La Rochelle 19
(19)
Stade Toulousain 22 (19)
Leaders Stade
Toulousain required a last-minute penalty from Nicolas
Bézy to edge a tight victory away to
relegation-threatened La Rochelle.
The win, which also
featured Rupeni Caucaunibuca's maiden try for Stade,
temporarily lifted the European champions 11 points
clear at the summit of Top 14 as they recorded only
their third away victory in the league this season.
Top 14 League Table
Thirty eight of the
game's 41 points came in a pulsating first half, with
Bézy's 79th-minute penalty the only score in the second
period.
The result was harsh
on La Rochelle, who gave everything in an effort to try
and register a crucial home win against a Stade
Toulousain side decimated by international calls,
injuries and suspensions. But in the end Guy Noves'
severely re-jigged side did just enough to earn their
12th league win of the season thanks to 21-year-old
Bézy's calm head head.
Leading try and point-scorers in Top 14
La Rochelle were first on
the board when full-back Greg Goosen slotted a
sixth-minute penalty, and the recently signed South
African added a second success on 16 minutes after
Frédéric Michalak had replied in kind for the visitors.
Michalak, making his first
start of an injury-ravaged season, again brought parity
when he landed a 17th-minute drop-goal, and Toulouse
then claimed the lead when Fijians Vilimoni Delasau and
Caucaunibuca combined superbly for the latter to run in
under the posts. Fly-half Michalak kicked the
straightforward conversion to make it 13-6 to Stade, but
La Rochelle hit straight back with Goosen's third
penalty success of the evening as the former
Racing-Métro player kept the scoreboard ticking over.
The next
three-points came from an unlikely source as Stade's
winger-turned-full-back Cédric Heymans landed a 45-metre
drop-goal, but 13 minutes before the interval Kiwi lock
Piula Faasalele reignited the home support when he
touched down for his third league try of the season -
and fifth in all competitions.
Goosen maintained his 100%
record to bring the two sides level once more - this
time at 16-16 - before both sides lost a player each to
the sin-bin in quick succession. First off was La
Rochelle centre Seru Rabeni when he saw yellow for a
34th-minute high tackle on Rémi Lamerat, which also
enabled Michalak to kick a 40m penalty.
Shortly after Goosen missed
his first kick at goal of the evening before Lamerat was
then yellow-carded on 38 minutes, paving the way for
Goosen to make amends and once again bring parity on the
scoreboard.
It remained 19-19 up to the
break and the second period became an increasingly tense
affair as both sides squandered chances to claim the
lead. Michalak was off target with a 48th-minute penalty
and a 54th-minute drop-goal, while Goosen was similarly
wayward with two penalty attempts of his own - in the
61st and 70th minutes.
Noves then introduced Bézy
for Argentine scrum-half Nicolas Vergallo with 10
minutes to go, switching the 21-year-old to fly-half as
Michalak moved to No 9. It proved a telling substitute
in the end, with youngster going on to kick the decisive
penalty just one minute from the end as he took his
season's points total past the 50 mark.
| |
La Rochelle |
Stade
Toulousain |
|
Tries |
Faasalele |
Caucaunibuca |
|
Conversion |
Goosen |
Michalak |
|
Penalties |
Goosen (4) |
Michalak (2), Bézy |
|
Drop-goals |
- |
Michalak, Heymans |
|
Yellow |
Rabeni |
Lamerat |
