the essential
US Montauban, currently 15th in Pro D2, faces Mont-de-Marsan, Friday May 10, 2024, for the 29th and penultimate day of the 2023-2024 championship. Stade Monois, still in the fight for qualification, will try to make up for the points lost at home against Dax. Before moving to the current red lantern, Rouen, for the final day of Pro D2, Friday May 17, 2024. The Stade Montois is therefore the arbiter of the battle for the play-off place between Tarn-et-Garonnais and Normands .
As part of the 29e and penultimate day of the Pro D2 championship, Mont-de-Marsan advances to Sapiac, the US Montauban stadium (Friday May 10, 7:30 p.m.), with the costume of an injured and endangered beast. So let’s get things out of the way right away. No, Stade Monois is not fighting for its survival in the second professional division of French rugby. But yes, the men of manager Patrick Milhet, whose objective is obviously qualification, are in the worst dynamic of their season.
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The Montois have only one victory in the last six meetings. It was against Biarritz (38-7), on April 12, 2024. Above all, the teammates of former Montalban player Pierre Sayerse lost the Landes derby against Dax, two weeks ago (13-18). A scar not at all closed when facing Pierre-Philippe Lafond’s men.
Rouen, first supporter of Mont-de-Marsan this Friday
In this context, the descendants of André Boniface, sixth tied on points with Nevers (7e69 units) obviously come to plant their flag on the Sapiac lawn, before the stadium experiences a profound change the day after the match.
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But Montois’ travels very rarely went well in 2024. They were defeated six times. Their only success? It was in… Rouen, January 5, 2024. The Normans will therefore be pleased that the Landais pull the same trick on the Montalbanais as on the first day of the calendar year.
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Because at the same time, the Normans receive a team from Soyaux-Angoulême guaranteed to maintain. If we must not sell the bear’s skin before having killed it, we can easily think that victory will be in the end for Franck Pourteau’s teammates.
Mont-de-Marsan ends its season in… Rouen
The Stade Monois will also be the “referee” of the two-way match for the place of play-off between the USM and the RNR. We are not mentioning here the Olympic Biarritz which will face a certainly reshuffled Provence rugby team (Friday 9 p.m.), already assured of playing a direct semi-final… Because Julien Tastet’s men will do well in Seine-Maritime to play the last match of the season.
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All these speculations will surely have fizzled out on Friday evening, May 10, around 11 p.m. And, in any case, there will still be a trip to Aurillac for the Montalbanais to negotiate in order to possibly sign a second success in a row if they raise their arms against “MontDe”. A performance that they have not reissued since… December 15, 2023. An eternity.
