14', 79' Drop: Talès (2/2) 72', 74' |
* Stade de France, Saint-Denis Attendance: 80,033 Referee: Jérôme Garcès
| FB | 15 | Delon Armitage |
| RW | 14 | Rudi Wulf | 65' |
| OC | 13 | Mathieu Bastareaud |
| IC | 12 | Matt Giteau |
| LW | 11 | Alexis Palisson |
| FH | 10 | Jonny Wilkinson (c) |
| SH | 9 | Frédéric Michalak | 50' |
| N8 | 8 | Chris Masoe | 70' |
| OF | 7 | Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe |
| BF | 6 | Danie Rossouw | 58' |
| RL | 5 | Nick Kennedy |
| LL | 4 | Bakkies Botha |
| TP | 3 | Carl Hayman | 19' | 28' |
| HK | 2 | Sébastien Bruno | 47' |
| LP | 1 | Andrew Sheridan | 66' |
| Substitutions: ||
| HK | 16 | Jean-Charles Orioli | 47' |
| PR | 17 | Xavier Chiocci | 66' |
| LK | 18 | Jocelino Suta |
| N8 | 19 | Steffon Armitage | 70' |
| FL | 20 | Joe van Niekerk | 58' |
| CE | 21 | Maxime Mermoz | 65' |
| FH | 22 | Sébastien Tillous-Borde | 50' |
| PR | 23 | Davit Kubriashvili | 19' | 28' |
| Coach: ||
| Bernard Laporte ||
| FB | 15 | Brice Dulin |
| RW | 14 | Romain Martial |
| OC | 13 | Romain Cabannes |
| IC | 12 | Seremaia Bai |
| LW | 11 | Marc Andreu |
| FH | 10 | Rémi Talès (c) | 78' |
| SH | 9 | Rory Kockott |
| N8 | 8 | Antonie Claassen |
| OF | 7 | Yannick Caballero |
| BF | 6 | Ibrahim Diarra | 73' |
| RL | 5 | Rodrigo Capó Ortega | 59' |
| LL | 4 | Christophe Samson |
| TP | 3 | Karena Wihongi | 80' |
| HK | 2 | Brice Mach |
| LP | 1 | Saimone Taumoepeau | 75' |
| Substitutions: ||
| HK | 16 | Mathieu Bonello |
| PR | 17 | Yannick Forestier | 75' |
| LK | 18 | Joe Tekori | 59' |
| FL | 19 | Jannie Bornman | 73' |
| FB | 20 | Romain Teulet |
| FH | 21 | Daniel Kirkpatrick | 78' |
| CE | 22 | Paul Bonnefond |
| PR | 23 | Mihaita Lazăr | 80' |
| Coaches: ||
| Laurent Travers ||
| Laurent Labit ||
* Touch judges:
* Pascal Gaüzère
* Sébastien Clouté
* Television match official:
* Philippe Bonhoure

## Statistics
### Top points scorers

Updated 11 June 2013
* Rory Kockott (Castres Olympique)
* Jonny Wilkinson (RC Toulon)
* James Hook (USA Perpignan)
* Jérome Porical (Stade Français)
* Luke McAlister (Stade Toulousain)
Table of top points scorers :
| Rank | Player | Club | Position | Points | Tries | Conversions | Penalties | Drop goals |
| 1 | Rory Kockott | Castres Olympique | Scrum-half | 376 | 8 | 33 | 90 | 0 |
| 2 | Jonny Wilkinson | RC Toulon | Fly-half | 373 | 0 | 47 | 85 | 8 |
| 3 | James Hook | USA Perpignan | Fly-half | 262 | 2 | 21 | 68 | 2 |
| 4 | Camille Lopez | Union Bordeaux Bègles | Fly-half | 232 | 2 | 33 | 49 | 3 |
| 5 | Jérôme Porical | Stade Français | Fullback | 224 | 0 | 13 | 66 | 0 |
| 6 | Luke McAlister | Stade Toulousain | Fly-half | 222 | 3 | 33 | 47 | 0 |
| 7 | Jonathan Wisniewski | Racing Metro 92 | Fly-half | 191 | 2 | 14 | 49 | 2 |
| 8 | Morgan Parra | ASM Clermont Auvergne | Scrum-half | 186 | 1 | 35 | 37 | 0 |
| 9 | Conrad Barnard | SU Agen | Fly-half | 179 | 0 | 10 | 51 | 2 |
| 10 | Benoît Paillaugue | Stade Toulousain | Fly-half | 179 | 3 | 13 | 46 | 0 |

### Top try scorers

Updated 11 June 2013
* Napolioni Nalaga (ASM Clermont)
* Wesley Fofana (ASM Clermont)
* Vincent Clerc (Stade Toulousain)
* Metuisela Talebula (Bordeaux Bègles)
* Timoci Matanavou (Stade Toulousain)
Table of top try scorers :
| Rank | Player | Club | Position | Tries |
| 1 | Napolioni Nalaga | ASM Clermont Auvergne | Wing | 13 |
| 2 | Wesley Fofana | ASM Clermont Auvergne | Centre | 10 |
| 3 | Vincent Clerc | Stade Toulousain | Wing | 9 |
| 3 | David Smith | RC Toulon | Wing | 9 |
| 5 | Rory Kockott | Castres Olympique | Scrum-half | 8 |
| 5 | Timoci Matanavou | Stade Toulousain | Wing | 8 |
| 5 | Noa Nakaitaci | ASM Clermont Auvergne | Wing | 8 |
| 5 | Metuisela Talebula | Union Bordeaux Bègles | Fullback | 8 |
| 9 | Marc Andreu | Castres Olympique | Wing | 7 |
| 9 | Steffon Armitage | RC Toulon | Flanker | 7 |
| 9 | Matt Giteau | RC Toulon | Centre | 7 |
| 9 | Romain Martial | Castres Olympique | Wing | 7 |
| 9 | Timoci Nagusa | Montpellier HR | Wing | 7 |
| 9 | Alexis Palisson | RC Toulon | Wing | 7 |
| 9 | Sitiveni Sivivatu | ASM Clermont Auvergne | Wing | 7 |