Defeated by UBB at home on the last day, Toulouse will have to recover. But now, the Rouge et Noir are going to Castres this Saturday (9 p.m.), a ground on which they have not won since 2019.
Stade Toulouse is definitely a club apart… Four days after the home loss against Bordeaux-BèglesMatthis Lebel, Pierre-Louis Barassi, Peato Mauvaka and Virgile Lacombe presented themselves to the press. In view of the questions asked and the responses of the four members of the club to the 23 Brennus, it looked like a club in crisis following a series of several consecutive losses. “It’s been a long time since we last tasted defeat so we were a bit stung the next day”confided, for example, the hooker. The winger was already thinking about the consequences of Toulouse’s first setback of the season: “We risk running behind these four points for the rest of the season, although I don’t hope so.”
To catch up, there is easier terrain than that of Pierre-Fabre. However, this is where the calendar takes the Toulouse residents on this fifth day. “The 23 who will be on the sheet, we will be keen to catch up because, last week, we were caught up in the fight. It’s a derby! For the moment, it’s them who are in front, that’s been four years since we haven’t won at home… They have a team of fighters, it’s up to us to put in the ingredients to win at home.”lance Pearson Mower.
Castres – Toulouse is different from Toulouse – Castres for them
SO, how to get your head back on track in Castres? Elements of response with Virgile Lacombe: “To put it simply, you have to show character and self-sacrifice in all phases of combat and even more. We saw it at the start of the season with two victories at home and two defensive bonuses brought away. This will allow us to assess our ability to respond in terms of character.”
To meet the expectations of the club’s scrum coach, the Haut-Garonnais will have to tame the hostile atmosphere of the Tarn enclosure. “The Castres have an exceptional audience, always behind them, especially when they play against ussaid Peato Mauvaka. We will have to be cool so as not to fall into their game. But we know that it is only during the match. Outside, their supporters are adorable. An hour before the meeting and during it, we know that we are their worst enemies. But it’s rugby!”
The last victory of Stade Toulouse in Tarn dates back to April 2019. Proof that the Castres “put a lot of importance in this meetingnotes Virgile Lacombe to conclude. Castres – Toulouse is different from Toulouse – Castres for them. We see it in their communication, the supporters… The biggest mistake we could make would be to fall into this parochial squabble. We’ll have to be able to respond in the fight and put on a very good level match there because we know that’s what they’re going to offer us. This remains an important match for us because there is a strong rivalry between the two teams. This is one of the teams in the region that have won titles in recent seasons.”
