Tours (D1) : 7
Brest (D1): 2
The Remparts de Tours had prepared for extended matches: their four pre-season friendlies ended in extra time or on penalties. But this Saturday, September 28, for the first official outing, there was no need for that: they made short work of the Brest Albatross at 1is round of the Coupe de France, with a resounding 7-2 success!
We have blocked the display of this content to respect your cookie choices. By clicking on “Accept”, you accept the deposit of cookies. You can change your choices at any time by going to this page.
Accept
Frank Spinozzi showed his confidence before the start of the season, claiming to have a team built to win every match or almost. We agree with him, at least for this first meeting: we very quickly felt the Remparts launched towards victory.
From the start, they set a high pace and pressed Brestois hard. The latter were therefore pushed to make mistakes: with two consecutive penalties, they played twice for two minutes at four against five, and the punishment came from Steven Fournier, superbly launched on the left wing by the latest recruit Phil Kiss (1-0 , 6’03). Same action almost five minutes later, with Andrea Palat and Kyle Gibbons as actors, even if this time, Conner Jean had to emerge to push the puck deep (2-0, 11’05).
Recruits who stand out
These successful beginnings were the first ingredient of the Touraine triumph. The second is the great efficiency of the recruits: the seven goals were scored by players who arrived this summer.
The Americans Conner Jean and Kyle Gibbons, expected to be the main offensive leaders, have already been with a double each. The first scored his second goal in a fox, on a mix-up in front of the Brest goal (4-0, 26’00). The second scored after a superb triangle play with Mathias Thomas and… Gibbons (3-0, 24’59), then closed the scoring after a counter (7-2, 54’22).
And it’s not just the attackers who have stood out. Very good defensively, Phil Kiss and Mark Shroyer also showed that they could contribute offensively, scoring strongly on two numerical superiorities in the third period. Summer recruitment therefore seems to be bearing fruit, with executives (Fabien Mallais, Peter Bourgaut, Sébastien Raibon in particular) also still reassuring.
A relaxation in the second third
Overall, the copy is almost perfect for the Remparts, who delighted their audience with this offensive festival. Almost, because there was still a little scare: after two goals in one minute and a score showing 4-0, the Tourangeaux relaxed somewhat…
The Albatross, re-motivated after a timeout set by their coach Claude Devèze, took the opportunity to return to 4-1 by Jonas Lemais, on a quick counter (27’27), then to 4-2 by Théo Fourcade, found full axis on an inferiority from Tours (37’05). For a short quarter of an hour until the end of the second third, the Remparts suffered rapid attacks from Brestois, and it required all the vigilance of Sébastien Raibon, notably decisive in three one-on-one against Faure-Brac (26 ’50, 38’16) and Motreff (28’12), so as not to see Tours get caught up.
The last minute of this period was stifling: Brest carried out a long siege but without managing to break through the Touraine defense. Fortunately, after the break, the Remparts were able to get their heads back on track, setting off again at a fantastic pace to finish with this river score of 7-2.
The Remparts were able to celebrate with their public, present in large numbers this Saturday.
© (Photo cor. NR, Ludovic Dupraz)
So, like last year (in 16es final), Tours eliminated Brest from the Coupe de France. Now for the championship, with a trip to Meudon next Saturday to start. The Remparts were already eagerly awaited by the fifteen other Division 1 teams; after this demonstration against Brest, there is no doubt that they will be even more so…
Third-time: 2-0, 2-2, 3-0.
Referees: MM. Bliek, Gasnier, Simon and Baudoin.
Shots: 30 in Tours; 22 in Brest.
> 1is tiers : 1-0 (6’03) : Fournier (in numerical superiority, assisted by Kiss and MAIS); 2-0 (11’05) : Jean (assisted by Gibbons and Palat).
> 2e tiers : 3-0 (24’59) : Gibbons (assisted by Fournier and Thomas); 4-0 (26’00) : Jean ; 4-1 (27’27) : Lemais (assisted by Drolet and Faure-Brac); 4-2 (37’05) : Fourcade (in numerical superiority, assisted by Jaakola and Faure-Brac).
> 3e tiers : 5-2 (47’36) : Kiss (in numerical superiority, assisted by Fournier and Ebner); 6-2 (52’01) : Shroyer (in numerical superiority, assisted by Gibbons and E. Raibon); 7-2 (54’22) : Gibbons (assisted by Jean and Mallais).
Penalties: 6 minutes to Tours (2 + 2 + 2); 8 minutes in Brest (4 + 0 + 4).
