Top 14 debuts end in defeat for England stars

Toulon’s English duo Kyle Sinckler and Lewis Ludlam started their Top 14 careers with a 15-19 defeat to La Rochelle on Sunday at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre.

The pair moved to the three-time European champions over the summer, putting their England careers on hold for the time being.

The round one meeting was a repeat of last year’s Top 14 semi-final qualifier, which La Rochelle won at the Stade Mayol.

Rassie Erasmus on how Tony Brown made them respect the All Blacks

Rassie Erasmus on how Tony Brown made them respect the All Blacks

The visitors went in at the break behind following a half where both halfbacks spent a stint in the sin bin. Dan Biggar was the first to see the yellow card brandished for a cynical dive over a ruck when La Rochelle were camped on their line. The hosts scored their opening try of the match moments after through Tawera Kerr-Barlow.

No sooner had the Welshman returned than his partner Baptiste Serin was departing.

Serin redeemed himself shortly after the break with a perfectly weighted grubber kick for his wing Gael Drean to run onto and give Toulon the lead.

Toulon’s advantage only lasted a matter of minutes though, with Ronan O’Gara’s side regaining the lead through former South Africa wing Dillyn Leyds, courtesy of a perfectly weighted pass from Sinckler’s and Ludlam’s former England teammate Jack Nowell.

A third try of the match for La Rochelle through replacement prop Georges-Henri Colombe looked to have put the game out of reach, but a second try of the contest for Drean gave Pierre Mignoni’s side a chance of victory. La Rochelle were, however, able to cling on to a 19-15 win, meaning Toulon will return to the Cote d’Azur with a losing bonus point.

Ludlam played the entirety of the match on debut, while Sinckler managed 48 minutes before the entire Toulon front-row unit was replaced. The visitors were still in the lead when the tighthead left the field of play.