At Paris-La Défense Arena, the concept of rugby evenings is to open the field and the bodega to celebrate the third half with music. But the other concept of rugby evenings in Nanterre is to open the defense of Racing 92 wide open during the first two, and to see what happens on arrival. Sometimes it goes like the end of January with this spectacular success snatched at the last minute (39-36) on La Rochelle. But when it breaks, it hurts like this 35-39 loss against Toulouse and five new tries conceded on Sunday evening.
The Ile-de-France residents are on vacation with a second defeat in a row after the slap received in Lyon (45-11) a week earlier, an eighth place in this Top 14 far removed from the club’s ambitions and the sad status of the most permeable team of the championship with 560 points conceded (against 553 for the red lantern, Brive), or 28 per game, which very probably explains the previous observation.
Against a very redesigned but formidable version of Stade Toulouse deprived of its internationals, the Ciel et Blancs took on water four times in the first period before being the unfortunate spectators of one of the most beautiful tries of the season signed Paul Graou (50th). An express crossing of the whole field which says as much about the talent of the Rouge et Noir as about the absences of the Racingmen.
“The problem is that we don’t have weak times but dead times”, regrets, looking lost, the opening half who entered the fray Antoine Gibert, author of one of the tests of hope (60th) in the second half. “We are too fragile defensively and the awareness was made well before, can only note his trainer Laurent Travers. When a player passes you between two because you do not communicate (on the third Toulouse try) … If you are in a positive spiral, it does not happen. »
“It’s like a kid being told he’s bad at math”
The problem is that the spiral lasts, and that individual gifts follow collective errors. A trend accentuated since the correction suffered against Leinster (10-42) to launch the Champions Cup season in December, and which is confirmed almost every time. Against Toulouse, Travers’ men have had a fifth game with more than thirty points conceded in the last six meetings.
“It’s like a kid being told he sucks at math. By repeating: defense, defense, defense, well, we are shaking, replies Laurent Travers when asked about the origin of the disease. We have our share of responsibilities in the staff, because it is we who put this system in place. Dimitri Szarzewski, defense coach of Racing 92, who said this Sunday in The team sleep little and badly may have an even more disturbed sleep in the weeks to come.
Eighth, the former partners of the hooker find themselves ejected from the play-off places with three points behind the sixth, Bayonne. It is still far from irremediable, but it increases the pressure around the derby in Jean-Bouin against Stade Français in three weeks after the break.
“Racing has always qualified since it moved up to the Top 14 (in 2009), we don’t want to be the first generation to miss the play-offs, announces Gibert. What could be better than going to the Stade Français which gave us a beating on the way out (10-48) to redeem ourselves? »
“We wanted to consolidate our place in the six, but we are not yet ready to be in the six, believes his winger Juan Imhoff at the microphone of Canal +. Now we’re going to play with fear in our stomachs. To see if it makes the defense more watertight.
