CHAMPIONS CUP – The Castres Olympique lost to the Exeter Chiefs this Saturday evening, on the lawn of Pierre-Fabre (12-27). At home, Pierre-Henry Broncan’s men conceded four tries and scored none. In contact at half-time (12-12), they yielded in the second half, penalized by their lack of realism near the in-goal.
“The REAL France-England is Saturday at Pierre-Fabre”, had announced the Olympic Castres on its social networks. However, unlike the footballers of the France team – who won in the evening against England – the Tarnais failed at home for their entry into the Champions Cup. Against the Chiefs of Exeter, they conceded a fairly wide defeat (12-27), conceding four tries and suffering their first loss at home of the season.
On the Castres lawn, the English struck first. Initially contained in their camp by the good occupation of the premises, Sam Maunder and his team found the fault in the 19th minute. On a knockdown, the future Montpellier resident Sam Simmonds concluded in a corner after being served by his scrum half (5-0). And if Julien Dumora reduced the gap in stride (3-5; 23rd), the Chiefs again made the powder speak just before the half hour mark.
Following a ball carried well defended by the Castres adversary, they chained the small piles. Finally, the historic Dave Ewers collapsed behind the line for the break test (12-3). It was without counting the boot of Julien Dumora. Reliable against the poles, the experienced rear chained three successful kicks in the space of ten minutes and allowed his team to come back up when returning to the locker room (12-12).
Castres missed the chance, not Exeter
But while one might have thought the locals reinvigorated by their successful end to the first act, they quickly found themselves in difficulty after the break. Thus, Geoffrey Palis received a yellow card for a voluntary forward and, in the process, Sam Maunder slipped behind the line to restore the advantage to the Chiefs (17-12; 46th).
What could be considered the turning point of the game followed. For nearly eight minutes, Castres Olympique occupied the opposing 22 meters, performing pick and go on pick and go, and repeatedly sinking the English scrum. However, the local club never finally reaped the fruits of this period of outrageous domination.
Opposite, Rob Baxter’s men were much more realistic. On an action of assassins, Stuart Hogg shifted Olly Woodburn on his left wing, which was going to register the fourth English test of the evening, that of the offensive bonus (24-12; 59th). On the ground, the CO could not get up, despite some bursts of pride.
Ten minutes later, Joe Simmonds worsened the score (27-12) and sealed the success of his team on French soil. Rory Kockott’s Castres, who returned to the field this Saturday, conceded their first home defeat of the season. Next week they will try to catch up with a trip to Edinburgh.
