Adam Williams presents his prediction for the European Rugby Champions Cup match.
At Franklin's Gardens, we’ll see last season’s Champions Cup semi-finalists Northampton Saints take on Castres Olympique, who just a year ago were competing in the Challenge Cup. Are the sides mismatched?
Northampton Saints
In the 2023/24 season, the Saints won their first six matches of the Champions Cup but then fell to Leinster in the semi-finals on foreign soil (17:20). Some of these matches were part of a 19-game winning home run, which was snapped last Saturday. Probably, no one expected it to happen against a mid-table side like Gloucester, where the hosts couldn’t even grab a bonus point — 17:25. Undoubtedly, this was a setback for them, but on the flip side, the Northampton players will now have added motivation to avoid a second consecutive defeat.
Castres Olympique
Castres Olympique have been tussling all autumn for a playoff spot, at times entering the coveted top six and then slipping out. After the 11th round, they found themselves in seventh place. This drop was compounded by a heavy defeat away to leaders Clermont (10:54). Still, one should not judge the team by a single match. Castres Olympique have been consistently strong at home and falter on the road, but they put up a fight in every game except the last. In the other five losses, they were only beaten by margins ranging from two to seven points.
Northampton Saints vs Castres Olympique Prediction
The defeat to Gloucester showed that Northampton Saints are far from their peak form of last season, although Castres Olympique also have limitations. Therefore, the French club will lose, but the margin will be under 10 points.
