For César Rougé, Rivals Round carries a private twist as he prepares to tackle his former membership, Catalans Dragons, with Toulouse Olympique this Saturday.
Rougé made the swap to the newly promoted Toulouse again in January and has quickly settled into life in the halves – masterfully pulling the strings for Sylvain Houles’ facet.
While he can play in a number of positions, it’s at scrum-half the place Rougé feels most at house.
Toulouse’s 2026 Super League marketing campaign began brilliantly, with wins in their opening two fixtures in opposition to Wakefield Trinity and Castleford Tigers. But regardless of a handful of respectable showings since, they’ve failed to decide up any extra league factors, which provides them further motivation heading into Rivals Round.
“When I arrived in Toulouse, I knew it was a team that wouldn’t take things lying down and their spirit won me over!” the 23-year-old playmaker mentioned.
“We received off to begin to the season by choosing up factors from our first two matches. After that, our performances have been stable, however we nonetheless want to work on the finer particulars that will have allowed us to safe extra wins.
“My favourite match was at Wakefield. Nobody expected us to be at that level, but we were ready and defied the odds in the first round in England.”
Toulouse’s slim loss to Leigh Leopards final Saturday nonetheless lingers in Rougé’s thoughts, nonetheless.
The French workforce staged an impressively late fightback to draw stage and pressure Golden Point further time, however Gareth O’Brien delivered a trademark one-pointer which might hand Leigh the victory.
“That trip to Leigh was frustrating,” Rougé admitted. “The more I watched the match, the more it annoyed me. We lacked the start we had at the beginning of the match by the end, and this was on top of the chances we missed due to small details that could have turned the match in our favour.”
Both Rougé and Toulouse are hoping to lastly put issues proper in Rivals Round, with their full deal with dealing with the Dragons and being part of this big day.
Rouge made 50 appearances for Catalans Dragons between the seasons of 2021 and 2025, scoring eight tries and bursting onto the scene as a really promising French teen.
And on Saturday, he’ll return to Stade Gilbert Brutus, this time in the blue and white colors of Toulouse, and is trying ahead to the event:
“I’m actually trying ahead to it! It’s a special spherical from the others: the derbies are on the playing cards, which is thrilling.
“These are teams with a history behind every match. It’ll be great to play against the Dragons at Brutus, with a full house, and catch up with friends over in Perpignan, but we’ll have to put friendship aside for 80 minutes to win this match!”
For Rougé, having a French Derby on the Rivals Round schedule is an indication of the game’s rising presence over in France, and he hopes that each groups can showcase an excellent spectacle:
“This day is going to be magnificent for French rugby league. The two professional teams are facing off in front of their fans. It’s going to be a hard-fought match, with neither side giving an inch!”
The return of Toulouse to the highest flight alongside Catalans is one thing Rougé sees as massively constructive for French rugby league and its future:
“When I used to be on the Dragons and we heard the information that Toulouse have been going to get into Super League, we have been delighted!
“Now that I’m in Toulouse with them, I’m even happier. It’s fantastic for the development of the Super League and rugby league, both at European and global level.”
Even with respect for his former membership, Rougé is aware of Rivals Round is all about getting the outcome, as he emphasised how a win could be essential for the Toulouse workforce:
“A win in the Rivals Round would be very important for us. It would allow us to validate the work we’ve put in and finish this block of three matches in the best possible way. For the supporters, it would be a source of great pride.”
As Toulouse proceed their second Super League journey, Rougé is prepared to be on the coronary heart of the motion:
“This season, we wish to string collectively performances by taking part in our passing sport – that’s in our DNA. Our objective is to preserve Toulouse in the Super League in 2027.
And one factor is already clear – the stage is about on Saturday for an unforgettable all-French Rivals Round showdown.
Who will come away with bragging rights? It’s going to get fiery…
Are you prepared for Rivals Round? Round 7 of the Betfred Super League will get underway with a blockbuster triple-header on Good Friday (dwell throughout Sky Sports and SuperLeague+).
All video games will likely be broadcasted dwell, and fixture info could be discovered here.
