On the final weekend of play in the French D1 Elite Championship league regular season, the unbeaten Thonon Black Panthers will travel to Paris to face the undefeated and defending champion La Courneuve Flash.
The two teams have faced each other once this season and the game ended, fittingly, in a 14-14 tie.
The Black Panthers, 2022 runner ups in France, opened the year with four lopsided wins, beating the Saint-Ouen Cougars 38-14 and the Tours Pionniers 49-7, then rolling over the Asnieres Molosses 35-6 and Amiens Spartiates 59-0. They then tied La Courneuve and proceeded to roll over the rest of their opponents again, beating the Cougars 55-15, Pionniers 38-14, Molosses 42-13 and Spartiates 56-14.
The defending champion Flash beat the Molosses 26-14 and the Cougars 47-6, and then blanked the Spartiates 64-0 before getting by the Tours Pionniers 34-28. Following the tie, they beat Molosses 27-9, Cougars 22-6, Spartiates 55-0 and the Pionniers 18-0.
This game then will determine the overall regular season winner in France’s top league.
Thonon quarterback Jose Tabora Jr. leads the top offense in the country averaging 42.8 points a game. He has weapons which include running back Nicolas Khandar who had 169 yards rushing last week in the Black Panthers win over Italy’s Firenze Guelfi.
For the Flash, young French quarterback Leo Cremades has also been efficient and runs an offense that averages 34.1 points a contest. He had a six touchdown performance earlier in the season against the Cougars, which earned him league player of the week. One of his key targets is Canadian wideout Ben Von Jagow.
Both defenses are playing lights out football with Thonon giving up 10.7 points a game while the Flash surrenders just 8.5.
This will be a treat to watch.
Thonon Black Panthers @ La Courneuve Flash, May 20, 19:00 CET (7 pm, 1 pm EDT)
