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Week 2 of the Top 14 takes place this weekend. Six of the seven matches are to be played on Saturday with the remaining game being played on late Sunday afternoon.
Having lost heavily in week 1, Agen are targeting a much improved performance in week 2. They will have home advantage against Racing 92. Starting in the Agen front row will be Facundo Bosch and Dave Ryan. Ignacio Mieres will make his Agen debut from the bench. Juan Imhoff starts for Racing 92 on the left wing.
Paris did not start well. Their opponents on Saturday, La Rochelle had a strong opening performance, defeating Brive. Playing for Stade Français in week 2 will be Sergio Parisse. The Italo-Argentine will start at No 8.
Montpellier have the unusual friendly schedule of playing at home in the opening two rounds. This is further underlined by the matches being against the two sides who won promotion from the Pro D2 last season. Saturday’s match against Oyonnax is to see Los Pumas 7’s flier, Axel Müller making his debut for the visitors. He played Top 14 last season for Toulon.
Lyon beat the odds in week won. The club’s away victory over Paris was the first upset of the season. The team hosts Brive in week 2 and a home win is on the cards. Starting at tighthead prop will be Francisco Gómez Kodela. Brive will also be represented by an Americas player with Taku Ngwenya named as a replacement back.
Bordeaux defeated 2017 champions Clermont in week 1. The team faces Castres away in week 2. Playing for Castres will be Uruguayan Rodrigo Capó Ortega and Argentine Benjamín Urdapilleta. They start at second-row at fly half respectively.
Toulouse and Pau both disappointed in the opening round. A first win for the season can be grasped on Saturday evening when they meet in Toulouse. Steffon Armitage will play No 8 for the visitors. Armitage is capped by England but was born in Trinidad & Tobago.
A rematch from the 2017 Top 14 Final sees Clermont at home to Toulon on Sunday. The fixture will close the round. Line-ups are to be announced on Saturday afternoon. Players from Argentina and the USA are expected to feature.
