Rugby is a combat sport. The enunciation of this fundamental aspect of the discipline often offends the enthusiasms of lovers of beautiful getaways, of a spectacle as unbridled as it is exciting. But when the stake in addition is enormous, it is often this debate of the big arms which takes the top on the mad cavalcades of the rear lines. And it was obviously immense, the stake of this Franco-French continental final Saturday, May 22 at Twinckenham between the two Stades, Toulouse and Rochelais.
The Toulousains were aiming for a fifth star for their jersey, a record since the creation of the competition in 1996. The Rochelais were hoping for a first line on their record, them the novices at these heights. In the end, it was the Toulousains who got their hands on this trophy (22-17), eleven years after their last victory, to experience in a way, even if on the meadow only the Occitan rear Maxime Médard was weighted with the memory. of the win in 2010. But it was terribly hard, terribly bitter, in a game chopped small by faults, stoppages to heal the warriors.
A fatal red card
An intense match, the game released sparingly, defenses starving, stifling any inclination to build. This final was actually played on a fatal outburst, after half an hour in the first half. The Fijian center of La Rochelle, Levani Botia, is carried away on a tackle, his shoulder hitting in full swing the head of Maxime Médard. The sanction, after video verification, falls and changes the course of the match: red card. At 14 to 15, the case becomes extremely complicated for the Atlantic.
And the second half comes to confirm what was in a hurry. The Toulousains, while tactical intelligence, wait until they find the opening, score a first try and then take a ten point lead. The Rochelais to the end do not give up, astounding courage, even coming back to five points five minutes from the end. But weary. Valor cannot do everything, and the most astonishing team of this European campaign, victorious in particular in the semifinals of the Irish of Leinster (32-23) after a monstrous game, remains at the dock, drowned dreams.
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The Toulousains follow the coronations won against French teams. If we except their first kidnapped against Cardiff, the Reds and Blacks won in 2003 against Perpignan with a similar score, then against Stade Français in 2005 and against Biarritz in 2010.
A great reward for Ugo Mola, the Toulouse strategist
The success of this Saturday confirms in any case the good health of hexagonal rugby. He offers a major title to the golden generation of Stade Toulouse who, from scrum half Antoine Dupont to opener Romain Ntamack, through back Thomas Ramos, also make the heyday of the Blues. It also recognizes the success of Ugo Mola, the Toulouse coach.
Arrived in the pink city in 2015 to replace the iconic Guy Novès, the former player remained upright in his boots during the turmoil of the first years, when the Toulouse Stadium seemed to run in vain after its former glory. Faithful to his principles, favoring training and offshore rugby, Ugo Mola, with the support of the leaders, won by removing the title of champion of France in 2019, and this European trophy that the club had been chasing for a decade.
At 48, he became the second coach to win the European Cup as a player (in 1996) and as a coach. And the party may not be over. Toulouse leads the Top 14, with a short lead over La Rochelle. A revenge to come, soon, in the French league?
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