Racing Club Narbonnais finally managed to win on the wire against Albi (22-17). However, before this happy outcome, the Audois harvested many second-hand grapes and could have paid dearly for it.
Enthusiasm, a ball that moves and Narbonnais in the Albigensian 22 meters. Did this start of the meeting announce a one-sided match? If they thought so, Julien Seron’s men would quickly become disillusioned.
Not rewarded after a first big sequence of possession, the Audois were penalized for a ball kept on the ground (4th). A few moments later a new incursion into the Tarn scoring zone transformed an orange and black maul into a forward. But in this first quarter of an hour, pushed by the wind and the 5,048 spectators at the Parc des Sports et de l’Amitié, Julien Seron’s protégés did not give up and returned to the attack to finally find the fault by Marius Antonescu (11th).
Addition of clumsiness
In the momentum, well in the interval, Charles Malet unfortunately did not manage to flatten the ball in the goal to increase the score, turned over at the last minute by a defender (15th).
Albi took the opportunity to score on one of his rare forays. Back to back with the visitors, Clément Esteriola and his teammates insisted near the line, but they still lacked the precision to go to the end, despite a double numerical superiority. The hooker finally managed to dive behind the line after a devastating maul, which followed several penalties 5 meters from the line, played by hand, and a chistera in touch, from an uninspired Charles Malet on this gesture.
Lack of investment in collision phases and rucks
“The start was fabulous, the first 15-30 minutes, where we held the ball, unfortunately we didn’t score enough, but in terms of content it was great“, noted Julien Seron, RAcing manager who also pointed out the “lack of investment in collision phases and rucks” from its players. Pierrick Nova then his replacement Erwan Nicolas had all the trouble in the world to get the balls out at the right tempo and accelerate the pace of a game extremely slowed down by the SCA.
“I am convinced that in the very near future, we will put these opportunities to the back of our minds, but let this serve as a lesson to us and let us be even more in control of our Rugby in the future,” nevertheless promised the Aude coach.
Against the wind, the Audois tried to find their way to the goal. But once again, the orange and black advance was brutally stopped by an illicit clearance from Darrel Dyer, giving the ball back to the Albigensians on the verge of breaking. Painful, eye-catching but also good rugby players, the Tarn players, reduced to fourteen, took the lead ten minutes from time.
Avoidable scares
This try came from the other end of the field and from a new beginning of the Narbonne attack which, after a breakthrough from Dyer, transmitted to Fifita in the relay, Nicolas saw his pass intercepted… 80 meters further, a poorly negotiated touch and a visitor essay in the corner…
Before managing to equalize, on a carried ball, carried out successfully by the young Gabriel Atlan, the Racingmen had once again gathered great momentum by being intercepted then by poorly negotiating a new touch from 5 meters.
“We are not killer enough, on several occasions we found ourselves 5 meters from their line, they spoil our balls, make mistakes, it’s frustrating”said captain Paul Belzons at the end of a match in which he scored the decisive try in the corner, to make us forget all the blunders.
