Castres is no longer undefeated on home soil in the Top 14 this season. Perpignan achieved the feat of winning at the Pierre-Fabre stadium (17-13) after a choppy match, marked by numerous individual errors. Dominant, Castres showed far too much waste in his game to deserve the victory points. By dint of missing opportunities, the CO collapsed at the very end of the match on a big highlight from the visitors who scored Veredamu’s winning try beyond the 80th minute of play.
Undefeated at home, the Castres quickly wanted to mark their territory. From the fourth minute of play, Acebes signed a personal feat to score the first try of the match. Clever, the scrum-half picked up the ball coming out of the ruck, before rushing into space at the heart of the play. His school overflow framing allowed him to escape the last two Catalan defenders and finish under the perches. A few minutes later, Popelin gave the CO a ten-point lead with a penalty in the middle (18th).
But the Perpignans, who showed good things since the start of the meeting, gradually came back to match their opponents. After a ruck, Ecochard signed a small kick over the top which Barlot was unable to capture under Catalan pressure. Under the leadership of Allan, USAP then pushed the ball away at the end to Acebes who flattened it into a corner. Before the break, Allan equalized (34th) before the referee sent the players back to the locker room.
If a few individual gestures made the first act pleasant, the second half was for a long time messy, more marked by scrums to be redone than by polished play. Finally, Popelin gave the locals the advantage again in the 66th minute with a new penalty to bring the score to 13 0 10. And while the CO pushed at the end of the match to score a second try, Perpignan managed to come back into the opposing camp thanks to its dominant front pack in the melee.
The Catalans then obtained a final penalty, and opted to go into touch when they could ensure a draw by taking the points. A daring choice which paid off, since on a final charge, Veredamu scored the winning try. Allan’s transformation meant the end of the match, and the joy of the Perpignans for a final victory 17 to 13.
