Round 22 of the Top 14 provided the rugby world with the French league’s highest card count for a weekend, as 17 cards were brandished across the course of just seven games. 16 yellow cards and one red card were awarded, as tempers flared with the league entering the business end of the season.
The round-ending match last Sunday saw Lyon receive three yellow cards during their match against Toulouse. League leaders Toulouse were also given a yellow card in the fiercely contest fixture, as they scraped a 36-31 win.
The record for the 2022/23 Top 14 season previously stood at 14 cards across the weekend, which dates all the way back to the opening round of the campaign. The average cards awarded per weekend in the Top 14 is 10 cards, with this past round of action seeing players reach boing point in the tense moments.
As reported by French rugby outlet Midi Olympique RugbyRama this season’s Top 14 troublemakers are Castres Olympique (22 yellow and three red), who are then followed by Perpignan (21 yellow, 4 red). Clermont Auvergne have the best ratio in the division, having only received eight yellow cards and one red in their entire campaign, whilst Clermont’s opponents this season have totalled 20 yellow cards and one red between them.
There are three more rounds remaining in the Top 14 this season, with Toulouse stretching ahead of second placed La Rochelle. It is still all to play for, as just six points separate the top-two sides, a late Toulouse slip-up would hand the title to La Rochelle.
Both sides will have to dig deep for the final few weeks, as they both also enter the semi-finals of the Heineken Champions Cup, with the potential to meet in Dublin for a repeat of the 2020/21 Final.