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Brive are back in the Top 14. Les Corréziens defeated Grenoble 28-22 this afternoon to win the promotion – relegation fixture. With it Brive will play in the 2019-2020 Top 14 while Grenoble have been officially relegated to the Pro D2.
Involved for Brive was Axel Müller. The 2016 Olympian started on the left wing for Les Corréziens who had home advantage at the Stade Amédée-Domenech for the vital fixture.
The 25-year-old Müller is uncapped by Argentina but is captured due to having played for Los Pumas 7’s as well as the Argentina XV.
In securing promotion Brive complete the teams for the 2019-2020 Top 14 season. Also promoted are Bayonne who were the regular season champions of the Pro D2. Meanwhile Grenoble, and Perpignan will play next season in the French second division.
Brive are one of the historically strong club sides from France. Among their achievements are being the 1997 European Champions Cup winners, and the runners-up of the 2000 French national championship, what is now the Top 14.
During the professional era smaller-town clubs have been overwhelmingly overtaken by big city clubs. This season’s Top 14 play-off’s are a case in point. The final four are Toulouse, Clermont, Lyon, and La Rochelle. Eliminated in the barrage play-off’s were additional big city sides Racing 92, and Montpellier.
The one club to have bucked the trend in recent years is Castres. The historic small-town club was Top 14 champions in 2013, and 2018.
