What is it about Toulon that makes the rugby stadium such a hard place to win? Is it the afternoon sun and the serene marina across the road that lulls the opposition in to a false sense of opportunity. All looked calm as members of the Navy Support staff watched the women’s game in the afternoon.
However by the time Navy captain Dave Pascoe led his team out, seeking to retain the Babcock International Challenge Trophy, the stadium was near full and the air in Toulon was once more charged with menace as the uniformed supporters of the Marine Nationale alongside many Toulonnaise were determined to lift they team to great heights.
Twice the Royal Navy crossed the marine Nationale goal line. The first occasion midway through the first half saw Tom Glover miss out on a try scoring capped debut due to a forward pass. Whilst in the second half the same fate fell upon fellow new cap Darren Bamford. Regrettably the times when the Navy team were in a position to pressure the French navy’s goal line were far to infrequent.
Experienced Navy lock forward, Marsh Cormack, celebrated becoming the Navy’s most capped second row with a sound all around display. Strong in defence and looking to carry the ball in attack. However he was one of three Navy players to end up in the sin bin, which did not help the Navy’s cause.
Gaz Evans was another of the Navy players to see the yellow card from the referee who decided he and the marine Nationale’s replacement prop needed time to cool off following a flare up. The third yellow card had been given very early in the game when Ian Cooper committee a professional foul and collapsed the Marine Nationale maul.
The Marine Nationale defence ensured that navy winger Josh Drauniniu had few opportunities to run in broken play. Dale Sleeman made a second half impact from the replacement bench as he returned from injury. He replaced Tom Glover which allowed Nathan Huntley to move to fly half. Jorgi Q again worked hard and produced a couple of memorable runs although he too was swarmed over by the ever present Marine Nationale defence.
All the Navy new caps did well and after dropping the first ball of the evening Jon Humphries produced an accomplished performance at fullback despite coming under significant arial bombardment. The RN player of the match was, once again, awarded to Sam Laird. His work in the tackle was yet again of the highest order and he is quickly becoming one of the most influential players in the current navy team.
The Marine Nationale played a very simple but effective game plan. Through the boot of their man of the match, fly half Romain Lombard they kept the Navy deep in their own half. Once in the attacking the third they showed good invention and a desire to keep the ball alive and not take contact or die with the ball. Committed work at the breakdown won a number of penalties which Romain duly kicked.
The writhing for the Navy was on the wall when fifteen minutes before the end the massed ranks of marine Nationale supporters struck up La Marseillaise. Its opening lines translate as “Arise children of the fatherland
The day of glory has arrived”
How apt.
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