Montpellier battled past Lyon 25-20, while there were also French Top 14 wins for Pau, Castres, Bordeaux, Bayonne and La Rochelle in round 11.

Montpellier have been one of the most consistent teams in the competition so far this season, but on Saturday Jake White’s side was tested against a plucky Lyon outfit, who outscored their hosts three tries to one.

Luckily for Montpellier, Demetri Catrakilis was pin-point accurate off the kicking tee. The flyhalf converted Montpellier’s only try and nailed five penalties, while Frans Steyn also chipped in with a monster long-range effort to help sink Lyon.

In other matches, hooker Jody Jenneker scored a try for Castres, who beat Brive 32-13 at home, Gio Aplon crossed for an important try as Grenoble looked to have secured a shock win, but a late penalty gave Bordeaux a 24-22 victory instead.

Bayonne pulled of the biggest upset of the round when they beat competition pacesetters Clermont 22-14, despite having to play with 14 men for over 40 minutes following a red card for prop Ben Broster.

Elsewhere, reigning champions Racing slumped to a 26-17 loss against Pau, and La Rochelle edged Toulouse 25-19.

Toulon host Stade Français in Mayol on Sunday night.

Round 11 results:

Montpellier 25 Lyon 20
Castres 32 Brive 13
Grenoble 22 Bordeaux 24
Bayonne 22 Clermont 14
Pau 26 Racing 17
La Rochelle 25 Toulouse 19

Photo: Alexandre Dimou/Getty Images