ProD2, r22: SU Agen take massive step towards Top 14 with victory over Oyonnax 

01 March 2010

SU Agen took a massive step towards the ProD2 title - and automatic promotion to Top 14 - following their 23-11 home win against second-placed Oyonnax on Sunday. Their weekend victory lifted Agen six points clear of their nearest rivals with just eight games remaining as they continued their quest to secure top flight status.

Former Toulon fly-half Conrad Barnard kicked two penalties and a conversion as the hosts opened up a 13-6 half-time advantage, with the South African maintaining his impressive start for the leaders since joining after Christmas.

His initial penalty was quickly cancelled out by Sébastien Bouillot's drop-goal, but flanker Jean Monribot's 21st-minute try for Agen earned the home side valuable breathing space. Barnard added the extras and a subsequent penalty to stretch their lead, before Bouillot was on target again to leave a seven-point deficit at the break.

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Barnard's third penalty made it 16-6 on 50 minutes, and Agen then made a decisive break 12 minutes later when 22-year-old Fijian winger Saimoni Vaka touched down for his fifth try of the campaign. The conversion extended their lead to 17 points and after that it was a question of whether the home side could push on for the attacking bonus, but it wasn't to be as Oyonnax flanker Fabien Laurent grabbed a late try for the visitors to leave the final score 23-11.

Oyonnax's defeat, only their sixth of the season, allowed the chasing pack to gather ground, with in-form La Rochelle closing to within three points after beating Colomiers to register their seventh successive victory.

Majeste Lilian kicked the visitors into an early lead with his eighth-minute penalty, but Argentine hooker Franco Pani replied with a try La Rochelle as the hosts went in 5-3 ahead at the interval.

Majeste's second penalty success narrowed the gap to two points just five minutes after the restart, and it remained that way until Benjamin Dambielle settled affairs with his own penalty just nine minutes from time.

La Rochelle's latest win ensured they maintained a six-point lead over fourth-placed Lyon OU, despite the latter being the weekend's only away winners following their 25-18 victory at FC Auch Gers.

The home side got off to an ideal start when flanker Alexandre Ricaud touched down after just four minutes, with Christophe Clarac adding the conversion, but three Romain Loursac penalties then saw Lyon sneak 9-7 ahead.

Auch's response was a second try, this time from hooker Sébastien Bruère on 28 minutes, and a Vincent Cortes penalty right on the stroke of half-time as they went in 15-9 to the good.

Auch prop Gregory Menkarska and Lyon lock Aliki Fakate were both sin-binned on 48 minutes and another brace of Loursac penalties brought the visitors level with just over 20 minutes left to play. Winger Franck Romanet then went over for a Lyon try, which Loursac duly converted, and Auch's misery was further compounded with Menkarska getting his marching orders.

There was still time for Cortes and Loursac to kick one more penalty apiece, leaving the final score 18-25 to Lyon, with Auch having to settle for a defensive bonus.

Grenoble now occupy the final play-off berth after they beat RC Narbonne 27-14 to leapfrog their opponents into fifth spot.

Grenoble were 9-0 up after 25 minutes thanks to a trio of penalties from Danie de Beer, but Narbonne fought back with the opening try of the game through former Brumbies number eight Jone Tawake, going over for the third time in his debut French season.

The hosts replied with the first of two tries on the afternoon from South African winger Wylie Human, with the ex-Stormers flier touching down in the 35th and 70th minutes to help his side to a crucial home win. In-between de Beer added two more penalties, while Narbonne did enough for the defensive point thanks to Brice Chevchenko's 53rd-minute try, although the replacement scrum-half was later yellow-carded to conclude an eventful second half.

Narbonne's defeat saw them slip from fifth to seventh after Pau edged out local rivals Tarbes 16-15 in a typically tense Midi-Pyrénées derby. Tarbes were 6-3 up after 12 minutes thanks to a pair of Richard Apanui penalties, but it was Pau who then scored the game's only try (seven minutes later) when winger Mathieu Dourthe went over. Clément Darbo added the conversion to his earlier penalty, but the home side still found themselves 10-15 down at the break as Apanui went on to kick three more penalties for the visitors.

Darbo's 54th-minute response left it 13-15 until five minutes from time, when Pau finally (and decisively) reclaimed the lead through yet another penalty kick, this time from replacement scrum-half Sébastien Descons. 

Pau are now two points behind fifth-placed Grenoble, and a point ahead of seventh-placed Narbonne as the battle for play-off places continues to simmer. Union Bordeaux-Bègles are tied with Aurillac two points further behind after the former beat Mont-de-Marsan 24-21 on Saturday afternoon.

There were three tries in the opening 11 minutes as both sides began brightly, with Bordeaux initiating the points-rush with a fifth-minute score from hooker Frédéric Montagnat. Fijian winger Timoci Matanavu replied with his fifth of the season shortly after, before centre Jean-Baptiste Dubié followed in to make it a Mont-de-Marsan double. Yannick Lafforgue kicked the conversion and two later penalties to help the visitors to an 11-18 lead by half time.

Bordeaux flanker Arthur Chollon touched won four minutes after the restart, and Raphael Lagarde kicked the subsequent conversion and two penalties (in the 49th and 54th minutes) as the hosts rallied to a 24-18 lead.

Mont-de-Marsan had to wait until 10 minutes from time for their only score of the second period - via a Florent Cazeaux penalty - leaving Bordeaux to continue their late push for a play-off berth.

Down at the other end of the table, meanwhile, basement club Lannemezan celebrated only the second win of the season thanks to a 32-28 home victory over Aix-en-Provence - the team they beat in last season's Fédérale 1 play-off final.

The win won't make any real difference to Lannemezan's survival hopes - they remain 22 points away from safety - but the result will be cherished nonetheless as it was also their maiden home victory in ProD2.

It also came in dramatic fashion, with number eight Cyril Lin crashing over five minutes from time after Antoine Lescalmel's drop-goal had looked to have won it for the visitors just two minutes earlier.

It sealed a pulsating encounter that had Provence leading 12-13 at half time thanks to a 36th-minute penalty try and eight points from the boot of Lescalmel. All of Lannemezan's points came from fly-half Thomas Pochelu - via three penalties and a drop goal - but the hosts slipped further behind soon after the restart when Chris Wyatt went over for Provence's second try.

Replacement Yannick Leduc pulled a try back for Lannemezan on 49 minutes, and Pochelu's conversion and penalty briefly put the home side ahead before winger Vincent Noutary touched down down for Provence's third of the afternoon. That left Lannemezan trailing 22-25 with 15 minutes left, but Matthieu Céolin then went over to set up the tense finale as relegation rivalries were dramatically played out.

The weekend's other match saw play-off chasing Aurillac go down 22-13 at Dax, for whom Maxime Petitjean kicked 17 points. Prop Christopher Poulain scored their only try, while Said Hireche did likewise for Aurillac.

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