This Saturday in London (3:45 p.m.), Stade Toulousain faces Leinster in the final, against whom it remains on three consecutive defeats.
There will be more than revenge in the air this Saturday in London, during the Champions Cup final between Stade Toulousain and Leinster. The French champions have in fact not beaten the Irish province since… 2018, and a narrow success, in Toulouse, 28-27, marked by a double from Maxime Médard. Four defeats followed, all in Dublin. In the group stage in 2019 (29-13), then during the three semi-finals between the two ogres of the Old Continent. A look back at three disappointments in Toulouse.
Leinster-Toulouse (30-12), April 21, 2019: Toulouse’s impotence
In Dublin, the challenge was immense. The step was too high. “Leinster masters its rugby so much that we have never managed to reverse the trend. We have the impression that he caught us at the entrance and then played with us, with his hand, for a good part of the match. We were never able to destabilize him”, Ugo Mola even detailed after the meeting. To justify Toulouse’s impotence, this statistic: 42. The Rouge et Noir in fact remained on a series of 42 consecutive matches with at least one try scored.
Constantly pushed back and sanctioned by Irish realism (three attempts by Lowe, McGrath and Fardy), the Toulouse residents were unable to do anything. But Antoine Dupont’s teammates quickly turned the page by winning the Top 14 final against Clermont (24-18) two months later.
Dupont, pris par Henshaw.
Peter Fitzpatrick / Action Plus / Panoramic
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Leinster-Toulouse (40-17), May 14, 2022: second slap
Stade Toulousain had nevertheless entered their semi-final well thanks to a try in the 8th minute from Antoine Dupont. Then the machine jammed, before exploding. Winger James Lowe twice went to the promised land before Van der Flier and Keenan followed suit. The test of the ex-Toulousain and now Toulon player Selevasio Tolofua will not have changed anything. Final score. A demonstration. “Too many things separated us from Leinster. We have not succeeded in stemming the blue waves. We came up against a much better team than ours. Leinster has existed at the highest level for fifteen or twenty years. I admire Leinster’s game even more after what I saw. He plays exciting rugby, perhaps very codified, but which has the merit of being of rare efficiency., Ugo Mola reacted after the meeting. But this time, and unlike 2019, the Rouge et Noir were stopped in the Top 14 semi-final by Castres (24-18). The slap hurt.
Ntamack and Toulouse could not do anything. Peter Fitzpatrick / Action Plus / Panoramic
Leinster-Toulouse (41-22), April 29, 2023: never two without three
The two yellow cards inflicted on Thomas Ramos (16th) and Rodrigue Neti (57th) will have crucified Toulouse. During the two exclusions, Stade Toulousain will have conceded… 28 points. However, the meeting also started well after a try from Pita Ahki. Behind, the pragmatism and efficiency of the Irish punished them. “I feel like I’m standing in front of you like a year ago to the day and saying pretty much the same things to you , railed Mola after the meeting, speaking to journalists. Because yes, after 2019 and 2022, the Rouge et Noir suffered a third defeat in a row against the great Leinster. “The step was still a little high”, added winger Matthis Lebel. A heavy setback which did not prevent Toulouse from winning a 22nd Brennus Shield a few weeks later against La Rochelle, on a final ride from Romain Ntamack (29-26). This year, and this Saturday, a new battle, fiercer than ever, is looming. With, this time, a different outcome?
Dupont had been muzzled by Van der Flier. Peter Fitzpatrick / Action Plus / Panoramic
