Top 14 Final 2015: Winners and Losers

The Stade de France was tickled pink on Saturday evening after Morne Steyn kicked Stade Francais to a 12-6 win over Clermont Auvergne to claim this season's Top 14 title.

In beating the Champions Cup runners-up, Stade have won their first French domestic crown since 2007, the year in which they also defeated Clermont to seize that season's championship.

Franck Azema's side will count this as yet another case of so close and yet so far, having finished second to Toulon in the European final as their wait for another Top 14 triumph lingers on.

Read on for a rundown of the biggest winners and losers to emerge from Saturday's intense finale.

Considering we witnessed no tries on Saturday evening, it was the kickers who took a leading role on Saturday, and Stade hitman Steyn once again proved to be the difference.

The fly-half kicked all 12 of Stade's points against Clermont just a fortnight after slotting 28 points against Racing 92 in the quarter-finals, which he followed up by striking another 18 points against Toulon in last weekend's semi.

Steyn's confidence was clearly in the ascendancy after attempting what would have been a sensational long-range drop goal in the 50th minute, a sign of how eager the South African was to take the leader's mantle.

Despite all the positives, this wasn't a performance without its flaws. Steyn pinned his side back on occasion after being found guilty of kicking it out on the full, but give the sharp-shooter a penalty opportunity at your own risk.

Super Rugby audiences are only too familiar with the half-time interview, but Saturday's Top 14 final coverage was intruded upon by a few too many dispatches toward the touchline.

Injured players, coaches and substitutes were all among those finding themselves on the end of a microphone, expected to give some enlightenment in reference to the game—seldom is that aim achieved.

Not only do these interruptions take the viewer away from the action and sometimes result in on-pitch action being missed, but it's rare that comment genuinely adds very much to the matchup.

And who can blame a coach or player for being slightly distracted when their team is vying for a domestic championship? 

Reduce the amount of these mid-match memoirs, or better yet, let's do away with them entirely and stick to the pre- and post-reaction.

Clermont may not find it in themselves to sympathise as such, but seeing Stade Francais rise from the depths of a fourth-place finish to claim France's top prize is the best thing for the advancement of the Top 14.

Many perceive the French top flight as a division ruled by finances, and Toulon's double last season might have suggested the European champions were set for a monopoly over its silverware.

Having finished the regular season as runners-up, Clermont have for some time been the side looked upon as closest to Toulon in terms of overall quality, but Saturday's result proved there's more to the Top 14.

It was also heartening to see Stade start with 10 French players in Paris, six of whom have received full national team honours.

The real rags-to-riches tale would have been Oyonnax claiming Top 14 glory, but Stade's triumph is worth settling for as we pursue a more balanced competition not ruled by a select few heavy investors.

The pursuit of a fast and fluid would see the rules bent at times, certainly, but far too often these days—Saturday's game included—are we seeing officials permitting them to be broken.

Referee Pascal Gauzere gave his whistle a thorough workout, but that was more thanks to the feisty nature of the tie and fists being thrown at times rather than proper regulation.

Players flying in at the ruck off their feet was a consistent problem going without proper punishment, of which both teams were guilty, and the unfortunate stigma of scrum feeding bore its head once again.

It's unfortunate that such comment must be made in a fixture involving two such world-class teams, but the sooner there's a blanket approach to accurate officiating, the sooner such problems will eventually simmer away.

It's ever disappointing when a match holding so much on the line doesn't live up to expectations, but these are the risks on hand when two teams know what's at stake.

A lot of scrappy mistakes from Steyn, Morgan Parra and Camille Lopez led to a loss of momentum for great patches, and seeing not a single try scored undoubtedly won't have gone down well in Paris.

As far as kicking games go, this certainly wasn't the worst, as there was plenty of endeavour coming from the players, but it clearly wasn't enough to produce the end-to-end encounter every fan will have been seeking.