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Eight-try Toulon hammer Montauban to join Toulouse at top / Photo: © AFP
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Eight-try Toulon hammer Montauban to join Toulouse at top
Mathieu Smaili and Mathis Ferte each scored a brace of tries as Toulon climbed back up to second in the French Top 14 with a 54-28 thumping of Montauban on Saturday.
Pierre Mignoni's team are only points difference behind Toulouse, who welcome back star France scrum-half Antoine Dupont for his first appearance in eight months after a knee injury for the visit of Racing 92 later on Saturday.
Toulon ran in eight tries from six different try-scorers as Montauban's away-day blues continued with yet another hammering on their travels.
They have now averaged almost 60 points conceded across their six away matches this season.
They did at least score four tries of their own, but three of those came after the game was long over.
Winger Lucas Tauzin scored a stunning winning try after the final buzzer as Clermont snatched a 36-32 victory over Stade Francais from the jaws of defeat.
It came just minutes after Stade fly-half Louis Carbonel seemed to have given the visitors victory with a penalty to edge them ahead 32-29 with the clock ticking down.
Leo Barre scored two tries as Stade hit back from a 17-3 deficit just before half-time to turn the game on its head.
But with scrum-half Baptiste Jauneau also scoring two tries and New Zealander Harry Plummer kicking 16 points for the hosts, Clermont did just enough to sneak a victory to the delight of their hordes of yellow-shirted fans.
Montpellier edged Bordeaux-Begles 28-24 in a thrilling topsy-turvy encounter.
Fijian wing Salesi Rayasi gave Bordeaux an early lead but tries from Mael Moustin, South African Ricky Riccitelli and Lenni Nouchi put the hosts in control at 21-10 with 20 minutes to play.
But a Maxime Lamothe try and a second from Rayasi gave Bordeaux the lead before a second Nouchi score, converted by Argentinian Hugo Miotti secured the victory for Montpellier.
Joris Segonds kicked 17 points as Bayonne just held on to beat Lyon 22-20 to keep pace with the leading pack in fifth.
Rock-bottom Perpignan missed the chance to pick up only their second point of the season as they lost a turgid arm-wrestle at Castres 23-7 despite opening the scoring, as Pierre Popelin kicked 11 of the hosts' points.
O. Larsen--BTZ
