Now’s the time for the French revolution

AS a rule of thumb, English teams good enough to fight their way into a Champions Cup final eventually go on to win one. Across the water in France, the opposite is true. The best sides never to be crowned champions all hail from the Top 14.

Stade Francais were the most potent club side in the northern hemisphere around the turn of the century – the Parisians won their domestic title in 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2004 – but they messed up horribly in Europe in ’99, even though the English clubs boycotted the tournament, taking Cardiff and Swansea with them.

Biarritz, who prized pragmatism above sensation despite having Serge Blanco in their DNA and being blessed with such compelling talents as Dusautoir, Betsen, Harinordoquy and the remarkable Dimitri Yachvili, came up short in two finals. Munster beat them in 2006, Toulouse four years later.

Clermont Auvergne? Hell of a side, diabolical luck. Three defeats in as many finals and two more losses at the last-four stage, both of them excruciatingly painful for different reasons. All in the space of six seasons.

This afternoon, the remaining member of French rugby’s frustrated foursome, Racing 92, give it another go in the unfamiliar surroundings of Lens (best known for Phil Vickery’s uncannily accurate impersonation of the Chelsea full-back Ron “Chopper” Harris during the 2007 World Cup, but that’s another story).

Their semi-final opponents, La Rochelle, have not won the Champions Cup either, but they were runners-up last year and, being a growing force in the French game, have the potential to turn the existing quartet into a quintet.

Whoever wins today will have their work cut out come the final in Marseille. There are only two French clubs, Toulouse and Toulon, with multiple titles behind them and both know this for sure: the first one was the hardest to win.