After eight years without a trophy, Toulon returned to success on Friday at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin by winning their very first Challenge Cup, at the expense of a Glasgow team outclassed (43-19) by the Varois. The RCT, heroic defensively and carried in particular by a dazzling Baptiste Serin in the first half before leaving on injury, becomes at the same time the first French club to have won the two European Cups.
Toulon had been waiting to add a new trophy to their fine collection for eight years and the Red and Black’s third title in a row in the Champions Cup. A long drought which ended this Friday evening on the lawn of the Aviva Stadium, where the RCT clearly dominated Glasgow (43-19) to win its very first Challenge Cup and at the same time become the first French club to register its name on the list of winners of the two European Cups. At the heart of a not easy season in the Top 14, the Varois, 8th in the league standings, really needed this victorious parenthesis on the European scene. So that the continental party is beautiful while waiting to immerse itself in a more complex daily life, Toulon has endeavored to put pressure on Glasgow immediately. Result: a first try scored after five minutes of play by Baptiste Serin following a small game at the foot of the Toulon scrum half for himself. Thirteen minutes later, the former UBB number 9 was still in the game on his team’s second try. On a skipped pass, the hero of the first half (Editor’s note: it was nevertheless Cheslin Kolbe who was voted man of the match) served perfectly in the interval the emblematic Sergio Parisse, who had never won a trophy since his arrival on the Rade. Almost 40 years old, the Italian, acclaimed by the supporters when he left the field, passed in force and the RCT continued their perfect start (14-0). In bad shape, the Scots were then going to give a precious boost to the players of Franck Azรฉma (who will return to Perpignan next season).
On a new throw in touch badly negotiated by the Warriors and relayed by Nayacalevu Waisea via a powerful rush, Serin, again him, after a very good feint, scored his second try of the evening. The third for this very disciplined Toulon team (first penalty conceded in the 28th minute) who returned to the locker room with a score of 21-0. A perfect first period which ended very badly, however, with the injury of Serin, who definitively abandoned his teammates (he returned to the pitch on crutches, perhaps seriously injured), while the returning Gabin Villiรจre was leaving the pitch on concussion protocol.
Euphoric Toulon until the end
โฑ80โฒ | 19-43 ๐๐๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ก๐ง ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ข๐ก๐ฆ ๐ฅ
The RCT wins the Challenge Cup for the first time in its history!
Well done guys ๐ดโซ#GLARCT pic.twitter.com/flfwl9B7jh
โ RCT โ RC Toulon (@RCTofficiel) May 19, 2023
Hard blows that were not going to prevent these Varois still so solid defensively from continuing their march forward. Better: the RCT, after having suffered without cracking, drove the point home again for its return to the Scottish half of the field, on a penalty from Benoรฎt Paillaugue. After a try refused (for an offside) to Charles Ollivon, who had received with one hand a very bad throw from the Scots once again following a superb touch found by the returning Mathieu Bastareaud, Kyle Stein (author of a another try a little later) was going to save the honor for the Warriors. But really for butter, especially since Toulon was not going to stop there, with two new tries, first by Wainiqolo then thanks to West, author of the last try (the 6th) of this historic evening for the RC Toulon, come to join the many French clubs having won the Challenge Cup before him.
On the other hand, few clubs have won both the Champions Cup and the Challenge Cup. Toulon, winner of their fourth European title on Friday in Dublin โ which qualifies them for the nextโฆ Champions Cup โ is now one of them. The champagne can jump on the Rade after this new page of this club which does not stop writing about it and at the same time saves its season. The fifth attempt was the right one for these Toulonnais, heroic against Glasgow, who remained on four finals lost in the competition. Because Toulon!
