Top 14: slapped at home by UBB, Racing takes a real lesson

Will the Sky and Whites recover?

Even more than the rout (37-14) recorded this Sunday evening in front of Bordeaux-Bègles in their room at La Défense, it is the way in which they gave up and collapsed that begs the question.

The Parisians, sixth in the standings, are very far from the account today, if they want to dream of any title at the end of the year.

On this synthetic turf where the rugby players spin like racing cars, Racing has indeed been overtaken by time. He had played it first, achieving a feat that we thought was futuristic by transforming his room offered to the Supercross, its bumps, its tons of piled up earth, Saturday afternoon, into a green rectangle of the most beautiful effect, twenty-four hours later. As if nothing had happened.

Paris la Défense Arena, a multi-use performance hall, modular in the blink of an eye, pretends to take rugby in France to a new level.

But it is another time, another rugby, made of muddy crampons, scents of camphor, frozen hands, which tightened the throats and drew tears to the Sky and White.

François Moncla, 3rd international row, French champion with Racing in 1959, passed away this Sunday in his native Béarn, in Pau, at the age of 89.

The era of the Crauste, the Boniface, that of a sport made up of adventures and flights told to the sound of the crackling of a chimney fire, has come to the surface of a story that gets carried away.

The old man of Ciel et Blanc

Russell, Vakatawa, Beale, Fickou or Thomas are very far from it all. Their destiny is no less exhilarating. She is only, for the moment, a little more down to earth. The objective is first of all to prove that this Racing is not overtaken by the new great powers of the Top 14, including its evening opponent, Bordeaux-Bègles, who came without his master to play Jalibert. but with other Blues, Woki or Lucu.

The poster is not overused and gives a good overview of the potential of each. Laurent Travers' men are doing well in the mess. They showed it in the first part of the meeting to their advantage, taking advantage of the balloons lost by generous Girondins but a little clumsy. A test of Teddy Thomas, well in legs (7th), followed by another in force of Camille Chat, in raging bull (27th), seemed to promise at the break the Ciel et Blanc to a cloudless evening (14-6) .

But between the walls of their locker room, Christophe Urios' players have found the right settings.

And on their return to the pitch, they gave Racing a big boost.

More creative, faster in their decisions and their executions, they folded the meeting into three movements.

Three magnificent actions concluded by tests from Seuteni (48th), and Cordero (51st, 55th).

The latter even offered a hat-trick ten minutes later.

Returning Racing to the image of an outdated team.

Dots

Racing 92: 2 tries for Thomas (7th), Chat (27th), 2 transformations for Machenaud.

Bordeaux-Bègles: 5 tries from Seuteni (48th, 77th), Cordero (51st, 55th, 65th), 3 transformations from Trinh-Duc (51st) and Lucu (65th, 77th), 2 penalties from Trinh-Duc (12th, 39th ).