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Toulouse and Antoine Dupont crush Exeter in Champions Cup rout
By PA
Toulouse and Antoine Dupont produced a box-office performance as they blitzed Investec Champions Cup opponents Exeter 64-21 at Sandy Park.
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The record six-time tournament winners were in irresistible form, collecting five first-half tries from Dupont, Julien Marchand, Matthis Lebel, Thibaud Flament and Pierre-Louis Barassi to leave Exeter reeling.
It was the Chiefs’ ninth-successive defeat in major competitions this season and they simply had no answer to Toulouse’s pace, power and relentless support-play.
Lebel and Barassi completed doubles early in the second period before Theo Ntamack, Blair Kinghorn and Paul Graou scored as Toulouse took their try tally to 10.
Full-back Thomas Ramos kicked seven conversions, while wing Tommy Wyatt scored two tries for Exeter and Josh Hodge also crossed, all converted by Henry Slade.
Exeter have yet to register a Champions Cup point ahead of January encounters against Bordeaux-Begles and Ulster, while Toulouse inflicted a first half-century at home on Chiefs in the competition’s history, underpinning another sobering occasion for Rob Baxter’s team.
It took Toulouse just nine minutes to stamp their class on proceedings as a crisp 40-metre move ended with Dupont sprinting clear for an opening try that Ramos converted.
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Exeter had started brightly, but they will have been alarmed by the ease with which Toulouse cut them open.
And the visitors doubled their lead eight minutes later, this time opting for a route-one approach from a short-range lineout, with Marchand touching down and Ramos adding the extras.
The Chiefs already had a mountain to climb, but just when it looked as though they might establish a territorial presence, Toulouse struck again.
Exeter were on the attack inside Toulouse’s half, yet possession was spilled and Barassi made a stunning break, finding Lebel on his inside and he shredded Chiefs’ defence for another try that Ramos converted.
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The home side were in danger of being obliterated by half-time, but they responded right on cue when wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso made headway, found scrum-half Stu Townsend in support and his pass sent Wyatt away to score.
Slade’s conversion cut the gap to 14 points, yet any hint of a recovery lasted just three minutes courtesy of Dupont, whose speed and awareness created a simple try for Flament.
Ramos’ conversion made it 28-7 and Toulouse had a bonus point in the bag four minutes before half-time as some of their rugby bordered on exhibition material.
There was still time for another score, though, and this time it was Barassi who was the beneficiary of strong approach work after Townsend was shown the yellow card for a technical offence. Ramos’ conversion made it 35-7 at the break.
Toulouse were off and running again just three minutes into the second period, with Lebel touching down for a second time after more slick handling and it had become a painful damage-limitation exercise for Exeter.
Wyatt then sprinted in from halfway for the hosts’ try – again converted by Slade – and there was a first appearance of the season for Wales lock Dafydd Jenkins following summer shoulder surgery as he featured off the bench.
Toulouse were able to just flick a switch in attack, and Barassi’s second try made it 45-14 midway through the third quarter before Hodge’s opportunism gave him a breakaway score.
Normal business was quickly resumed, with Theo Ntamack adding try number eight before Dupont went off to a rousing reception from the Sandy Park faithful and Kinghorn and Graou ended Exeter’s agony.
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