1996, 2003, 2005, 2010, and now 2021! The Toulousains won Saturday, May 22 in Twickenham, the London temple of rugby, a fifth European Cup by winning in the final against La Rochelle (22-17). A consecration for a generation, symbolized by Antoine Dupont, Cyril Baille, Romain Ntamack, Mathis Lebel or even François Cros, champion of France two years ago – there was no title awarded in 2020, Covid obliges. Thanks to this continental success, the fifth therefore, Stade Toulouse once again becomes the most successful club in Europe, ahead of the Irish from Leinster.
Accustomed to reigning by their game licked on the French lawns of the Top 14, this time the Toulouse had to go through a more “classic” match to win. The fifth star, the Reds and Blacks went to look for it in front, to wear, far from their flamboyant “game of hand, game of Toulouse”. Also well helped by the red card inflicted on Levani Botia in the heart of the first act for a high tackle on Maxime Médard. It was finally thanks to the Argentinian Juan Cruz Mallia that the Toulouse residents found the loophole (60e), never to drop the score again despite the final revolt in the Maritimes.
At the end of the first act, very clever however the one who could give the winner of this confrontation. Not impressed for their first at this level of competition, the Rochelais looked Toulouse straight in the eye: the Yellows and Blacks took the lead at the break (12 to 9). Ihaia West’s Foot (8e, 27e, 31 and 40e) came to reward the work of its forwards, omnipresent in the wake of the overpowered Uini Atonio, Pierre Bourgarit and especially Will Skelton.
1996 ⭐ 2003 ⭐ 2005 ⭐ 2010 ⭐ 2021 ⭐ #STSR #MissionEurope https://t.co/0JdXuNLcIf
A red card that changed everything
Opposite, Romain Ntamack made an impeccable copy against the poles (5e, 11e, 38e) to keep his team in contact. But despite the advantage in the score, no smile on the faces of La Rochelle when joining the locker room, and for good reason: the exclusion of the Fijian center Levani Botia from the 28e minute would force his own to play the whole second act outnumbered.
Returning from the break, the Toulousains logically took advantage of this advantage to take the game on their own and impose their own pace. By dint of percussion, it was finally Selevasio Tolofua who found the loophole in the defense on the hour mark to send Juan Cruz Mallia to the test. An achievement that the Argentinean, who arrived in January, will remember: it was his first attempt in his new colors! In the process, Romain Ntamack transformed, which seemed to put an end to the hopes of La Rochelle, visibly exhausted by the assaults of their opponents.
But the Maritimes found unsuspected resources to return to contact with Toulouse. Thanks to a Kerr-Barlow test (73e) in conclusion of an enormous work of his team in the 22 m opponents, the teammates of Grégory Alldritt offered themselves the right to believe in it again in the last minutes.
But while Romain Ntamack made a perfect copy at the foot (5/5), La Rochelle striker Ihaia West found the amounts of Twickenham three times, the last of which, an attempt at transformation, could have brought his team back to three points. Points that were lacking in the caravel of the Rochelais at the finish.
At the end of a last action in the Toulouse camp, scrum-half Antoine Dupont got rid of the ball in touch: the Reds and Blacks could rejoice, the Toulouse Stadium is back to European summits ten years after their last title.