The most demanding, grueling high-level professional league kicks off this weekend as FloRugby’s live coverage of the French Top 14 starts up.

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Castres vs Montpellier

Stade Francais vs Perpignan

The Top 14 puts teams through a rough 26-week season — plus playoffs — every year, and it’s a test of skill, determination, and depth.

Even then, surprises are rampant. Money may talk, but judging from how come clubs spend their cash, it can sometimes talk in a whisper. The regular-season record of a team may mean something, but the playoffs are a different animal — as any fan of the NFL or NHL or Major League Baseball can attest. 

Championship Game Rematch

In 2017-18, Montpellier had the best record, at 17-9. Now, 17-9 isn’t really all that astounding — in most leagues a championship team might expect to win 80 percent of the time, not 65 percent. Even so, it was Castres, which had to play an extra playoff game, and was on the road the entire time, which emerged the champion. Castres finished the regular season 15-11 and edged out La Rochelle by only two standings points — has La Rochelle not allowed a 79th-minute try and an injury-time penalty by Oyonnnax to secure a 38-38 tie, it would have been La Rochelle, not Castres, in the playoffs.

So, you can see how every game, all 182, matter.

FloRugby has 52 of those 182 for you over the course of the season, beginning with Round 1. 

And we’ve got a good one for you this week, as the 2017-18 Top 14 final, won by Castres over Montpellier, opens the season with a rematch.

That game is a stand-alone on Sunday, August 26, kicking off at 10:05 AM CT (11:05 Eastern).

Castres is coming off a fairly fractious “friendly” against Sale in which former Toulon star Chris Ashton, now with Sale, punched a Castres player. Ashton will actually get further sanction for flipping scrumhalf Rory Kockott on his head after the whistle had blown. Yes, it was that kind of game.

Kockott is likely out of the opener as a result, but Castres still has the imposing Nemani Nadolo — 25 tries last year — to call upon. 

Montpellier is coming off a really nice 26-7 win over South African side Western Province. With a squad that includes Bismarck Du Plessis at hooker, a halfback combination of Ruan Pienaar and Aaron Cruden, and captained by flanker Wiaan Liebenberg, this is a team not packed with Frenchmen, but it’s very entertaining and full of players fans have seen before.

Paris Faces Upstarts

The other Game of the Week is Perpignan against Stade Francais. Kickoff is 7:45 AM Central Time, Saturday, August 25. Paris had a rough go of it last year, finishing 9-17 and 12th, while FloRugby fans saw Perpignan achieve promotion from Pro D2 last year after topping Grenoble in the final. 

Les Dieux du Stade may look a bit mortal these days, but a 28-26 preseason loss to La Rochelle provides hope for better things to come. Former Irish star Paul O’Connell is one the team’s staff now, and with Morne Steyn patrolling at flyhalf and the evergreen Sergio Perisse still in the pack, Paris can cause problems.

Maybe this year’s calendar will bring them good luck.

Perpignan should be a challenger despite coming up from Pro D2. Sione Piukala is a Tongan talent who has been in the league a while, and he partners with Afusipa Taumoepeau to form an imposing midfield. This is a huge game for Perpignan.

Also this week in Round 1 (2017-18 record in parentheses):

Stade France (9-17) at Perpignan (Pro D2 Champions)

Pau (11-15) at Bordeaux-Begles (10-15-1)

Toulouse (16-9-1) at Lyon (15-11)

Grenoble (Pro D2 Runners-Up) at La Rochell (14-11-1)

Agen (10-16) at Clermont (11-14-1)

Racing 92 (18-8) at Toulon (14-12)

Castes (15-11, Champions) at Montpellier (17-9, Runners-Up)