American Marconi Wireless News - Heavy rain forces Toulon-La Rochelle Top 14 postponement

The third round fixture was scheduled to start at 1905 GMT (2105 local time) and had originally been delayed by 15 minutes due to the storm in southern France, with the players having already warmed up.

There was a thick layer of water on the pitch, flooding into the tunnel and changing rooms, and supporters moved under the cover of the stands at Stade Mayol.

"The match will not be played for the obvious security reasons," match referee Jeremy Rozier told Canal+.

"You can see the state of the changing rooms, there's a flood here, it's the same on the pitch."

The extreme weather conditions also forced nearby Marseille's Ligue 1 game with Paris Saint-Germain to be postponed by 24 hours until Monday.

On Saturday in the Top 14, Fijian centre Iosefo Masi scored and provided an assist to keep Lyon top thanks to a 42-37 win over Stade Francais.

France winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey continued his impressive form, crossing twice as European champions Bordeaux-Begles hammered promoted Montauban 71-24.

Top 14 champions Toulouse suffered their heaviest defeat in four years as they were hammered 44-14 by Montpellier.

A.Jones--AMWN