THREE-TIME CHAMPIONS Toulon edged Sale 15-5 in the Champions Cup tonight, but their failure to claim a bonus point could prove fatal to their chances of reaching the knockout round.
The French giants scored all of their points in the first quarter of the match and in an underwhelming display on the outskirts of Manchester they were fortunate to escape with a win.
After slumping to a 31-23 home defeat to defending champions Saracens in their tournament opener last weekend Toulon were handed the perfect start on Friday.
Sale flanker Magnus Lund was yellow-carded for a late tackle on Juan Fernandez Lobbe and Toulon pounced, scoring all of their 15 points while their opponents were a man down.
Welsh full-back Leigh Halfpenny popped over the penalty awarded for Lund’s infringement before the French side scored two quickfire tries.
Mamuka Gorgodze smashed through the defensive line to allow Charles Ollivon to score his fifth try of the season, shrugging off a tackle from Peter Stringer, who was playing despite having attended the funeral of former Irish team-mate Anthony Foley earlier in the day.
Halfpenny kicked the conversion before the Welsh star added his team’s second try.
Fly-half Francois Trinh Duc punted a testing crossfield kick deep into the corner where Sale winger Byron McGuigan was unable to gather cleanly.
As the ball dropped, Halfpenny was alert to the opportunity to dart over from close range for his first try of the campaign. Halfpenny was unable to convert from tight on the line.
Toulon were then reduced to 14 men when skipper and No.8 Duane Vermeulen was sin-binned for tripping.
Sale, beaten 28-11 at Sacrlets last week, got on the board when winger Paolo Odogwu sprinted away down the left flank to score after a neat exchange of passes between Mike Haley, Will Addison and Sam James had capitalised on a poor clearing kick from Halfpenny.
Addison missed the conversion as Toulon held on to their 15-5 lead at the interval.
Halfpenny missed a tough penalty early in the second period before Addison saw his own penalty effort, far more easier, hit the post.
Sale were much the better side in the second half but were left to regret not going for the posts on three occasions which could have yielded a crucial nine points.
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And Iam one of them.. from Aherlow to Madrid Harps!!
That’s the legacy of Fianna Fáil and you still will get idiots that will vote for them
Colm Keaveny says they have changed….surly he couldn’t be wrong
Of course they will, because their TD’s great-grand-uncle 14 times’ removed handed DeV a glass of water in Boland’s Mill when he asked for a drink. Ironic really seeing as we replaced one monarchy with another…
Green Thumb.
It’s sad to hear but money pays the bills not playing GAA.
If these guys played for Dublin there would be alot more help available to them…. Anyone else… On your bike lads…!
Sad sign of the times. Our club were county champions 2 years ago, of the 30 on the panel 16 have left as no work in the area and 14 of those have left the country.
What? What club is that
Ahhhhhhhh come on…….
any of the 600 gone wouldn’t have stopped Clare winning the all Ireland this year….
Ridiculous statement!
Clare ha..one back door all ireland in near twenty year and cocky all ready eh. Not even munster champs…roll on next year.
Yea can’t wait back to back all Irelands
Incredible that they only went to U.K. ,U.S. and Australia. 100%.
It was a very narrow-minded group of people.
And where did you go to Dave? North Korea? Iraq? Afghanistan?
Spoddgy you left out Limerick
I am in Budapest. 8 years. Why?
They may end up joining their armies and end up in Iraq and Afghanistan anyway.
Why not got to Canada, Germany, New Zealand, The EUA or anywhere in Scandinavia? They all speak English if that is their problem.
Listen? Hear it? That’s the yawning sound of ignorance. Mark it well because it is often disguised as informed opinion.
600 new club members in Dublin gaa?!
Ever hear a tipp man speaking English …. Ha ha ha here comes the red thumbs…
Anyone who has been to Tipperary will know that emigration is better than a life stuck there, coming from someone who lives here and will be leaving soon.
You will be a major loss… Hope the rest of us can manage without you in the premier county!
No worries, plenty have arrived to take their places.
Ya mary, more like a spent force!
Kilkenny on the way back, in force !
The Tipp crowd are no good
GOOD.
Is that all? Lucky they still have 500+ Most counties would be lucky to have 50