Professionalism has done a lot of good things for the sport, but one downside is that a lot of clubs have seen their personality diluted by the need to be a successful business, with plenty of sides seeing tradition and eccentricities falling back to be replaced by brand marketing and merchandise. This means that you rarely get two clubs who seem to fall on completely opposite sides of the track – but if these polar opposites do exist, they were the sides battling it out in Toulon on Sunday afternoon.
Toulon are the new kids on the block in professional rugby,
drenched in cash and in sunshine, in a town basking in the warm climate of the Mediterranean
coast and with a roster that reads like the who's who of international rugby
over the past decade. Leicester, meanwhile,
are the grizzled pros who have tasted European success twice and domestic
success on a regular basis, based in the drizzly grey of the Midlands and with
a squad that, whilst boasting experienced internationals, lacks the celebrity
status of their French counterparts. In
terms of history, culture, and location, it's hard to imagine two big clubs
further apart – I'm not saying Leicester is an unpleasant city, but when you
compare Vicky Park to the Cote D'Azur it's not exactly 'spot the difference'. But as vastly different as these two clubs
may be, they could only be separated by a piece of paper – or, perhaps more
appropriately, a piece of card – come game time.
In a glorious conditions and a carnival like atmosphere, it
was the hosts who were expected to dominate.
A lot had been made of their much vaunted front-row, with the likes of
Gethin Jenkins on the bench, but the trio of Andrew Sheridan, Sebastian Bruno
and Carl Heymen were hammered by the Tigers' Marcus Ayerza, Tom Youngs and Dan
Cole on a regular basis. As the scrum
was shunted backwards, the penalties fell Tigers' way, with Toby Flood hitting
three pearlers from out wide in the first 25 minutes. Although there wasn't much in the way of
genuine opportunities, it was the visitors who were playing the best rugby – with
Geoff Parling getting stuck into the Toulon line out, Tom Croft and Jordan
Crane making good yardage in contact and Ben Youngs (after a shaky start) and
Flood playing a smart territory game.
The hosts notably struggled when the ultra-physical Bakkies
Botha went off to get any sort of parity up front and, although Wilkinson was
kicking well, were unable to build any momentum. Any possession the Galacticos did have was
shut down or snaffled by the immense Julian Salvi, whist any loose kicks were
run back with aplomb by Mat Tait – including one magical counter attack where
he seemed to sidestep half the Toulon side.
It all seemed so rosey for the visitors – but then came the turning
point. With numbers out wide, Wilkinson
through a long pass, only to see it tipped forward by opposite number and
captain Toby Flood. Without a warning,
but probably fairly, Flood was shown yellow and Wilkinson was on target with a
three pointer, swiftly followed by another five minutes later. Leicester had a chance to extend their lead
on the stroke of half time, but were dealt a double whammy as Flood missed his
easiest kick of the day and Croft was forced off with a back injury.
The crowd sensed a turning of the tide – and the hosts duly delivered. Without the speedy Croft in the backrow, the visitors lost their tempo and the big Toulon pack got to work, with Botha and Juan Fernandez Lobbe steaming into the Leicester pack to make important yardage. Out wide, Manu Tuilagi, who had been unable to get into the game, was being outshone by the huge Mathieu Bastareaud, with the French centre making telling carries with half the Leicester backline clinging on to him.
Wilkinson was looking in an ominous mood for the Tigers, and
banged over 2 penalties to give the hosts the lead for the first time, and
although Flood equalised with 20 minutes to go, it was only a brief respite as
Toulon hammered at the Leicester line, only to be denied by sensational
defence. A superb Steffon Armitage
turnover led to a breakout in which Ben Youngs brought down Chris Masoe just
inches from the line, before one of the cover tackles of the season by winger
Adam Thompstone on Bastareaud prevented the chunky barrel-on-legs from touching
down in the corner. The men in red thought
they had got the elusive 5-pointer through the irrepressible Botha, who clattered
through Ayerza on his way to the line, only to be brought back for a double
movement which, though it could be seen on replay, looked harsh in real time.
The writing was on the wall though when Dan Cole was carded –
again for a deliberate knock on, despite there being questions as to whether
the ball did in fact go forwards off his hand (although it certainly bounced
that way). Wilkinson added two penalties
before Flood clawed one back, but when Wilkinson is in that sort of mood,
you'll always be up against it. Playing
out the clock, Wilkinson banged over a trademark drop goal to take the lead out
to 6 points and ultimately seal the game.
(Just a moot point: I thought this was a terrible decision from
Wilkinson – there was less than a minute left and Toulon had a penalty
advantage when he hit the drop. If he
had just accepted the penalty he could have seen out the clock before taking
his shot, but since he dropped the goal, it gave Leicester the chance to
reclaim and push for the win, since the lead was only 6 points).
Toulon booted the ball out to win by 6 points. For the hosts – relief. For the visitors – heartbreak, after coming
so close. In a game that was stuffed
full of physicality, speed and power, these two sides probably learned one
thing above all – maybe they're not so different after all.
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