Narbonne – Orange slices: liberated, hopes rise, while women assume their leadership

Any bonus for the Espoirs/Reichel

We have known for a few weeks, the Espoirs/Reichel du Racing are freed from the burden of remaining in the Elite, and anything that can happen between now and the end of the season will be considered a bonus. Determined to honor their place in this competition, and to remain ambitious, the Narbonnais welcomed Grenoble last Sunday to Cassayet. And in the rain, they did the job, pocketing, in the process, their second offensive bonus point of the season (37-3). The work of undermining the forwards was slow to bear fruit, but the reward was savored as it should be. “We had a full match, in the wake of a royal first line, and a pair of crosses which stood out. We copiously dominated the closed scrum, which forced the referee to sanction the Grenoblois in the second half Our defense was also very effective, and the management of the match was good. Only the Isère touch caused us difficulties, but that is not a surprise when we know its qualities. try to finish the championship on this dynamic” appreciated Sébastien Buada who keeps a rather insignificant statistic. Namely that “in this return phase, and after six matches, we are the team which obtained the most points after Toulon”. Not so bad for a Nationale 1 resident club.

In Castres for an exploit?

After four consecutive weekends of competition, the Espoirs/Reichel are entitled to a little well-deserved break, as the organizations were so busy. “We even decided to give them the week” outbids Sébastien Buada who will therefore find his foals next week to prepare for the trip to Castres on May 12. Without complexes, and on the strength of its recent outings, Racing will perhaps be able to give back to the Tarnais who won, at the end, in Cassayet, in the first leg.

Narbonnaises assume their status

Leader of its group for a long time, the RCN women’s team made a point of assuming its status by overcoming (10-3) its runner-up, Millau, last Sunday, in Cassayet. Dominant at the forward level, the Narbonnaises had more difficulty putting their game in place behind, because of the weather conditions, but above all the rapid defensive climbs of the Aveyronnaises. “We take great satisfaction from this match. The girls were present in the fight, aggressive defensively, and constant in their effort. We scored two good tries, we conceded none, and we hurt them up front. C ‘bodes well before the final stages’ welcomed Nans Barnils, the Aude coach.

Place for 8^e of finals

This meeting against Millau marked the end of the qualifying phase which therefore awarded bib number one in the group to the Narbonnaises. A bib which will allow them to welcome to Cassayet, on May 12, a team ranked fourth in the group, as part of the 8^e final of this Federal 1. The “orange and black” have two weeks to seriously but calmly prepare for this crucial meeting.

The Alamercery cadets continue

They had obtained their first victory in these play-downs, the previous weekend against Chambéry, and the Alamercery cadets from Racing planned to do it again in act 4 against Béziers. In Cassayet, the superiority of the Racingmen took time to materialize on the scoreboard, but the outcome was favorable to them in the second act, for a success (19-13) which is good for the heads. “We are delighted with the behavior of the boys despite this gap at the end of the game which allows the Biterrois to come back and take the defensive bonus. Our superiority would have deserved another spell in the first half, but the team still lacks confidence to finish certain shots We hope to maintain this good impression for the next matches. delivered Félix Delaunay, one of the Narbonnais coaches. If qualification for the final stages of the Challenge will be very difficult to achieve, the young people of Narbonne still have the mission of ensuring their retention in the Elite, even if a big step has been taken. On May 11, in front of Nice, no relaxation will be possible.