Top 14 – Insatiable, La Rochelle pays Toulon at the Vélodrome (8-23)

Accurate, clinical and first. On the 24th day of the Top 14, the Rochelais signed a prestigious victory by winning against Toulon (23-8), Saturday, on the lawn of the Vélodrome. A week after their qualification for the Champions Cup final, the Maritimes have not slowed down to sign a tenth consecutive success in all competitions, and at the same time take the lead of the Top 14 temporarily. Toulouse will have the opportunity to take him back tomorrow evening, at the end of the day against UBB.

However, the Toulonnais had (almost) done everything well on Saturday to bring down a La Rochelle team which seems more and more unbeatable as the smell of spring and the final stages are felt. Voluntary, they tried a lot but they never really succeeded in putting in difficulty Charentais who made the task easy from the start. From the sixth minute of play, the overpowered Will Skelton thus relaxed his arm to flatten the first try of the match and cool a Vélodrome whose eyes were mainly turned towards Lens and the defeat of OM in Ligue 1 (2-1).

A very realistic Stade Rochelais

The score taken, the Rochelais were no longer going to let go despite the offensive waves falling near their in-goal. Because if the Toulonnais tried a lot, they lacked precision in all areas of the game. In their offensive animation first, during which the forwards piled up (eight in all). And facing the poles, where the Toulonnais was in difficulty (1/4) while Antoine Hastoy feasted (5/5 for the opener from La Rochelle).

Result, only Cheslin Kolbe found the fault in the La Rochelle defense (25th) on a kick from Ihaia West. Very prominent on Saturday evening, the South African winger tried hard to bring his team up to par, but he faced a La Rochelle defense which often retreated, but was never or almost never broken through. Monstrous with realism, Gregory Aldlritt’s teammates definitively endorsed the result of the match at the end of the match, on a hard try from Kyle Hatherell (73rd).

With this success, the Rochelais practically ensure their direct qualification in the semi-finals of the Top 14 (they are 10 points ahead of Stade Français, third, two days before the end of the championship). Things get complicated on the other hand for Toulon, which leaves the Top 6 after this defeat. The RCT players will not have the opportunity to keep their strength up at the end of the season, especially since they will also be playing in the Challenge Cup final on May 19 against the Glasgow Warriors.