At the end of the suspense, the Catalans achieved a miraculous draw. Trailing a few seconds from the end, the Catalans owe their salvation to the boot of Antoine Aucagne. In Amsterdam, Usap snatched two points and did well at the start of the Challenge Cup (20-20).
USAP was wearing the warm-up blue again today to begin its European campaign. After last year's debacle (4 defeats in as many matches), the Sang et Or wanted to give it a try today against the Cheetahs before meeting Connacht, Cardiff and the Zebre. With a little success, the Perpignans can find themselves in the round of 16 next April even if the Top 14 remains the common thread of the season. It is with this in mind that the staff decided to field a revamped and very young team on the pitch of the NRCA Stadium in Amsterdam which is hosting the Cheetahs during this European tour. The Catalans had some success during this game which they thought they would win, then lose, before winning two precious points for the rest of the competition.
Usap is firing on all cylinders
One two three ! The Sang et Or had the pleasure of tasting the South African goal turf three times during the first period. From the 5th minute, Aucagne took advantage of a kicking game for himself to score the first try (5-0) then it was Toganiyadrava who stood out in the 30th minute. While an almost harmless scrum was played in the middle of the field, the Catalans offered us a simple but terribly effective combination to put into orbit the young Fijian who was flattening between the poles 40 meters further (12-10). Instilled with confidence by this clear success, the Catalans stung a third time thanks to a very lucky rebound which allowed Job Poulet to recover the ball and finish in a sprint in the Cheetahs' goal (10-17, 40th ). However, everything was not rosy for the French club which suffered more from the game in the first period, conceding two strong tries from the South Africans.
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