It may seem paradoxical, but even though they conceded three tries, the Périgourdins built their victory thanks to a strong defense, Saturday, February 21, against Chambéry (30-24). The Savoyards imposed long sequences in front of the line, which eventually caused the Capistes to crack twice, including one while being a man short, on each side of halftime. A capricious bounce of the ball fooled Jaun Kotze and Vincent Fouillade to offer Bonnet the first Chambéry try at the beginning of the match (7-7, 10th). “We made several small individual errors that allowed our opponent to tie the score,” regretted Périgourdin manager Didier Casadéi.
Apart from these three strokes of bad luck, the sky-blue and white repulsed Chambéry. “It’s a team that plays a lot, that is strong in the conquest. We talked a lot about defense this week. My shoulders hurt, everywhere,” smiled captain Afa Amosa as he returned to the locker room. During a first high-level half-hour, the visitors seemed lost on the field, retreating at each impact, against Capistes who did not concede their first penalty until the 32nd minute. “The defense was magnificent,” rejoiced the technician.
They also effectively cut off the outside to prevent speedy Savoyards from developing their game behind, such as center Amigorena. And it paid off.
Un barrage à domicile?
“We managed to score at an important moment in the match and, with courage, the team managed to hold out,” summarized Casadéi. And they managed to score 30 points against the best defense in the pool. Despite groups penetrating on three tries, the three-quarters had their chance, Tim Giresse, Vincent Fouillade, and Thibault Dulucq being successively caught at the last moment by the Savoyard rearguard. With this 10th victory in as many home matches (the 13th in total), the Périgourdins can consider that qualification is secured, barring a catastrophe.
