Racing face Top 14 title test at Clermont

Big-spending Racing Metro face a crucial test of their title aspirations when they travel to Top 14 favourites Clermont on Saturday. Racing started the season well but three defeats in their last four league matches, including a humbling 9-6 reverse at basement-sitters Biarritz last time out, as well as a 22-20 defeat at home to Grenoble previously, have left the Parisians down in 10th in the standings. With only the top six qualifying for the end of season play-offs, Racing seem to be off the pace but that's not the case in this Top 14 season, punctuated as it has been by remarkable competitiveness. The top five teams are separated by just one point while there are only five points between the top 10. It means that, despite their lowly position, Racing are in reality only a bonus-point win off top spot. Yet a defeat at the Stade Marcel-Michelin on Saturday, where Clermont have not been beaten in more than four years, would start to see Racing lose touch with the front-runners. Having beaten their rivals 13-9 at home in the European Cup in October, Racing could be forgiven for at least feeling a hint of confidence, not least because their opponents will have been harder hit by the international matches this weekend. Clermont have five players on French international duty with Ti'i Paulo playing for Samoa and Napolioni Nalaga away with Fiji. On top of that they have injury concerns over several players, including captain and centre Aurelien Rougerie. Racing's major absentee is Ireland fly-half Jonathan Sexton but his replacement, Jonathan Wisniewski is a French international. Clermont, though, are one of four sides eyeing top spot at the end of the weekend playing at home. The others are Toulon, who extended their lead with a 15-9 win at home to Perpignan on Friday, four-time European champions Toulouse, entertaining newly-promoted Oyonnax, and Montpellier, who face champions Castres. The one team in the top five playing away is Stade Francais, who have the best record of anyone in the league with seven wins from their 11 matches, although with just three bonus points, they actually sit fifth. They will be without 11 players retained by international teams for the trip to Bordeaux-Begles, where last season they lost 30-22. Stade full-back Hugo Bonneval admitted they will have their work cut out. "Of course the absentees will weigh on us. Those playing in international matches are the players above the norm, those who make a difference in the key moments," he told Rugbyrama website. "Losing players like (Italy captain) Sergio (Parisse) or Pascal (Pape, the France lock) is tough. Most of our missing players are forwards. We're missing a loosehead, a tighthead, a lock, a number eight. "Luckily we've got a great squad: to replace Sergio we have David Lyons, who's a Wallaby. To replace Pascal we have Gerhard Mostert, who's played for the Springboks. "We've got a big squad." One of the great match-ups of the weekend sees high-flying Montpellier host Castres, with exciting All Black back Rene Ranger set to make his debut for the hosts. New Zealander prop Paea Fa'anunu and South African centre Robert Ebersohn are also expected to make their first appearances for the club. In other games rock-bottom Biarritz travel to Brive and second-from-bottom Bayonne host Grenoble. Fixtures (times all GMT) Saturday (1315 unless stated) Bayonne v Grenoble, Bordeaux-Begles v Stade Francais, Brive v Biarritz, Montpellier v Castres, Toulouse v Oyonnax, Clermont v Racing (1330) Source: AFP