Special Envoy to Dublin
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Toulon ends its curse
The trophy cabinet is therefore complete. By winning this Friday against Glasgow, Rugby Club Toulonnais won the Challenge Cup, the last major title it lacked. The Varois now have four Brennus (1931, 1987, 1992, 2014), three Champions Cup (2013, 2014, 2015) and therefore the Challenge Cup. Above all, they ended the curse at the Aviva Stadium that chased them in the small European Cup, after four defeats in 2010, 2012, 2020 and 2022. Against the Warriors, they did not tremble in a game that they totally controlled. Forget the recent torments in the Top 14. But now it's time for the championship where the future is much bleaker: the RCT will need a small miracle to qualify for the finals. The Varois would have to win with the offensive bonus against Bordeaux-Bègles and, at the same time, Bayonne must win with the bonus in Lyon, without the latter taking a point. Mission impossible?
Sergio Parisse, high class
Scottish fans, frustrated by their team's game, were not mistaken. When Sergio Parisse left the pitch at the Aviva Stadium in the 70th minute, they stood up en masse and gave the totemic Italian number 8 a long round of applause. At 39 years old, the RCT third line still delivered a full game and even scored, in force, the second try of his team. This Friday, he played his sixth Challenge Cup final (a record) and he lifted it for the second time after the one won in 2017 with Stade Français Paris. Only shadow on the table this week: while he wanted to make a last stand of honor with the Nazionale, coach Kieran Crowley did not summon him in the list of 47 players to prepare for the World Cup. Too bad in view of his incredible career.
The proper preparation of the RCT
Everything worked perfectly. The match started perfectly for the Var, with two tries to enter. And the embrace of Toulon has never relaxed in this one-sided final. Upon returning from the dressing room, Parisse and his teammates accelerated again and scored two more tries by Wainiqolo, Nayacalevu and West. More solid in conquest and in the rucks, the Var club responded in this match. Calm, efficient and determined. The reason? The Var staff had decided to come early to the Irish capital to prepare for this final. A preparation "with a lot of derision and relaxation. The goal is to have a good time together before the final," explained co-manager Pierre Mignoni. A paid method. The Toulonnais appeared serene, they never showed feverishness. Total control. Ollivon was waiting for "a party", it was.
Claw strokes
Serin, the big tile
A real mahout! Against the Scottish Warriors, Baptiste Serin was in all the good shots at the beginning of the match. Lively and precise in his distribution of the game, the international scrum-half had made himself stand out from the outset, scoring two superb tries. On the first, he taps to follow for himself behind a ruck, recovers the swelling and resists Smith's return to score. On the second, after a good breakthrough from Ollivon and an excellent relay from Waisea, he started flush behind a grouping to score a pure try of 9. With the early exit of Biggar, he had also ensured in the role of scorer of the Vars. But, on the last action of the first half, he injured his ankle, leaving the pitch carried by staff members and returning from the locker room with crutches. The big tile for a player who was particularly fit at the end of the season. No more World Cup hopes? A hard blow certainly for the scrum-half who has not been summoned since March 26, 2021 and a match of the Tournament lost 23-27 against ... Scotland.
Glasgow drinks water
For its first continental final, the province based in Glasgow did not exist on Friday night. From the outset, the Scots were taken by the power of Toulon, formidable in the wars of the rucks, and they were only occasionally able to put their game. Renowned for their lively and alert game, the Warriors have systematically stumbled on the Var defense well in place and totally hermetic. Crucified from the outset by the trials of Serin and Parisse, they never managed to reverse the trend and cast doubt on an RCT that was applied and sure of its strengths. Until then, Glasgow had played only three quarter-finals of the Champions Cup, for three defeats against English Saracens. This defeat in the final in the "small" European Cup will leave them with a taste of unfinished business as they never seemed able to compete with Toulon, despite a (sterile) burst in the second half. Disappointing for a team that makes up the vast majority of the XV du Chardon (11 of the 15 starters this Friday).
A dull and unbridled finish
At first, the show and the intensity were not at the rendezvous, this Friday night, at the Aviva Stadium. Without forcing their talent, the Varois controlled the debates, without igniting the public (not so sparse as that) who came to Dublin. On a few occasions, Scottish fans tried to give voice, but they soon realized that their protégés were in a day without. Steyn's try woke up Warriors fans a bit who believed in an unlikely awakening (55th). An enthusiasm immediately showered by the fourth Toulon try scored by Wainiqolo (58th). Admittedly, there were tests in this final, but it was all very disjointed and a little crazy. The RCT did the job in this meeting. "A final is not played, it is won," the players often repeat. This was the case for the players of president Bernard Lamaître, who finally won a title. This trophy also allows, and very symbolically, to save the season of the club. But, on the rugby side, we hear much more of the clash at the top of Saturday, in the same place, between Leinster and Stade Rochelais.