2015–16 Rugby Pro D2 season explained

2015–16 Pro D2
Countries:	France
Date:	20 August 2015 – 4 June 2016^[1]
Champions:	Lyon
Promoted:	Bayonne
Relegated:	Provence, Tarbes
Matches:	243
Website:	www.lnr.fr
Prevseason:	2014–15
Nextseason:	2016–17

The 2015–16 Rugby Pro D2 was the second-level French rugby union club competition, behind the Top 14, for the 2015–16 season. It ran alongside the 2015–16 Top 14 competition; both competitions are operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR).

Teams

Club	City	Stadium	Capacity
Aviron Bayonnais	Bayonne (Pyrénées-Atlantiques)	Stade Jean Dauger	align=center	16,900
SC Albi	Albi (Tarn)	Stadium Municipal d'Albi	align=center	13,000
Stade Aurillacois	Aurillac (Cantal)	Stade Jean Alric	align=center	9,000
AS Béziers Hérault	Béziers (Hérault)	Stade de la Méditerranée	align=center	18,500
Biarritz Olympique	Biarritz (Pyrénées-Atlantiques)	Parc des Sports Aguiléra	align=center	15,000
	Bourgoin-Jallieu (Isère)	Stade Pierre Rajon	align=center	10,000
US Carcassonne	Carcassonne (Aude)	Stade Albert Domec	align=center	10,000
US Colomiers	Colomiers (Haute-Garonne)	Stade Michel Bendichou	align=center	11,400
US Dax	Dax (Landes)	Stade Maurice Boyau	align=center	16,170
Lyon OU	Lyon (Rhône)	Matmut Stadium	align=center	11,800
US Montauban	Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne)	Stade Sapiac	align=center	12,600
Stade Montois	Mont-de-Marsan (Landes)	Stade Guy Boniface	align=center	22,000
RC Narbonne	Narbonne (Aude)	Parc des Sports Et de l'Amitié	align=center	12,000
USA Perpignan	Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales)	Stade Aimé Giral	align=center	16,600
Provence Rugby	Aix-en-Provence (Bouches-du-Rhône)	Stade Maurice David	align=center	4,000
Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby	Tarbes (Hautes-Pyrénées)	Stade Maurice Trélut	align=center	16,400

Changes in the lineup from 2014–15 were:

• Pau won the 2014–15 Pro D2 title and were thereby automatically promoted to the Top 14. Agen won the promotion playoffs to secure the second promotion place.
• The bottom finisher in 2014–15, Massy was relegated from Pro D2 to Fédérale 1.
• The two bottom finishers in the 2014–15 Top 14 season, Bayonne and Lyon OU, were relegated to Pro D2.
• The Fédérale 1 champion Provence Rugby earned promotion.

Competition format

The top team at the end of the regular season (after all the teams played one another twice, once at home, once away), is declared champion and earns a spot in the next Top 14 season. Teams ranked second to fifth compete in promotion playoffs, with the semifinals being played at the home ground of the higher-ranked team. The final is then played on neutral ground, and the winner earns the second ticket to the next Top 14.

The LNR uses a slightly different bonus points system from that used in most other rugby competitions. It trialled a new system in 2007–08 explicitly designed to prevent a losing team from earning more than one bonus point in a match,^[2] a system that also made it impossible for either team to earn a bonus point in a drawn match. LNR chose to continue with this system for subsequent seasons.^[3]

France's bonus point system operates as follows:^[4]

• 4 points for a win.
• 2 points for a draw.
• 1 bonus point for winning while scoring at least 3 more tries than the opponent. This replaces the standard bonus point for scoring 4 tries regardless of the match result.
• 1 bonus point for losing by 5 points (or less). This is a change from previous seasons, in which the margin was 7 points or less.

Relegation

Normally, the teams that finish in 15th and 16th places in the table are relegated to Fédérale 1 at the end of the season. In certain circumstances, "financial reasons" may cause a higher-placed team to be demoted instead, or prevent one of the two finalists in Fédérale 1 from promotion.

This season saw an example of the latter situation. Following the 2015–16 season, 15th-place Dax was spared relegation after Pro D2 side Tarbes was relegated due to excessive debt^[5] and failed in an appeal of the decision.

Play–offs

The highest ranked team at the end of the regular season, Lyon OU, earned automatic promotion to the Top 14 as champion de France de PRO D2 2016.

Semi–finals

The semi–finals followed a 2 v 5, 3 v 4 system, with the higher ranked team playing at home.

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• Under LNR rules, if a playoff match ends level after full-time, the first tiebreaker is try count. Agen advanced with 4 tries to Perpignan's 2.

Final

The winners of the semi–finals played off for the second promotion spot to the Top 14.

See also

• 2015–16 Top 14 season

External links

• Ligue Nationale de Rugby – Official website
• Midi Olympique

Notes and References

1. Web site: CP LNR - TOP 14 et PRO D2, les calendriers 2014-2015 . French . . 16 May 2014 . 2 June 2014.
2. Web site: French try out new bonus point system . Planet-Rugby.com . 27 June 2007 . 13 August 2007 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070929120105/http://www.planet-rugby.com/Story/0%2C18259%2C3559_2450951%2C00.html . 29 September 2007 .
3. Web site: Article 330, Section 3.2. Points "terrain" . Règlements de la Ligue Nationale de Rugby 2008/2009, Chapitre 2 : Règlement sportif du Championnat de France Professionnel . . French . 27 August 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120217084857/http://www.lnr.fr/omm/upload/3%20-%20Titre%20II%20-%20Reglement%20sportif%202008%20-2009.pdf . 17 February 2012 .
4. Web site: Article 330, Section 3.2. Points "terrain" et points de bonus. Statuts et Reglements de la Ligue Nationale de Rugby 2014/2015, Chapitre 2 : Règlement sportif des championnats profesionnels . Ligue Nationale de Rugby . French . 166 . 2014-08-26.
5. News: Aix-en-Provence, dernier de ProD2, relégué en Fedérale 1 . . French . 22 May 2016 . 5 September 2016.