like October 16, 2021 (6-8), La Rochelle’s victory was reduced to two points. Last year, it was marked by the failures of Jules Plisson, who was ridiculed by the public. This time, it was Correz’s kickers who missed the chance to knock the yellow and black down suspiciously after a Bernays slap. Finally, it’s the 79th incredible miss that remains a fact today, far outweighing a very poor meeting in terms of quality of play.

Bad tee time

CABCL’s reliable scorer Thomas Laranjeera, who entered six minutes earlier, had a penalty ten meters from the sidelines to convert 22 meters in front of La Rochelle. A 13th whistle against the Statists, multiple, we think. As for the rest, interim head coach Arnaud Mela said, fuming: “We brought the wrong tee (object that holds the ball, editor’s note). Time to get him the right guy, we lost 20 seconds. Thomas has a very long routine, and those 20 seconds put him in a situation… When he came in, I told him I was going to take the penalty for the win. Well, we didn’t put him in a favorable position. »

“Of course not everything was perfect, but in commitment, the whole team made up for it”

La Rochelle slightly more, 26 missed tackles against 16 on the Limousin side, two crossings out of six, 13 penalties (against 10), therefore, six touches and ten lost balls (against 2 and 12). Not forgetting the difficulties and fever at the scrum, Samuel Arnold conceded to Antoine Hasto’s pass in the first half (10-3, 24). She scratched more balloons (7, against 4) and converted 4 penalties, against 1…she was expected at the turn after showing a lack of commitment and humility all week. Even if she didn’t play well, she knew how to tear herself apart to win, resume her stride and clear her head before ten days off.

“We were under pressure all week. Today (this Saturday), it is sure that everything is not perfect, but in commitment, the whole team held on, Thierry Paiva underlines. If you put your mind to it, you will be closer to success. At times, we were not all together, but thanks to everyone’s desire we managed to catch up every time. When the mentality is there, we can work a little more on our game without forgetting the fight, first. »

Gives Dillon and Dulin

If there’s anyone who hasn’t forgotten him in Correz, it’s Ultan Dillon, a regular 2nd line author and author of a solid 3rd line performance in the absence of Gregory Aldritt, but also Remy Bordeau, Paul Boudehent, and Matthias Haddad-Victor, who hit the height of the orbital floor at 27. The Irishman proliferated, chaining tackles, tackles and catch-ups in shorts. “I had a little trouble finding my comfort zone when we carried the ball, but in the engagement, I really liked the game. Had a few contacts…”, he smiled.

In this age of duplication, it’s good to be able to rely on an international like him (19 caps with Ireland) up front and the experience of Blue Bryce Dull (36 caps) at the back. In addition to his well-felt ball returns, the back-to-back’s very long camp outings have been very beneficial and give the Rochelles much-needed reassurance. “Has a left foot that everyone knows, we knew he was accurate, he showed the extent of his ability…”, says opposite winger Joris Jurand. With 26 points in the toughest top 14 ever, the yellow and black finished this block of 10 games with 6 wins and 4 losses. It wasn’t what they imagined, but it could have been worse in 20 seconds…