The regular season has come to a close, and it’s brought some pleasant surprises. The first is Toulouse’s presence, who, after several underwhelming seasons since their strong 2016 campaign, have brilliantly secured a spot in the top four. Second surprise, Rouen’s Huskies are missing out, and that hasn’t happened in at least twenty years. Third surprise, Montigny has found their winning form and finished top of their group, which is no surprise given their victory in the Challenge de France.
As for the rest, it’s a logical return to form for Sénart, who missed out on qualification last year. Then there’s Montpellier, who continue to perform year after year and are clear favorites this season given their results.
We’ll be back later in the week with team and player statistics to analyze this regular season. On the 15th and final matchday, Toulouse hit summer traffic and couldn’t return victorious from Rouen, allowing Montigny, who defeated PUC twice, to take first place in Group A. The Huskies reached third place at the expense of La Rochelle. In the other group, no surprises as Montpellier rotated their lineup, notably with young pitchers almost giving away matches to Savigny. Finally, Nice forfeited against Metz and finished the season without a single win.
Savigny and La Rochelle, who had grown accustomed to a playoff spot in recent years, aren’t there this season. Injuries, less depth in their squads, and a generational gap with a lot of youth partly explain this dip in form. Savigny had a beautiful but difficult season last year, finishing as runners-up in both the Challenge de France and the championship, always stumbling on Rouen. This year, the Lions are on the doorstep of the playoffs (just one win separates them from Sénart)! Their European vice-championship title will console them for 2023. As for La Rochelle, it’s been a tough year in terms of squad depth, and logically, they haven’t been able to reach the same level as last year.
Metz have managed to stay in touch with the mid-table pack, avoiding a battle with the two clubs who quickly let the season slip away without much hope: Nice and PUC. As for Rouen, it’s been a year of all troubles: losing the Challenge de France final, a disaster in the European Cup A, and no playoffs. We can only wish them a warm shelter during the cold season, eliminating Metz in the play-downs.
From the spectator’s point of view (and it’s not over yet), we’ve experienced suspense until the very end.
We’ve seen some outstanding individual performances, we’ve watched numerous young players step up. On the other hand, we’ve seen fights, expulsions, and disputes, but surely no more or less than in other years. We sense a rise in the technical and managerial staff of the clubs, but we still feel the presence of difficulties linked to the amateur world that surround all these clubs in financial management, travel management, the regularity of team line-ups, and the proper respect of regulations…
This year, which sees the reduction of D1 from ten to eight teams, raises questions about next year, which will also be marked by heated discussions in the off-season about JFL (Locally Trained Youth).
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. For now, it’s time for the playoffs, which will see two southern teams (Montpellier and Toulouse) and two Parisian teams (Montigny and Sénart) face off. This will take place on August 20th, best of five matches. Sénart and Toulouse start at home. The following match(es) will take place on September 3rd. We are therefore certain to witness a north-south confrontation in the final. We’ll talk about predictions after the publication of the statistics.
On the same dates, the play-downs will be played, and relegation may be on the line. Metz host Rouen and La Rochelle host Savigny. Unlike other years, these matches are of considerable importance, as the two losers will face each other on the same date as the playoff final, and the loser will face the winner of D2 in a best-of-three series. In short, it is therefore conceivable that three teams from Division 1 in 2023 will find themselves in Division 2 next year!
So, a little break from D1 for now. Time for the European Cups, notably the 23U.
Article and news images generated by AI.
