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'Six points to Toulouse is nothing. It's 15 seconds of brilliance'

By PA
(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Ulster head coach Dan McFarland was understandably delighted with his team’s performance in their 26-20 victory over Toulouse but warned his players they would have to improve for the return fixture in Belfast next week. The URC side ran in four tries to two in the round-of-16 first-leg Heineken Champions Cup tie in front of a packed house at Stadium de Toulouse, with winger Robert Baloucoune running in a hat-trick.

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“We could have taken a larger points difference,” McFarland said. “But I’m not sure anyone wouldn’t take a six-point lead from Toulouse. We were playing Toulouse in Toulouse. We created opportunities in that game to score tries. For chunks of that game, we were really good.”

But McFarland warned that the slender Ulster advantage could be wiped out in 15 seconds of the second leg at the Kingspan next week if the defending champions hit their stride. “They are Toulouse,” he said after the French side repeatedly stretched the visitors’ defence even after they were reduced to 14 after just eleven minutes of a frenetic, pulsating match.

“They are the champions of Europe, champions of the Top 14, and they have got some of the best players in the world. We are going to have to be a lot better next week. Six points to Toulouse is nothing. It’s 15 seconds of brilliance. We’re going to have to be on our game.”

Juan Cruz Mallia was sent-off for taking out Ben Moxham in the air as the match was clicking into gear. After treatment, the Ulster winger got back to his feet but was taken off the pitch for an HIA and did not return. “He says he feels fine,” McFarland added. “You go through the protocols. We’ll monitor him today and tomorrow and go through the protocols during the week.”

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Toulouse captain Antoine Dupont said his charges should be proud of their efforts at the end of one of our best games of the season, insisting anything is possible heading into next weekend’s second leg. “We know that the points average is important and the last try was good for us,” Dupont said. “We knew that Ulster would be a big challenge and playing with 14 players did not make our task easier. In spite of that, we didn’t give up and we caused them problems on several occasions.

“We can be proud of what we did. This was one of our best games of the season – we tried things, we played together in the same tone and in the same direction. Anything is possible. We are capable of anything. It’s obvious that it is going to be hard after losing the first game by six points. They lose very few games and we know the challenge that awaits us.”

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Jon 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 9 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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A
Adrian 11 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

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