We never really got used to what had become a nasty habit for this club: Toulouse, the first winner of the competition in 1996, no longer won the European Cup, despite its four titles and its two finals.
Saturday afternoon, Antoine Dupont's gang put an end to this incongruity.
Completed the blank record since 2010, the Toulouse Stadium has returned to the continental trophy by dominating La Rochelle (22-17), adding a fifth star on his jersey, an unprecedented performance.
Toulouse can once again stare at their rivals, having spent a decade watching others win.
"Toulon had got hold of this competition, then the Saracens, then the Leinster, lists the Toulouse manager, Ugo Mola, winner of the competition on the meadow in 1996. Eleven years, that may seem a lot, but you have to show proof of 'humility.
The post-2012 era was terrible, with the renewal of a generation that had filled the trophy cabinet.
"
A long reconstruction
Champion of France that year, Toulouse then failed to find successors to Clerc, Dusautoir, McAlister, Jauzion or Servat, retired or increasingly in difficulty.
In 2015, club legend Guy Novès left his post to become coach of the Blues.
Two years later, it is the tragedy for the institution, which lives its first season in the "small" European Cup in the wake of a poor twelfth place in the Top 14.
So, Toulouse took a long time to get up, but ended up succeeding.
"If we had told Maxime Médard that it would take eleven years before seeing the European Cup final again, not sure that he would have believed it", launches Antoine Dupont.
Let's talk about the latter precisely.
Designated best European player of the year, the scrum-half of the Blues is at the head of the gondola of the new generation of tricolor cracks who have revived Toulouse.
Rugby is coming home ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
For supporters and injured friends ❤️🖤 pic.twitter.com/JwFALcjL9X
- Antoine Dupont (@ Dupont9A) May 22, 2021
He is not the only one among these men, who have become regulars of the XV of France: the opener Romain Ntamack, author of a clear foot against La Rochelle and decisive on the test of Mallia, the third line François Cros, the pillar Cyril Baille or the usual captain Julien Marchand, suspended for the final. "It is a real honor to play with these young superstars", launches the third line of New Zealand Jerome Kaino, double world champion with the All Blacks and symbol of the intelligent recruitment of Toulouse in recent years.
So yes, Toulouse "did not make a great match", by the admission of Ugo Mola at Twickenham.
But Toulouse were able to hold on during their weak times in the first half and score during their brief period of domination in the second act.
The sign of a team used to managing these matches at a very high level, in the wake of a title of champion of France in 2019 and two European semi-finals in the last two seasons.
And which reconnects with its glorious past.
See also European Cup: Botia, the red card which is expensive in La Rochelle, beaten in the final by Toulouse (17-22)
"The club's heritage motivates us, all the more so in this competition where the club has a strong past," describes Antoine Dupont. There, we put the fifth star, we perpetuate the tradition. Many of the players who are part of this team have a bright future. “In the very short term, he goes through the Top 14, where he and his partners currently occupy the first place and can still dream of a double unprecedented since 1996. It would be very strong. It would be Toulouse.
