La Rochelle head coach Ronan O’Gara lamented an “unacceptable defeat” after his team fell to a loss that obliterated their hopes of progressing to the Champions Cup knockout stages.<\/p>\n
Harlequins defied their awful domestic form to beat the Frenchmen 27-17 at Stade Marcel Deflandre.<\/p>\n
England out-half Marcus Smith was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle on Jules Favre in the 56th minute but upon his return, Quins produced the match-winning moment against the 2022 and 2023 champions.<\/p>\n
Tom Lawday got the crucial score with eight minutes remaining by storming over with a strong run down the right wing. Man of the match Smith converted the try and added a late penalty to seal it.<\/p>\n
Harlequins finished Pool Three in second place behind Leinster, with La Rochelle will now heading for the Challenge Cup, where they’ll face Newcastle next, with a possible quarter-final against Ulster also ahead.<\/p>\n
None of that was of any consolation to O’Gara, who was scathing in his assessment of La Rochelle’s performance.<\/p>\n
“The club and I, we lost big tonight, it’s unacceptable,” he said in quotes carried by L’Equipe<\/a>.<\/p>\n “It’s not possible, especially when you look at the number of opportunities we have to stay in the competition. I’m even more frustrated.<\/p>\n