The 2007/08 season was the fifth year of the Elite One Championship, the top level rugby league competition in France. The season commenced on 6 October 2007 and like the previous season, there were 11 teams with one team missing a round each week. A total of 22 rounds were played, with the last finishing on 12 April 2008 before the play-offs, that determined who played in the Grand Final. RC Albi were the league's new club having been promoted from the Elite Two Championship. Pia XIII were the defending champions having beaten Lézignan Sangliers in the 2006/2007 season Grand Final. The top 8 clubs qualified for the end of season play-offs. In the first week of the play-offs, Saint-Gaudens Bears and UTC both easily beat Toulouse Olympique and RC Albi respectively. However both teams were then beaten, Saint-Gaudens Bears by third placed AS Carcassonne, and UTC by Limoux Grizzlies in Week 2. Pia XIII beat AS Carcassonne in the first semi-final and a day later Lézignan Sangliers, the league leaders, squeezed past Limoux Grizzlies. In the Grand Final held at the Stade de la Mediterranee in Béziers, Lézignan Sangliers did what they had failed to do the previous season and beat Pia XIII 26-16, and thus winning the title for the first time. Despite finishing 8th and reaching the Lord Derby cup final RC Albi were relegated and Toulouse Olympique left the league and joined the English Rugby League system. SO Avignon were promoted from the 2nd tier. The Lord Derby Cup was won by Limoux Grizzlies.
Table
TeamPldWDLPFPAPDPts1 Lézignan Sangliers201802829366+463562 Pia XIII201604663326+337523 AS Carcassonne201406578343+235454 Limoux Grizzlies201208549388+161445 Union Treiziste Catalane201208574472+102426 Saint-Gaudens Bears201001047841761407 Toulouse Olympique208012353518-165368 RC Albi205015361533-172279 RC Carpentras XIII205015319841-5222610 Lyon Villeurbanne XIII205015320561-2412511 Villeneuve Leopards205015311570-25923 Points: win=3, draw=2, loss by less than 12 points=1 Source: FFRXIII Results source: FFRXIII Round 1 Albi Tigers 24-36 Toulouse Olympique Pia Donkeys 30-0 Lyon-Villeurbanne Carcassonne 30-20 UTC Villeneuve Leopards 54-12 Carpentras Lézignan Sangliers 30-14 Saint-Gaudens Bears
Round 2 Toulouse Olympique 19-14 Villeneuve Leopards Carcassonne 17-24 Pia Donkeys Saint-Gaudens Bears 44-0 Albi Tigers Carpentras 30-0 Lyon-Villeurbanne Limoux Grizzlies 31-18 Lézignan Sangliers
Round 3 Albi Tigers 30-18 Limoux Grizzlies Lyon-Villeurbanne 10-24 Toulouse Olympique Villeneuve Leopards 16-36 Saint-Gaudens Bears Carpentras 4-44 Carcassonne UTC 43-28 Pia Donkeys
Round 4 Carcassonne 37-12 Toulouse Olympique Lézignan Sangliers 46-18 Albi Tigers UTC 32-16 Carpentras Limoux Grizzlies 40-10 Villeneuve Leopards Lyon-Villeurbanne 12-16 Saint-Gaudens Bears
Round 5 Villeneuve Leopards 24-50 Lézignan Sangliers Pia Donkeys 86-4 Carpentras Saint-Gaudens Bears 24-20 Carcassonne Limoux Grizzlies 38-4 Lyon-Villeurbanne Toulouse Olympique 32-40 UTC
Round 6 Albi Tigers 36-12 Villeneuve Leopards Carcassonne 35-0 Limoux Grizzlies Lyon-Villeurbanne 24-34 Lézignan Sangliers Saint-Gaudens Bears 48-14 UTC Toulouse Olympique 12-38 Pia Donkeys
Round 7 Pia Donkeys 54-8 Saint-Gaudens Bears Lyon-Villeurbanne 22-16 Albi Tigers Carpentras 28-16 Toulouse Olympique Lézignan Sangliers 38-11 Carcassonne UTC 30-22 Limoux Grizzlies
Round 8 Carcassonne 50-30 Albi Tigers Villeneuve Leopards 30-14 Lyon-Villeurbanne Saint-Gaudens Bears 54-18 Carpentras UTC 24-40 Lézignan Sangliers Limoux Grizzlies 30-32 Pia Donkeys
Round 9 Toulouse Olympique 14-10 Saint-Gaudens Bears Albi Tigers 8-12 UTC Villeneuve Leopards 3-22 Carcassonne Lézignan Sangliers 22-4 Pia Donkeys Limoux Grizzlies 28-14 Carpentras
Round 10 Toulouse Olympique 8-26 Limoux Grizzlies Pia Donkeys 27-4 Albi Tigers Carcassonne - Lyon-Villeurbanne UTC 66-6 Villeneuve Leopards Lézignan Sangliers 68-16 Carpentras
Round 11 Albi Tigers 35-8 Carpentras Pia Donkeys 10-6 Villeneuve Leopards Lyon-Villeurbanne 12-31 UTC Lézignan Sangliers 38-12 Toulouse Olympique Limoux Grizzlies 34-22 Saint-Gaudens Bears
Round 12 Toulouse Olympique 24-6 Albi Tigers Carpentras 28-10 Villeneuve Leopards Lyon-Villeurbanne 22-28 Pia Donkeys Saint-Gaudens Bears 18-34 Lézignan Sangliers UTC 10-28 Carcassonne
Round 13 Albi Tigers 18-38 Saint-Gaudens Bears Villeneuve Leopards 4-14 Toulouse Olympique Lyon-Villeurbanne 50-14 Carpentras Pia Donkeys 32-6 Carcassonne Lézignan Sangliers 52-12 Limoux Grizzlies
Round 14 Limoux Grizzlies 52-8 Albi Tigers Toulouse 28-10 Lyon-Villeurbanne Saint-Gaudens Bears 16-21 Villeneuve Leopards Carcassonne 74-14 Carpentras Pia Donkeys 30-20 UTC
Round 15 Albi Tigers 24-21 Lézignan Sangliers Saint-Gaudens Bears 12-14 Lyon-Villeurbanne Toulouse 10-19 Carcassonne Villeneuve Leopards 16-10 Limoux Grizzlies Carpentras 30-26 UTC
Round 16 Carcassonne 28-18 Saint-Gaudens Bears Lyon-Villeurbanne 18-16 Limoux Grizzlies UTC 28-4 Toulouse Lézignan Sangliers 66-6 Villeneuve Leopards Carpentras 66-16 Pia Donkeys
Round 17 Villeneuve Leopards 23-19 Albi Tigers Limoux Grizzlies 14-28 Carcassonne UTC 24-16 Saint-Gaudens Bears Lézignan Sangliers 50-26 Lyon-Villeurbanne Pia Donkeys 40-20 Toulouse
Round 18 Albi Tigers - Lyon-Villeurbanne Limoux Grizzlies 44-20 UTC Carcassonne 14-28 Lézignan Sangliers Saint-Gaudens Bears 22-20 Pia Donkeys Toulouse 36-20 Carpentras
Round 19 Albi Tigers 12-36 Carcassonne Lézignan Sangliers 42-34 UTC Pia Donkeys 48-16 Limoux Grizzlies Carpentras 6-42 Saint-Gaudens Bears Lyon-Villeurbanne - Villeneuve Leopards
Round 20 UTC 14-12 Albi Tigers Pia Donkeys 26-30 Lézignan Sangliers Carpentras 9-54 Limoux Grizzlies Saint-Gaudens Bears 18-6 Toulouse Carcassonne 22-14 Villeneuve Leopards
Round 21 Albi Tigers 12-22 Pia Donkeys Lézignan Sangliers 56-10 Carpentras Villeneuve Leopards 26-36 UTC Limoux Grizzlies 42-8 Toulouse Lyon-Villeurbanne 24-20 Carcassonne
Round 22 Carpentras 22-14 Albi Tigers Villeneuve Leopards 16-22 Pia Donkeys Toulouse 18-66 Toulouse UTC 70-12 Lyon-Villeurbanne Saint-Gaudens Bears 0-34 Limoux Grizzlies
Play-offs
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Final
Records
Club
Most Victories: Lézignan Sangliers; 18 Least Victories: Albi Tigers, Lyon-Villeurbanne, Carpentras, Villeneuve Leopards; 5 Best Offense: Lézignan Sangliers; 829 Worst Offense: Villeneuve Leopards; 309 Best Defense: Carcassonne; 343 Worst Defense: Carpentras; 861 Biggest Margin: R5 Pia Donkeys 86-4 Carpentras; 82pts Most Points: R5 Pia Donkeys 86-4 Carpentras; 90pts Least Points: R11 Pia Donkeys 10-6 Villeneuve Leopards; 16pts
Player
Top Points Scorer: Philip Ramage (Limoux Grizzlies); 238 Top Try Scorer: Jared Taylor (Lézignan Sangliers); 34 Top Conversion Scorer: Nicolas Munoz (Lézignan Sangliers); 98 Top Drop-Kick Scorer: Frederic Banquet (Carcassonne); 4
See also Rugby league in France
References