This Saturday evening, April 30, Stade Toulousain won a crucial victory (23-16) in the play-off race. Moreover, by depriving the Rochelais of a defensive bonus point, they recover sixth place.
The movie of the game
Three minutes is the time that the observation round lasted between Toulousains and Rochelais. Then in the fourth, everything gets carried away. West finds Leyds on the wing, the La Rochelle winger extending on foot for Dulin who beats everyone on the run for the first try of the game. Immediately followed by a response from Dupont countering Dulin on a clearance to flatten in turn in the opposing in-goal. Flament launched in an interval by Arnold, hooks West and scores the last try of this first period, 17-16 at the break.
In a less prolific second act, only Ramos scored points thanks to two penalties (50 and 75). There were plenty of opportunities but neither team managed to break the other despite some dangerous breakthroughs, from Flament or Liebenberg for example. But the six points conceded by the visitors are enough to remove their defensive bonus and give Toulouse a better goal average. End of the match 23-16.
Maxime Médard gets the crowds up
The people of Toulouse know how to be grateful, they proved it once again tonight. Maxime Médard, who announced the end of his career during the week, was cheered by the public when he entered the game. In the four corners of the stands, signs in his honor were held up in his honor.
Ntamack, too greedy on the keys
Unusually for Romain Ntamack, the international opener had a hard time finding the limits of the field during the penalty kicks. Three times, the ball was saved by the La Rochelle rearguard, effectively preventing Toulouse from gaining ground. The kind of detail that counts during the final stages.
The lessons of the meeting
With this victory, Stade Toulousain steals sixth place from… La Rochelle! But the two teams are tied on points and Ugo Mola’s men remain on an ejection seat. While the Rochelais imposed a big fight in the rucks, the Toulousains were able to respond to an aspect of the game that did not always succeed during the season. The level of play displayed this evening bodes well for the end of the season, which the “Rouge et Noir” want as long as possible.
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