Toulouse v Stade Francais joins Top 14 postponements

NEWS: Champions Toulouse's home game on Sunday with Stade Francais became the fourth Top 14 clash to be called off due to a surfeit of Covid-19 positive tests in the visiting club.

The match joins Sunday's Brive-Clermont clash and two which were due to be played on Monday Racing 92-Pau and Toulon hosting leaders Begles-Bordeaux.

The French league (LNR) said "the health situation in the [Stade Francais] squad "had forced their hand to postpone the match.

"The date of the rescheduled match will be made known at a later date," the LNR added.

Just three matches of the halfway point of the league season remain on.

Sunday's game between Perpignan and Castres and two on Monday, bottom side Biarritz hosting Montpellier and last season's beaten finalists La Rochelle at home to Lyon.

Covid infections in France hit six figures on Saturday, health officials recording 104,611 cases over the previous 24 hours, the third consecutive day the numbers have been record highs.

The latest figures mark a dramatic rise since the beginning of the month: on December 4, the numbers broke 50 000 for the first time before rising steadily.