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Saracens dumped out of Europe by Toulon

By PA
Jamie George of Saracens walks off the pitch after losing to Toulon (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

English representation in this season’s European Challenge Cup came to an end after Saracens were beaten 25-16 by Toulon at the Stade Felix Mayol.

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Following on from Wasps’ defeat earlier in the day, Toulon will play Lyon in an all-French final at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille.

A brace of tries from France Six Nations grand slam wing Gabin Villiere, along with a stunning individual effort from Jiuta Wainiqolo, got Toulon over the line while player of the match Louis Carbonel also kicked 10 points.

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Ben Earl scored Saracens’ only try, with Owen Farrell contributing 11 points from the kicking tee.

It took a mere three minutes for Toulon to draw first blood. Saracens scrum-half Aled Davies was caught by the Toulon pack, with the ball turned over for Baptiste Serin to chip over the top and Carbonel chased hard to regather the ball. Sergio Parisse and Carbonel then combined with a perfectly executed scissors move to put Villiere over at the left-hand corner.

Carbonel converted from the touchline, but Saracens hit back with three points from Farrell’s boot.

A few minutes later Farrell was lining up another shot at goal, only this time it hit the upright with the ball cleanly taken by Serin. The Toulon scrum-half went to clear but was charged down by Earl, who touched down to score with Farrell adding the extras.

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Farrell and Carbonel exchanged penalties, but Toulon’s pack were beginning to gain the upper hand.

On the stroke of half-time Toulon hit Saracens with a well-constructed try. The ball was put through the hands of Carbonel, Parisse, Charles Ollivon and Cornell du Preez who put Villiere over for his second try to give Toulon a 15-13 lead at the interval.

The opening stages of the second half were ferocious with both sides going at each other hammer and tong, but it was Toulon who extended their lead with Villiere winning a penalty at the breakdown to allow Carbonel to extend their lead to five points from the kicking tee.

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Saracens hit back with Farrell smashing over a penalty from 45 metres out on an angle.

Toulon extended their lead with a sensational individual try from Fijian wing Wainiqolo, who bamboozled three Saracens defenders in Farrell, Davies and Alex Lozowski to run in unopposed from 35 metres out.

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Saracens refused to throw in the towel as they lay siege to the Toulon try line, but home side’s defence remained intact after a period of intense pressure from the English club.

A tremendous tackle from Eben Etzebeth on Callum Hunter-Hill over the try line denied Saracens, who were building more pressure in the Toulon half. But a mistake from Farrell, who missed touch with a penalty kick to the corner, allowed Toulon to regain field position.

There was no way back for Saracens, who huffed and puffed to no avail.

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Adrian 1 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

11 Go to comments
T
Trevor 4 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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