Preview French Open League – The Final : Pool B

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Published on 21st April 2022

This weekend, the French Open League will take place in Sarcelles for the final round. 18 teams divided into three pools will fight to win this first edition of the French Open League. Let’s go with the B pool !

Elite W :

The only 100% women’s team in pool B, the Elites W won their qualification in style at the La Rochelle stage. They even managed to win the Clermont stage against Clermont in the final. With Turkey and Australia in mind, Jacques Bréchaire’s players are one of the favourites for this final. All the players selected for the international competition in Turkey will be present. Will there be an act three between the Elites W and Clermont in the final ?

Morlaix :

At the buzzer, Morlaix qualified at the Saint-Malo stage. But it is a completely different team that will be in Sarcelles, far from the one that managed to reach the D1 round 3 at the beginning of March. Edouard Coutel, Pierre-Henri Viaud and Julien Jestin will be present. The Taureau will be reinforced by several U24 players for this final : Hugo Moal (Dinan), François Le Nevez (Rennes), Clément Javaudin (Rennes) and Corentin Morelle (Pontoise). Youth combined with experience. A squad that will be interesting to watch evolve !

Neuilly :

The marathoners of the UWH League ! The Squales have participated in all the stages, in France and overseas. Rarely complete, they finally got their qualifying ticket for stage 3 by finishing in third place behind the Élites W and Clermont. 4th in Le Puy, 7th in La Rochelle, 3rd in Clermont, 4th in Leeds and 1st in Saint-Malo, the Squales played together more than any other team. An undeniable advantage. However, they have been inconsistent, especially defensively. Neuilly will need to become more disciplined if they want to threaten teams who have qualified for Round 3 of D1.

La Rochelle :

They too have taken part in almost every stage of the league. If in Puy-en-Velay, the team did not qualify, they did not wait long before getting their ticket. During the second stage of the French Open League, Rémi Honoré’s team finished third and took advantage of this to qualify at the expense of Puy-en-Velay in the small final with a score of 3-1. In Clermont, during the third stage, the team had a difficult weekend and finished in 5th place.

For this final, the team will be reinforced by Renaud Pilsudski (Epernay), Mathieu Lefevre (Epernay) and Nicolas Babarit (Rennes). The only D3 team present in the final, La Rochelle will probably not be playing for the win but they will certainly be well prepared to play for the climb in two months time !

Clermont :

The eternal runners-up ! 2nd in Le Puy, 2nd in La Rochelle and 2nd in Clermont, the CHS is one of the big outsiders of this Group B. The squad has almost not changed since the beginning of the league. Apart from Pierre Ibos and Corentin Beunet, all the players who qualified in Le Puy will be present for this final. Fifth in round 2 of the D1 and therefore qualified for round 3 for the first time in their history, Clermont-Ferrand will arrive with confidence for this final. Will the recently promoted D1 side finally make it to the top of the French Open League ?

Clamart :

They only needed one stage to show what they were capable of. In Clermont-Ferrand, Clamart qualified for the final in Sarcelles. Recently promoted to D1, the players from Hauts-de-Seine will have a great card to play in a group composed of teams, also promoted to D1.
With a mixed squad, the team will be able to rely on their captain Alexis Sourbet and their French international, Joel Mingasson. However, Clamart will not be there to serve as sparring partners.

Saturday’s programme :