Castres wins the Midi derby against Toulouse in the Top 14
The game: 19-13
If the Stade Toulousain has become the main character of a feature film which will be released in cinemas from April 13, the Castres have shown that they do not intend to play supporting roles, Saturday afternoon on their lawn by Pierre Fabré. Led 3-8 in the 45th minute, they found enough moral and technical resources to come back to score, win and end up in the siren by depriving their opponent of a defensive bonus.
After a first period which saw the two teams alternate highlights without succeeding in scoring a try – that of Toulouse’s Sofiane Guitoune having been refused for a forward from Thibaut Flament (40th) – the score was shared (3-3 ). The rare dangerous Tarn offensives (8th, 28th) had come up against the intractable Toulouse defense and, back from the locker room, the French champions were the first to act, Flament offering a pass in the defense the try to his friend from the second line Richie Arnold (45th, 3-8).
Annoyed, the Castres replied with a drop-goal from Julien Dumora (47th) very appropriate, before the hooker replacing Gaëtan Barlot found the key to the fields at the level of a ruck, and dived for the test ( 51st) after a solitary breakthrough. With a goal from Ben Botica (57th, 16-8), Castres seemed to have taken off. But you should never underestimate Stade Toulousain, even under pressure. After a long highlight, the Toulouse managed by reversing the game to find a space off by Juan Cruz Mallia (63rd) and Castres then clung to its short lead, 16-13.
Especially since his striker missed a penalty in his strings (79th)… But it was said that the Tarn would not let their opponent leave Pierre-Fabre with a defensive bonus point yet deserved, given his efforts in First period. Very much, the Toulousains were sanctioned one last time, but once too many, because Botica managed, two minutes after the regulation end of this derby of the South, to achieve the ultimate goal, that of the zero points of the champions of France, who lost their third place in favor of their opponent of the day.
25
The very low and unusual percentage of success of Toulouse international striker Thomas Ramos (1/4).
The player: Antoine Dupont, watched but sharp
Crowned best player of the 2022 Six Nations Tournament, the captain of the Tricolores, authors of a Grand Slam, was the best Toulouse player during the Midi derby. Very watched at the level of the rucks, he soberly distributed the game. A breakthrough in the 40th would have deserved the best fate, especially since the captain of the French champions took two huge tackles on this action. Then Antoine Dupont found the side closed after snatching the ball in a regrouping for the test of Juan Cruz Mallia (63rd).