10Bet Lions ready to hush the La Rochelle crowd

Lions assistant coach Ricardo Loubscher, who has experience in France following a stint at Stade Françaisduring the 2019/20 Top 14 season, has urged his side to get off to a fast start and silence the crowd at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre, which is  known for its intimidating atmosphere.  

"One of the big things in France is the atmosphere generated by the fans pre-game and during the game itself. They play with a lot of passion as well, so we have to make sure that we adjust to the conditions and silence the crowd early on. Our intent and execution must be at an elite level."

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Lions scrum-half Nico Steyn echoed those sentiments regarding the atmosphere the side could encounter when they take on the top 14 outfit. However, he warned that the Lions would head into the match with confidence as they look to secure a positive result…

"There's a lot of excitement within our squad and every player wants to be involved and to play against La Rochelle at home in France because we know what the crowd is like. We will try our best to secure a good result."

La Rochelle will be the first test to see how the Johannesburg-based outfit responds to last week’s defeat to the Vodacom Bulls in the URC, after their near-perfect start to their 2026-27 season with victories over defending URC champions Leinster and the Ospreys. Steyn says the team needs to put the loss behind them and focus on returning to the Lions’ style of play.

Loubscher revealed there was a review on Monday following the defeat to their Gauteng rivals, which helped identify areas which needed to be addressed ahead of their trip to France.

The Investec Champions Cup clash between La Rochelle and the Lions takes place on Saturday evening at Stade Marcel-Deflandre, with kick-off scheduled for 18:30 (Local SA time).