Newport Gwent Dragons 13-26 Toulouse – Rodney Parade, Saturday 13th December 2008, Heineken Cup
Toulouse continued their unbeaten run in this season’s Heineken Cup with a convincing, if not outstanding victory at Rodney Parade.
The Dragons had been re-united with Marc Stcherbina prior to kick off on Saturday afternoon, an experience that no doubt buoyed the Men of Gwent as they approached what was undoubtedly an un-enviable task against a mighty opposition.
The first half began ominously for Paul Turner’s men as Toulouse quickly established a 10-0 lead. The impressive Maxime Medard opened the scoring with a virtuoso try that incorporated his pace and footballing prowess, before substitute Frederick Michalak slotted over a penalty following the departure of starting fly half, David Skrela.
A second Michalak penalty and a well struck drop goal by the enigmatic Frenchman stretched the visiting team’s lead to sixteen unanswered points, though just when it looked like the afternoon was going to be a long and hard one for the Welshman, Rhys Thomas smashed his way over the try line to claw back the game. James Arlidge converted before adding a penalty to take the two sides in at 10-16 at half time.
In the second half, Toulouse’s Heineken Cup experience shone through, Medard adding a second try for the visitors before French winger Cedric Heymans added a third. Neither try was converted; the only other points in the game came from the boot of Arlidge who registered one second half penalty.
The final score ended 13-26 in Toulouse’s favour, though many a side have been on the receiving end of much heavier results than the Dragons incurred last weekend. The front five for the home team were outstanding in the second half, limiting Toulouse to any significant chances other than their two early tries. Whilst it appears that he gets a special mention every week, Joe Bearman once again took it to the French giants throughout the match, gaining yards at almost every opportunity and keeping his side in with a chance.
It is indisputable that Toulouse have been the better side in the back-to-back encounters with the Dragons over the past two weeks. But many in the world of rugby are starting to notice the guile and determination of Paul Turner’s men this season. Saturday’s game was yet another example of how far this team have come in a relatively short space of time. Although the Dragons will not be preparing for quarter-final opposition in the New Year, there is genuine hope that next season could be a break through year in European competition for the Men of Gwent.
Paul Turner had nothing but praise for his side’s effort following the game. Impressed by the way the Dragons coped with the quality of the opposition.
“I keep on saying it - I was really proud of the effort and it was a brave effort. We mixed it with the best team in Europe on the day” said the Dragons coach. “It proved a little bit too much for us in the end, but I'm really proud of the players”.
"I don't think the score-line was a fair reflection,” continued Turner. “I felt there was going to be only three, maybe six points in it at the end and we probably didn't take a chance near the end where we had it out wide as well.
"I get pretty disappointed when we get beaten because we play to win, but you are playing against one of the top teams in Toulouse."
Toulouse boss Guy Noves was glad of the victory, suggesting that his side had been in a battle at Rodney Parade.
“It was a difficult game and we are quite happy with the outcome,” said the French coach. “I though we had a problem with our scrum at times and we had a very bad ten minutes at the end of the first half”.
