Toulouse will hope to reclaim first place in the Top 14 when they host leaders Clermont Auvergne in a top-of-the-table clash on Saturday.

The South West giants lost their lead last weekend when Clermont picked up a bonus point in a convincing win over Bourgoin while Stade were battling to 20-13 victory over strugglers Albi.

With only eight matches to go in the Top 14, the clash at Stade Ernest Wallon could go a long way to deciding this year's champions.

It is effectively an eight-point game and will allow the side that wins to maintain their comfortable cushion over third-placed Stade Francais, which currently stands at 13 points.

Bourgoin's chances of reaching the play-offs have suffered in a four-week period that has seen them lose four of their five league fixtures.

Last week's loss to Clermont was preceded by a narrow home defeat to Perpignan and they will look to reverse the trend when they meet Castres on Friday evening.

Castres are placed sixth to Bourgoin's ninth and, like their opponents, have seen their season stumble in recent weeks.

Four consecutive wins in March have been followed by back-to-back defeats and Mark McCall's side need a victory to get their play-off ambitions back on track.

Perpignan are currently the form team of the Top 14 and are enjoying a run that has seen them unbeaten since February.

Six wins and a draw from their last seven matches have moved them into fourth spot and the Basque side are likely to prove too powerful for the visit of Bayonne, who are back in 10th after winning just one of their past six.

Defending champions Stade Francais have bounced back from a disappointing run of results in March and have now won their last three.

The Parisian giants welcome Montauban to the Stade Jean-Bouin on Saturday and will be confident of closing the gap on the leaders.

With Toulouse and Clermont facing each other, Stade have an excellent chance of reducing the points deficit if they can notch a fourth consecutive win when they face Montauban.

Fifth-placed Biarritz will also be confident of moving back into the play-off zone when they face basement outfit Auch.

The Atlantic coast club are just a point behind Perpignan and, despite just two wins from their last five games, should prove too powerful for an Auch side that has won just twice all season.

The other matches on the weekend see second-from-bottom Dax travel to Brive and third-from-bottom Albi host Montpellier.

Terence O'Rorke / Eurosport