While they seemed to be heading towards an easy victory at half-time, the Tarnais suffered the return to favor of Rochelais who were ultimately very close to winning this game. If the Tarnais preserved the essentials, they lost troops in the battle.
First of all, the main thing: by winning its match against La Rochelle on Saturday afternoon at Pierre-Fabre (28-24), Castres Olympique obtained what it hoped for, extending its unbeaten streak at home. and keep alive the hope of being able to finish the calendar year in the coveted top 6. In this, the contract is perfectly fulfilled for the OC. At the end of the first half, we even believed that the Tarnais were going to make short work of this La Rochelle team cracked by the absence of its international executives. Author of a remarkable start, Olympic Castres took advantage of La Rochelle's apathy to deliver what was undoubtedly its best half since the start of the season. An effective conquest, a line game that is always fair and sometimes brilliant, little waste, three well-constructed attempts, the feeling for the players that everything “goes like in training”… In short: very smart anyone who could bet on a comeback of Rochelais in this match when Mr. Marbot sent the two teams to the locker room. But now, like this ever more competitive Top 14, the Maritimes had the merit of not giving up, of managing to score very quickly after the break and of finally instilling doubt in the heads of Castres. The Rochelais, very dominated in closed scrums and far too penalized in the first half (12 penalties to 3 in the 40th), were able to reverse the trend and rebalance the discipline (17 penalties against La Rochelle, 14 against CO at the start). final whistle). The Tarnais, too, received three yellow cards (compared to one red and one yellow for the Rochelais).
Big losses
Above all, the Tarnais had to deal with injuries, which did not spare them during this match. Full-back Julien Dumora had to leave in the 38th minute, hit in the ribs after a collision in the air, “forcing” the Tarn staff to bring out the Théo Chabouni card early. Then, it was Louis Le Brun, concussed, who had to give way to Adrea Cocagi in the 52nd minute. Barely five minutes later, Baptiste Cope, author of a very good match up to that point, had to leave his partners, victim of a dislocated shoulder. Finally, Baptiste Delaporte, who had just come on in the 55th minute to honor his 150th match with the CO, left his partners in the 62nd (hyperextension of the elbow). These various injuries forced Castres to adapt, sometimes using new solutions, as when he played with center Jack Goodhue in the number 10 position in defensive phases, a role that the All Black international never played. in the Tarn. At the end, the lead taken in the first period held and the Tarnais signed their sixth success of the season. All were acquired at home and, in an ideal world for them, the Blue and White would take advantage of the trip to Clermont scheduled for next week to unlock their away counter. A success far from Pierre-Fabre is all that is missing for the CO to be perfectly happy.
