Georgian rugby star in French league picked in ’team of the week’

Georgian national rugby team player Mikheil Nariashvili has been named by a French sports newspaper as one of the best players of the weekend matches in France's national championship after his team beat acting champions away from home.

Georgian prop Mikheil Nariashvili, 25, played a crucial role in Montpellier's win against Parisian team Stade Francais on April 17. The game finished with a score 26-20 in favour of Montpellier, the visiting club.

Despite being substituted after 48 minutes, Nariashvili's contribution was recognised by French rugby newspaper Midi Olympique.

Georgian prop Mikheil Nariashvili (with the ball) of Montpellier in a match of the French National Rugby League. Photo from www.montpellier-rugby.com.

The publication selected the Georgian prop in its ‘best team’ of Match Day 21 of the National Rugby League (also known as Top 14).

Montpellier's win kept the pressure on this season's championship leaders Clermont, with just seven points separating the two clubs at the top of the league.

A regular for Georgia's national team, Nariashvili featured in last year's Rugby World Cup.

A number of Georgian national rugby players played in the French National Rugby League, including the country's celebrated captain Mamuka Gorgodze, who plays for third-placed club Toulon.

Other Georgian rugby players now in France include Zurab Zhvania and Giorgi Melikidze who play for Stade Francais, and Nariashvili's Montpellier team-mate David Kubriashvili.

See highlights of the April 17 French National Rugby League game between Stade Francais and Montpellier below: