Voluntarily deprived of its two stars, Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack, left to rest, Stade Toulousain did not, however, show up in Marseille with the intention of letting the match slip away.
Especially with the earlier successes of Racing and Lyon, the two clubs just behind him in the standings.
But a Toulouse stadium, even deprived of its best elements (Cyril Baille and François Cros were also left to rest in Haute-Garonne), remains a leading formation.
Read also "They bathed with the Grand Slam Trophy", Dupont and Ntamack in front of our readers
The first act was a little disappointing in terms of hand play.
But more mature and more realistic, the visitors led rather logically (6-12) at the break.
Thanks in particular to the good reading of the game of their defense on a few hot balls.
After the rest, the Toulonnais promised themselves to better use the advantage of the kicking game in order to destabilize the men of Ugo Mola.
The match actually unleashed during the last 40 minutes.
Toulon press but lack patience when approaching the line.
But two penalties from Baptiste Serin bring the two teams tied (12-12) on the hour mark. Toulon pushes and a try from Gabin Villière 20 minutes from the end finally propels the Varois in the lead on the scoreboard.
The ultimate penalty from Thomas Ramos only allowing Toulouse to leave with the defensive bonus (19-15).
The player.
Gabin Villere.
Beyond his powerful test thanks to his support on the ground, the French international delivered a fairly dense copy.
Voluntary to the point of going to fight with Toulouse to whom he returned thirty kilos, he clearly allowed his team not to give up when they were trampling against a well-organized opposing defense.
Relive the fabulous essay signed @gabinvilliere (@RCTofficiel) ⚡️ #RCTST pic.twitter.com/kW0aDIk463
– Canal Rugby Club (@CanalRugbyClub) April 23, 2022
The figure
.
60,000. Relocated from the Mayol stadium to the Marseille velodrome stadium, the poster filled up in the usual OM enclosure.
Nearly 60,000 spectators had come to witness what is still a clash of the Top 14.