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2012–13 Top 14 season
Countries	France
Champions	Castres Olympique
Runners-up	Toulon
Relegated	Agen, Mont-de-Marsan
Matches played	187
Attendance	2,589,905 (average 13,850 per match)
Tries scored	664 (average 3.6 per match)
Top point scorer	Rory Kockott (376)
Top try scorer	Napolioni Nalaga (13)
← 2011–122013–14 →

The 2012–13 Top 14 competition was a French domestic rugby union club competition operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR). Two new teams from the 2011–12 Pro D2 season were promoted to Top 14 this year, Grenoble and Stade Montois in place of the two relegated teams, CA Brive and Lyon OU. Home-and-away play began on 17 August 2012 and continued through to 5 May 2013. The regular season was followed by a three-round playoff involving the top six sides. The final was contested at the Stade de France between Toulon and Castres; the match was won 19–14 by Castres to earn them their first title since the controversial final in 1993.

Teams

1. Bayonne took one match across the Spanish border to Estadio Anoeta in Donostia-San Sebastián in 2012–13.
2. Biarritz has historically taken at least one home match per season to the Anoeta, but has not done so since the 2010–11 season.
3. In 2012–13, Bordeaux Bègles played eight of their 13 home matches at the larger Stade Chaban-Delmas and only five at their traditional home of Stade André-Moga.
4. In 2012–13, Grenoble played four home matches at the city's largest venue, Stade des Alpes.
5. In 2012–13, Perpignan played one home match at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys in Barcelona.
6. Racing took two 2012–13 home matches to Stade de France.
7. Stade Français' offices are in the 16th arrondissement, although they are currently playing in the 13th arrondissement.
8. Stade Français' traditional home, Stade Jean-Bouin, is closed while a new stadium is built on the site; the new Jean-Bouin is expected to open for the 2013–14 season. The club also regularly takes at least three home matches per season to Stade de France; in 2012–13, they played three at Stade de France plus one at Grand Stade Lille Métropole in Villeneuve d'Ascq.
9. Toulon took one home match to Stade Vélodrome in Marseille in 2012–13, resuming a past practice that they skipped in 2011–12.
10. Toulouse often takes high-demand home matches to the city's largest sporting venue, Stadium Municipal. Two of their 2012–13 home matches were played there.

Team information

Table

1. Competition points earned in head-to-head matches
2. Points difference in head-to-head matches
3. Try differential in head-to-head matches
4. Points difference in all matches
5. Try differential in all matches
6. Points scored in all matches
7. Tries scored in all matches
8. Fewer matches forfeited'
9. Classification in the previous Top 14 season
   Notes:

1. Qualified barring highly unlikely circumstances
2. Qualified by winning the Heineken Cup
3. ^ Montpellier 5–5, 31–29
4. ^ Bayonne 6–3
5. ^ Stade Français 5–4

Playoffs

All times are in Central European Summer Time (UTC+2).

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

FB 15 Delon Armitage RW 14 Rudi Wulf  65' OC 13 Mathieu Bastareaud IC 12 Matt Giteau LW 11 Alexis Palisson FH 10 Jonny Wilkinson (c) SH 9 Frédéric Michalak  50' N8 8 Chris Masoe  70' OF 7 Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe BF 6 Danie Rossouw  58' RL 5 Nick Kennedy LL 4 Bakkies Botha TP 3 Carl Hayman  19'  28' HK 2 Sébastien Bruno  47' LP 1 Andrew Sheridan  66' Substitutions: HK 16 Jean-Charles Orioli  47' PR 17 Xavier Chiocci  66' LK 18 Jocelino Suta N8 19 Steffon Armitage  70' FL 20 Joe van Niekerk  58' CE 21 Maxime Mermoz  65' FH 22 Sébastien Tillous-Borde  50' PR 23 Davit Kubriashvili  19'  28' Coach: Bernard Laporte

FB 15 Brice Dulin RW 14 Romain Martial OC 13 Romain Cabannes IC 12 Seremaia Bai LW 11 Marc Andreu FH 10 Rémi Talès (c)  78' SH 9 Rory Kockott N8 8 Antonie Claassen OF 7 Yannick Caballero BF 6 Ibrahim Diarra  73' RL 5 Rodrigo Capó Ortega  59' LL 4 Christophe Samson TP 3 Karena Wihongi  80' HK 2 Brice Mach LP 1 Saimone Taumoepeau  75' Substitutions: HK 16 Mathieu Bonello PR 17 Yannick Forestier  75' LK 18 Joe Tekori  59' FL 19 Jannie Bornman  73' FB 20 Romain Teulet FH 21 Daniel Kirkpatrick  78' CE 22 Paul Bonnefond PR 23 Mihaita Lazăr  80' Coaches: Laurent Travers Laurent Labit

Statistics

Top points scorers

Updated 11 June 2013

• Rory Kockott
  (Castres Olympique)
• Jonny Wilkinson
  (RC Toulon)
• James Hook
  (USA Perpignan)
• Jérome Porical
  (Stade Français)
• Luke McAlister
  (Stade Toulousain)

Top try scorers

Updated 11 June 2013

• Napolioni Nalaga
  (ASM Clermont)
• Wesley Fofana
  (ASM Clermont)
• Vincent Clerc
  (Stade Toulousain)
• Metuisela Talebula
  (Bordeaux Bègles)
• Timoci Matanavou
  (Stade Toulousain)

See also

• 2012–13 Rugby Pro D2 season
• List of 2013-2014 Top 14 transfers

References

1. "2012–13 Calendar". Ligue National de Rugby. Retrieved 17 October 2012.
2. Chesterman, Barnaby (2 June 2013). "Castres stun Toulon to win French Top 14 title". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
3. "Top 14: Toulon-Castres, souviens-toi, il y a vingt ans..." [Top 14: Toulon, Castres, remember, there are twenty ...]. www.lepoint.fr (in French). 1 June 2013. Archived from the original on 20 March 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
4. Pulze, Stéphane (3 June 2013). "Castres et "la magie du rugby"" [Castres and "the magic of rugby"]. Républicain Lorrain (in French). Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
5. "Les budgets 2012–2013 des clubs du Top 14" [The 2012-2013 budgets clubs Top 14]. www.sport.fr (in French). 19 August 2012. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2012.

External links

• (in French) Ligue Nationale de Rugby – Official website
• Top 14 on Planetrugby.com

• Top 14 seasons
• 2012–13 in French rugby union leagues
• 2012–13 in European rugby union leagues