At the end of a disheveled and then tense encounter, Bayonne was able to claim victory on its pitch at Stade Jean-Dauger against Stade Français (35-34).
The Stade Jean-Dauger did not come far from falling. While Castres is the last team to have won against Bayonne in the Top 14 in June 2024, Stade Français was able to believe in achieving the feat as part of the 13th day of the Top 14. In an awkward start to the match, it was the Parisians who struck first. On a ball carried for a while thwarted by the Basque defense, the “Pink Soldiers” made a second effort which paid off. Iakopo Petelo Mapu took the opportunity to score the first try of the game after just eight minutes. But, on the dismissal, Bayonne responded. After Mateo Carreras’ reception, Grégory Patat’s players pushed the game forward before a final breakthrough from Esteban Capilla who hit the mark to put the two teams back on level terms. Not stunned, Paul Gustard’s protégés immediately moved forward.
Perfectly served by a foot pass from Louis Carbonel, Jeremy Ward escaped behind the Basque defense. Taken over by Sireli Maqala, the South African center took advantage of the momentum to flatten the capital club’s second try on the line, transformed by its scorer. In the process, the Parisians were close to the break. Indeed, Pierre-Henri Azagoh found a gap in the Bayonne defensive curtain to bring the ball up 40 meters before trying to find Joe Marchant. The second line then waited too long to serve his winger and the pass resulted in a loss of ball. Shortly after a quarter of an hour of play, Cheikh Tiberghien found the solution to put the two teams back on level terms. On an action initiated by a ball carried in check, Joris Segonds extended his pass towards the former Clermontois. The latter was able to go to queen for a try transformed by his opening half.
Stade Français has put the right ingredients
The tension increased on the pitch at Stade Jean-Dauger with a clash between Mateo Carreras and Pierre-Henri Azagoh which offered a long-distance opportunity to Joris Segonds. However, the former Stade Français player missed the target from his own half. Louis Carbonel, for his part, had more success to put his team back in front on the scoreboard a little less than 20 minutes before the break. His opposite number responded four minutes later before Mateo Carreras thrilled the Rowing supporters. After an inspired recovery from Herschel Jantjies, Joris Segonds launched the Argentine winger. The latter did not ask for his rest to go to the lady. On their momentum, the Basques thought they added to the score at the very end of the first act by Alexandre Fischer after a carried ball. However, the footage showed that the third-row Rowing was unable to flatten.
If Joris Segonds added three points from a penalty in the 38th minute, it was the Parisians who had the last word in this fraught first period. On a touchline, the ball carried formed around Pierre-Henri Azagoh was able to be stopped by the Bayonne rearguard. However, Sergo Abramishvili was able to regain the ball and force the passage to flatten Stade Français’ third try, which came back to just one point at the break. From the start, the Rowing players showed themselves to be too undisciplined. Louis Carbonel took advantage after just five minutes to add three points and put the Parisians back in front on the scoreboard. This lack of discipline on the Basque side, particularly in the scrum, led to the first yellow card of the match. Right pillar Emerick Setiano left his team at fourteen for ten minutes. In the process, Tawera Kerr-Barlow thought she had done the hard part when she came out of a carried ball. However, a foot passed into touch did not allow the Australian to flatten in favor of Stade Français.
Bayonne did not want to bow down
After turning their backs, the Bayonnais raised their heads and pushed their opponents to make mistakes. Shortly before the hour mark, Joris Segonds added three points from a penalty to put his team in front. The two formations then neutralized each other in a real standoff. A little less than a quarter of an hour from the siren, noting his team’s failure against the Parisian defense, Joris Segonds tried his luck on a full-axis drop but missed the target. A sign that the meeting was intense, Arthur Iturria gave way to Lucas Paulos for the last ten minutes after suffering from cramps. If the Parisian defense stood out, its attack was also able to respond as the last five minutes approached. On an action initiated by a lateral pass to Joe Marchant, Bayonne’s missed tackles allowed the Stade Français players to gradually gain possession.
Louis Barré then tried to surprise everyone with a low foot pass except that Alexandre Fischer was on the receiving end. Rowing’s third row took the initiative to clear with his foot but was blocked by Tanginoa Halaifonua. The latter did not ask for his rest to forcefully flatten a try transformed by his scorer. But the Bayonnais were not decided to fall in front of their public, giving everything to make the decision. After a final effort, the Basque forwards allowed Lucas Paulos to flatten a try validated by video at the foot of the posts. Joris Segonds then did not hesitate in the transformation to offer victory to his family. Thanks to this short victory (35-34), Bayonne moves closer to the podium by temporarily returning to Bordeaux-Bègles, Toulon and Stade Français, which brings back the defensive bonus point from this trip.
