New day on the program with still duels between direct competitors. It must be said that more than half of the teams can aim for the first six places. So there are direct duels every day. Montauban welcomes Brive to Sapiac and intends to make a reference match. The CAB wants to continue after Béziers and before Provence.
After two days, the ranking is not yet settled and no one is running at full speed. Everyone is looking for the right formula to be able to spread their wings. While Brive would like to make a move away from home, Montauban will want to maintain its invincibility at home.
Review of the season
Montauban : 5th with 5 points (1 victory, 0 draw, 1 defeat)
Brive : 3rd with 6 points (1 victory, 0 draw, 1 defeat)
Last season, Montauban experienced an unspeakable hardship. He had to wait until the very end of the championship to validate his place in Pro D2. Far from the ambitions at the start of the season and the summer recruitment which had foreshadowed another season. We have made changes to this group with players who bring experience from the first division (Aouf, Bean, Bradshaw, Wilkins, Reilhac). To avoid going through a difficult season, Montauban must be clean and applied from the first days. Against the promoted Valence Romans, the meeting did not reach incredible levels, the USM being above all realistic in getting rid of the newcomer. Sapiac saw his team take the break just before the hour mark. In the end, Montauban refuels with an improved victory which is good for morale. The calendar offers a tricky trip, towards Nevers. The staff is making a lot of changes to test their entire group. The first period is choppy, with a lot of stoppages in play. In this little game, it’s Montauban who leads at the break. This goes well until an indiscipline will turn everything upside down. A double numerical superiority allows Nevers to take the lead. Still in superiority (simple this time), Nevers makes the break and will even add a 3rd try to validate an improved success. For Montauban, the score is large and somewhat cancels out the initial victory. We will have to react to Sapiac against Brive, which promises to be anything but easy but against such an opponent, no need for additional speeches to motivate yourself and achieve a big match.
So that Brive can play a role in this Pro D2 season, you must not miss the start of the championship and start winning several matches. Basically, avoid making the same mistake as last season in Top 14, which led to this descent into Pro D2. Starting in Agen will quickly put the CAB in Pro D2. If the Agenians hold the ball, it is the Brive players who strike first with two tries. But indiscipline will put Agen back in the match. Two yellow cards will put the CAB in difficulty, which will concede a try before the break and two others just after. Brive is now chasing the score and will get back in front after the hour mark. The CAB is good but a third yellow card allows Agen to take the lead again, this time for good. The Brivists leave with a point and a lot of frustration. A frustration which will be evacuated very quickly from the first minutes against Béziers. At the time of the first freshness break (after 20 minutes), the match is already over with a score of 21-0. At the break, Béziers has no solution to counter the Briviste power and has already conceded 4 tries. After a 5th Brive test, the ASBH will finish better and save the honor. But there, Brive had fun and gave pleasure to his audience. The Brivists have the same balance sheet as a year ago, with 6 points. It remains to be seen what will happen next. We will have a good look at the Montauban side if Brive will unlock its victory counter during a still difficult trip to Sapiac.
Strong men
In Montauban, there are many former Brive players. Starting with Tietie Tuimauga. The Samoan pillar (who is returning from selection) experienced Brive last season before ending it in Montauban. Satisfied with his performance, the club kept him beyond last season. Franck Bradshaw was an important part of the Nevers pack for several seasons. After a season in Ulster, he returned to France and will bring his experience and his power to Montauban. There is power in the 3rd line with the “beautiful babies” that are Karl Wilkins and Tyrone Viiga. There will be some response to a CAB which risks lacking some. Absent in Nevers, Jérôme Bosviel is back and there is no need to introduce him. The experienced scorer (chasing Maxime Petitjean’s record) will do well with his kicking game (on the move or against the poles). After two seasons complicated by injuries, Yvan Reilhac comes to relaunch at Montauban, hopes to continue and regain his previous level. Author of 11 tries last season, Bastien Guillemin established himself in this team by being its serial scorer. He has already opened his account this season. Segundo Tuculet brings his liveliness and his restarts to the back and will want to set the Brivist defense on fire.
Not at ease in Agen, Francisco Coria Marchetti will have to assert himself to maintain the course of the Brivist pack, he who brings a lot of power with the ball in hand. Already 2 tries in 2 matches for Issam Hamel who is adapting very well to Brive and regaining his scoring skills that he had in Nevers. Between Renger Van Eerten, Retief Marais, Sasha Gué and Saïd Hirèche, the line-up has many jumpers who should pose a lot of problems for the Montalban hookers. Faced with a scorer of Bosviel’s level, Jackson Garden-Bachop will deliver a hell of a duel against his opponent. He’s not necessarily the most elegant to see running but Asaeli “the tank” Tuivuaka is not fun to stop in attack. Paula Walisoliso also flexes her power alongside hub Sam Johnson butThe Fijian is a perfect complement to his Australian teammate. Stuart Olding brings more uncertainty than Garden-Bachop, which is a plus for destabilizing a defense. It now remains to be seen whether he will play in 15 or 12 to start the match.
Results and confrontations
Montauban (at home) : V
Valence Romans (20-3)
Brive (away) : D
Agen (32-29)
The sample is still small to guess a trend but let’s say that the results of the first day are good without being exceptional. They could have been better but on a first day, it wasn’t so bad for Montauban and Brive.
Montauban gets off to a good start at home with a victory against the promoted Valence Romans. A victory with the offensive bonus. The result is perfect, the content less so but in a pinch, it doesn’t matter. USM had to win. Brive could have struck a big blow by winning in the opening match in Agen but must bow by only bringing the defensive bonus to Brive. The indiscipline was devastating for the CAB who will blame themselves for this.
If we take modern history, Brive does not like coming to Sapiac. Since the 2000s, the two clubs have crossed paths from time to time, especially now when Brive goes down to Pro D2. In 5 trips, the Brive players have never returned with victory. And yet, they are close. On four occasions, the gap is less than 5 points. 5 years ago, Montauban won 28 to 26, in a match marked by the duel between Jérôme Bosviel and Thomas Laranjeira. The Sapiac scorer scored the winning penalty a few seconds before the siren.
Here is the composition of the two teams for the Montauban – Brive match (kick-off at 7:30 p.m., referee: Mr Evan Urruzmendi)
For Montauban: 1 Seyrolle – 2 Greyling – 3 Tuimauga – 4 Bradshaw – 5 Bean – 6 Wilkins – 7 Lezana – 8 Viiga (Cap) – 9 Bernadet – 10 Bosviel – 11 Guillemin – 12 Goggin – 13 Reilhac – 14 Vici – 15 Tuculet
Substitutes: 16 Alkhazashvili – 17 Vanai – 18 Vaotoa – 19 Witt – 20 Quercy – 21 Cottin – 22 Mathy – 23 Laval
Absent : Abzhandadze and Giorgadze (Georgia), Uanivi (Namibia), Aouf (pubalgia), Manukula (calf) and Venter (ankle)
For Brive: 1 Abdaladze – 2 Hamel – 3 Coria Marchetti – 4 Van Eerten – 5 Timani – 6 Gué – 7 Hirèche – 8 Marais – 9 Carbonneau – 10 Garden-Bachop – 11 Tuivuaka – 12 Johnson – 13 Walisoliso – 14 Bonneval – 15 Olding
Substitutes: 16 Da Silva – 17 Fraissenon – 18 Ratuva – 19 Warren-Vosayaco – 20 Ferté – 21 Raffy – 22 Lefranc – 23 Van Der Merwe
Absent: To consult the status of the CA Brive infirmary, do not hesitate to go to the infirmary tab
Image : US Montauban
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