TOPS
The perfect alchemy of the French champions
As for several seasons, when Ugo Mola has to leave some of his captains to rest and call on the young people, the latter provide. Once again on Saturday, without Antoine Dupont, Romain Ntamack, Thomas Ramos, Emmanuel Meafou or even Thibaud Flament, Marc-Élie Kouassi (19 years old), Roméo Bonnard-Martin (20 years old, author of an exceptional 20/21 in tackles), Jérémy Nemor (20 years old), Tomas Rapetti (21 years old), Matias Remue (23 years old) and Lukas Amati (19 years old) assumed their role in Castres (8-7 victory), in the derby. The Toulouse coach almost always manages to find the perfect balance between the executives and the youngest when he needs it, like periods of doubles or matches like this Saturday evening, where he does not have all his strength available. But, on the banks of the Garonne, the “hopes” are made of the same wood as the old briscards. Namely: excellence. An absolutely perfect symbiosis.
Also read Top 14: without its captains, the Toulouse youth win in Castres in the derby
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Cros (always) on call
The Toulouse captain and third row did not go into detail. Just like his friend Alexandre Roumat – nine tackles attempted for two failures – 18 tackles are to the credit of François Cros, for only… three failures. Implacable. The Haut-Garonne number 6 never misses his appointments, especially when his team is reshuffled. A (more than) safe bet that shows the way to young people. Copy.
Watson in battle
Once again very active in the duels, Hamish Watson was one of the most prominent Castres. Associated with Kyllian Ringuet and Baptiste Delaporte in the third line, the Scotsman regularly put the Toulouse defense under pressure thanks to his activity and his ability to advance with the ball in hand (64 meters downhill). Its breakthroughs offered several opportunities to its partners, who however failed to take advantage of them. With 15 successful tackles and 8 defenders beaten, number 8 delivered a solid performance. Far too lonely to stop the Toulouse machine alone.
Kouassi, it promises
What a first! The young Toulouse third row Marc-Élie Kouassi did not give up for his first start in the Top 14. Three defenders beaten, a crossing, more than 50 meters covered with ball in hand and four successful tackles out of five for the 18-year-old player. An impressive slaughter for a novice in the French championship. He is the Haut-Garonne “hope” who stood out the most in this derby. A (very) good omen. Other of his partners, also thrown into the deep end, did not experience the same evening...
FLOPS
Amati, it’s cruel…
While he was experiencing a first in the championship without a hitch, the young 19-year-old from Toulouse, aligned in the center, unfortunately opened the way for the Castres test, shortly after the restart (44th). Surely in a burst of optimism, Lukas Amati hit a long kick... directly into a dead ball. Which then offered the Castres a scrum within the 22 meters of the stadium, at the origin of Florent Vanverberghe's third try this season. Amati left immediately, replaced by Bernardo Pucciariello (18 years old). It's hard to blame him, but a mixed debut for him.
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Sluggish hinges
Whether on the Toulouse side, with the Paul Graou-Juan Cruz Mallia pair, or on the Castres side, made up of Santiago Arata and Louis Le Brun, the two hinges of the evening did not shine. The first, new this season, suffered from the lack of rhythm of the two players. Even if Graou led the try of his teammate Matthis Lebel (38th) after an incisive breakthrough, his impact on the debates remained too neutral. Same story for his Argentinian friend, who stood out more defensively with around ten successful tackles, but who spent ten minutes on the bench in the second half (50th) following an avoidable yellow card. In the creation of the game, we will have to go back... For their part, the Castres duo did not have enough influence on the game. Louis Le Brun, uninspired, notably wasted a good number of kicks. Even in the face of a revamped Stade Toulousain, it’s too lukewarm to be able to hope for anything. When the hinges are not level, the match is often unspectacular... We have once again had proof of this.
Menoncello in lazy mode
