Tops
Powerful, eye-catching, cunning… The Leicester Tigers lived up to their reputation on Sunday to win on the Stade Français pitch (24-27). Carried by a dominating conquest, they scored three tries via their hooker Archie Vanes on carried balls or on picks and go. All without their internationals (Wiese, Pollard, Montoya, Chessum, Youngs etc), who remained in England. Here they are with two victories in as many matches.
The young full-back, who can also play at midfield, has continued to score points since the start of the season. Author of an honest game, the 21-year-old Frenchman distinguished himself with an 80-meter recovery: starting from his 22 meters, he adjusted a foot play for himself over the first curtain. He recovered the ball before playing the personal card on a two-on-two and finishing his rush between the posts (62nd). The staff of the XV of France will probably have appreciated it.
Flops
What a disappointment for the Pink Soldiers! After their rout in Sale (28-5) last week, Karim Ghezal’s men had to win to relaunch their qualification for the final stages. Missed, even if they pocketed a small defensive bonus point. They have two matches left to try to qualify, in Pool 4, the toughest of all.
Between two teams who failed to reveal themselves, despite a prolific score, the spectators were bored for a long time. If the Tigers remained in their sector, the desire of the Parisians to remain in the frontal challenge rather than trying to take the heavy English defense from behind turned against them. They may regret the technical error of Etien (80th), alone in the opposing goal and who was unable to control the ball to offer victory to his team.
