The attacking bonus snatched at the very end of the match by winger Lester Etien (78th) is the symbol of this Parisian team, now second in the standings behind Stade Toulousain after its convincing victory against La Rochelle (27-14), this Saturday evening at the Jean Bouin stadium.
What you must remember
A cold snap. And not only in the stands of the Jean-Bouin stadium transformed into a giant ice cube for the 10,249 spectators who had taken their place there. On the lawn too, despite the rather muscular grip, the Parisian players needed a little time to defrost. First surprised on a badly received low kick, they let the La Rochelle winger Martin Alonso-Munoz slip into the in-goal (2nd). The slap knocked out Gonzalo Quesada’s men, who were more solid in touch and scrum. It took them a quarter of an hour to really react. Hooker Mickaël Ivaldi, author of a hard try after a penalty (15th), relaunched the debates which were taking a bad turn. But it was especially at the end of the first half that Morgan Parra and his teammates were finally able to take the measure of their opponents. A penalty (33rd) from the opener Joris Segonds, not really successful in his goal attempts, followed by a try (35th) from Sekou Macalou, launched full field on receiving a small kick over the defense, allowed the Parisians to take the lead at the break (15-14).
They returned to the field transformed, much more enterprising than in the first period. Barely time to refuse a try to Sekou Macalou (47th), that Romain Briatte, his third-line wing friend, seizes the ball on a touch lost by the Rochelais five meters from their line and ends up in the en -goal (20-14, 49th). The game then becomes one-sided. The Maritimes, surprisingly feverish, undergoing the Parisian waves until the end. On the last, winger Lester Etien ultimately offers the offensive bonus to his team (78th).
The player: Sekou Macalou
Penalized for having protested a decision by the referee at the very start of the match, the third line, sometimes used on the wing by the XV of France, quickly refocused. And he hurt on every ball touched. Author of the test, on a sprint of which he has the secret (35th), which allows the Parisians to pass for the first time in front of the Rochelais in score, he was then logically refused a double on an illicit stroller in the back of Dulin (47th). His races and the permanent danger he represents weighed heavily on this tense encounter.
The number
2
After 12 days, i.e. halfway through the championship, Stade Français is in 2nd place in the standings behind Toulouse, one length ahead of La Rochelle and Racing (which has one less game to play against Toulon this Sunday evening) .
Dots
Stade Français: 4 tries from Ivaldi (15th), Macalou (35th), Briatte (49th), Etien (78th), 2 transformations from Segonds (35th), 2 penalties from Segonds (8th, 33rd).
La Rochelle: 1 try Alonso-Munoz (2nd), 3 penalties from Hastoy (6th, 28th, 30th).
