Toulon 24-18 Clermont
ANYONE WORRIED THAT a half-empty Twickenham would impact the on-field intensity of Toulon v Clermont had their fears put away after a few minutes, when fullback Nick Abendanon sexily offloaded around a Toulon defender to put Napolioni Nalaga clear on the left wing.
The Fijian didn’t score – he was upended by Toulon wing Bryan Habana, which foreshadowed the game’s conclusion – but the burst set the tone for a very exciting final.
Toulon outlasted their French rivals to claim an unprecedented third straight European Cup, which positions them as possibly the best ever club team.
Scarily, they are about to get even better.
Before the game their owner Mourad Boudjellal ominously said that ‘three isn’t history, that’s four’, which explains the acquisition of Ma’a Nonu, Quade Cooper and Samu Manoa.
On a macro level, the inaugural Champions Cup final was similar to the 2013 Heineken Cup decider these two teams played in Dublin. Toulon soaked up pressure like a sponge before unleashing their strike runners at key times. Steffon Armitage and Mathieu Bastareaud were both superb and seemingly inter-changable, with the flanker popping up out wide on a few occasions to make big breaks and the centre jackling at the breakdown masterfully.
Everyone was intrigued to see how Brock James would fare at out-half for Clermont, but we were robbed of that sub-plot as the Australian pulled up in the warm-up.
Clermont took an early advantage after Morgan Parra blocked down Sebastien Tillous-Borde’s box-kick. The ball bounced perfectly into the path of Wesley Fofana, who skated past Toulon back row Chris Masoe to dot down in the corner.
That made it 11-3 but Toulon used every ounce of wily savvy they could muster to edge back into the game.
They were helped by Clermont hooker Benjamin Kayser. The Frenchman had previously lost three European Cup finals and did his utmost in a five-minute period to make it four from four, conceding two penalties that Leigh Halfpenny converted.
Those two kicks and one other allowed Toulon to narrow the gap to one as the clock struck 40.
Then, Clermont went full Clermont. Rather than put the ball out, Abendanon chipped poorly in midfield and Toulon ran the ball all the way back down to within 5m of the try-line. You aren’t going to stop Bastareaud from that distance – 16-11 to Toulon at half time.
Another Halfpenny penalty right after the break was followed by 15 minutes of intense Toulon dominance. Their pack were rolling and their auld lads looked ten years younger.
But then Abendanon righted the wrong of the first half, ironically by doing the exact same thing. A sliced Habana clearance landed right in his basket and he collected his own deft dink in the Toulon 22 to score under the posts.
But the champions were the more assured team throughout and were very clinical. The best example of that was the game’s final score. Drew Mitchell cut a sharp angle off a Toulon maul and danced past four Clermont tacklers to score in the corner.
Halfpenny uncharacteristically missed the conversion, which meant that just like in Dublin in 2013, we would get to enjoy Clermont frantically searching for a winning score.
Frantic Clermont is by far their most entertaining vintage.
Unfortunately, at out-half they had Camille Lopez, who routinely stood ten yards behind the gain line, in contrast to Matt Giteau, who probed and pushed the Clermont defence from a very flat position.
Another searing Abendanon break brought Clermont into the Toulon 22 for one last chance. The Toulon defence was impenetrable on this occasion as Lopez tried a cross-kick, which Habana hoovered up.
It was always possible that the game would end with a Clermont out-half making a bad decision. Funnily enough, this time their fans would probably have loved to see Brock James out there pulling the strings.
I wonder how the powers that be at Premiership Rugby are feeling right now
Sick to the stomach id say. Theyr ingenious plan of the new warped tournament which was to finish in theyr majestic “carry them home” Twickenhem, in a final of Northampton vs Saracens, didn’t really go to plan did it.
All they’ve done to change the balance of rugby, is taken European rugby away from clubs and move a would be exciting final in Italy, to one of the most underwhelming grounds in rugby.
Well done Toulon. They join fellow European Cup aristocrats Leinster on three crowns now. Poor old Munster still stuck on a mere two.
Knobson you still drunk after watching the mighty west brom beating man poo today!
Don’t worry Robson some day We’ll reach the lofty heights scaled in Europe by your beloved Connacht.
Knobson has absolutely nothing to do with connacht Eoghan from what I can gather he’s just a jealous sado from Limerick
He refuses to actually claim any allegiance lest his team receive slagging. I’m 50% sure He’s a Leicester fan.
Listen here Eoghan, I’m Irish by birth and Connacht by the grave of God. Don’t get much glory following us but I’ll follow them forever. No bandwagon with us. Real fans, real passion. Also is that your bird or your mum in your profile pic?
Neither actually Robson, a friend of mine. I’m glad we’re getting to know each other though.
Oh dear Robson. Two things you needlessly put into context in your statement there:
1) Addressing Eoghan by his profile pic is a lack of character, and a sign that you have no other way of dissing him.
2) The grave of God? That’s a rosy thought you have there.
3) Funny how you claim to be Irish, when you would rather any foreign team beat Munster hands down. This should provide a clue as to how you’re Irish by birth: #4ProudProvinces.
Why do you support connacht rugby? didn’t brian o driscoll own you once on Twitter when you tweeted him saying rugby was an elitist sport?
So you are in the friends zone with her….? Best of luck with that…
Afraid not Robson, O’Sullivan’s always get the job done.
Best team ever? WORST team ever. Other teams just going through the motions of pool games, quarters and semis while this team keep buying their players. The players didn’t even seem too excited about the win. Like BOD said, ‘Are they getting bored of winning European cups?’
As Robby RottenNest said earlier, rugby for real teams is finished.
RFU and Premiership Rugby, take a good long hard look at yourselves, because what you created did nothing to balance the equation. All you did was ruin the dreams of lesser teams.
Rugby for real teams? What real teams are you talking about? You mean Franchises that were owned by the IRFU and gave they money, international players, infrastructure etc…? Clermont or Toulon has more history than all the 4 Provinces combined.
The only thing the Toulon rugby club has that links it to the little fishing village in the south east is the name.
You could have this group of mercenaries located in any town in any country in the world.
Clermont have a very passionate fan base but like the team they only seem up for it in the Stade Michelin.
Yes, yoman. Real teams. Teams that remain true to their roots employing home-based players, with the majority of them outweighing their imports in number, signifying their national identity.
Here’s an example. When Munster won the final in ’06, they only had 3 imports in their side that day. When Leinster won in ’09, they had 4 imports. That is pure Irish.
This Toulon team has won the final using 14 imports. I’ll put it again. 14!!! And had 11 of them starting! What does that tell you? They’re a “Dream Team”, not a French side.
What are you talking about?! Munster franchise is managed by the IRFU. Imagine if France decided to create 4 Franchises. They wouldn’t need much non French players either. Toulon is a CLUB, privately owned. If I follow your logic non of the English, Spanish teams that won the Champions league are legitimate.
Donald. The Clermont supporters weren’t up for traveling because it’s expensive and rugby in France is mostly followed by lower income people. It has been said many times now…
Yoman, there’s a few things you need to understand here:
1) Even if you and I could imagine it, there is no way France would have ever created four franchises. There’s too many different regions, lots of resources and multi-millionaires to boot. We have zilch. Do you think the FFR would support that proposal? Absolutely not, because they crave French dominance in Europe every year, given the status that previous French teams and the national team have achieved.
2) Football is completely irrelevant to the subject of rugby, because football clubs can afford to pay 7-digit sums of money on many players while many rugby clubs can’t. Plus I said “rugby for real teams”. I wasn’t bringing football into the equation.
3) You must see for yourself that this is wrong. Toulon are being regarded as the best team ever in Europe. How do you think they got there, especially when not long ago, they were fighting for promotion in the Pro D2? Did they get there through players that were not very well regarded and were French, or Toulon residents? No. They had to buy foreign players, because they know that’s the only way they’ll ever taste success.
Also, you said, “Clermont or Toulon has more history than all the 4 Provinces combined.”.
How?
Since the inception of this tournament in 1995/1996, Munster have appeared 144 times and were in a final 4 times. Toulon made 34 appearances and were NEVER in a Heineken Cup Final until 2013. Also for five straight years, the never even played in Europe. So how do they have bigger history?
More history since rugby existed before the European cup. Clermont is about 100years old
The provincial Munster team has existed since 1879.
I know they won’t ever make 4 Provinces in France. It’s just to explain that the way the IRFU set up pro rugby in Ireland was a complete different structure than in France and that the provinces got some advantages from this. My comparaison with soccer is actually relevant. Most of top teams are made with players from all around the world. The top 15 in Europe can buy whoever they want…. The rest get the leftover or nothing. At least Leinster and Munster have the potential to reach a semi final. Do u think that any French/ Polish or even Irish clubs can claim the same in football? Rugby became professional 20 years ago and the money is getting more and more important. What do you propose to stop this while developing the game in Europe?
Eoghan. You know well what I mean about this. Munster or Leinster have little history in rugby compared to Toulouse, Clermont, Brive, Bordeaux Begles etc….
Enforced salary cap. Levels the playing field.
Oh well in that case, the club game in Ireland is older as well. Dublin University being founded in 1854. before the FFR and IRFU.
But anyway, tell me more about how french rugby has so much more history.
Are you for real? A totally unknown team in Dublin is older than the FFR so what? I know clubs were popular before the provinces but can you seriously compare Shannon RFC, the Crescent or Cork const to any team that I ‘ve mentioned above? And I don’t mean to be disrespectful for the teams, players and fans. Its like saying that the league of Ireland has the same level of history as la Liga since Sligo FC is nearly 100years old.
Yeah, I am.
So it disproves your idea that French club rugby has more history than Irish rugby. The fact alone that Irish Rugby clubs are older than French ones ruins your argument.
Yeah, I can. I would argue that prior to professionalism, Irish clubs were as good as french ones. Welsh ones, notably Pontypridd and Neath were, as were English clubs like Bath and Gloucester. Why not Irish ones Yoman? The national side was always just as good.
The league of Ireland, going by any definition of history, has more history than la liga, being 8 years older. Perhaps pedigree/prestige is the word you’re looking for?
If you do mean prestige, then refer to the above argument regarding Neath, Gloucester etc. In the ear;y years of professionalism, who is to say that a team like Shannon, Lansdowne or Wanderers couldn’t compete just as well as those Welsh and English small clubs could?
Correct me if I’m wrong but Provinces, in their actual format, have been created, along with the Celtic league, in order to compete at a European level. No real trust were given to the Irish clubs so I don’t think we can say that those clubs were as good as the French prior to 1995. Of course the fact that Ireland was a small country compare to France didn’t help to maintain a domestic championship.
You knew exactly what I meant about history
I’ve been in Toulon…it’s far from being “a little fishing village”it has a naval base and is about the size of Drogheda
I think there’s a definite argument to be made for the Irish clubs as equal to those from the other countries actually. The IRFU definitely mooted any discussion about it though. But the clubs themselves did protest the IRFU decision to switch to Provinces, so they definitely thought they were good enough to compete. Think about it. Roughly the same number of players per club, strong feeding structures through schools etc. It’s very possible.
The fact that a smaller country, Wales, was able to compete with its clubs makes that clear. When the table began to shift towards France and England in the competition the Welsh followed the same tactic the IRFU did. But you know that.
You were pretty set on history so no, I didn’t know.
That would be interesting to know but we won’t unfortunately. The structure and players were there but not in the same league as, already big team, Toulouse, Biarritz, USAP etc…
The massive advantages that Ireland have over France is that pro rugby is learned at an early age. Look at the school cup. Those kids are powerfull and play like pro while in France the same kids play with small teams in their village. Somehow private school in Ireland benefits greatly to Irish rugby
Maybe at junior cup level but aren’t lads brought into french club academies at around 16, surely that’s even more valuable as a developer of talent in teenagers than something like the senior cup.
pro team in France have academy but at that age you better off letting them grow in their local team. Unfortunately rugby is a peasant game in France (not being pedantic here but that’s the reality) therefore those players aren’t as mature as their Irish counterpart at the age of 18. Add the fact that clubs are pivatly owned and want to make profit. Those players don’t get enough play time. France is in the same situation as the English with soccer. Powerfull clubs but little is made to develop local players (English soccer team is a joke compare to their clubs successives). So in France we have this issue + nepotism in the federation, wrong decisions made (they dont stick to their choice for the 9 and 10) etc….
Not just a salary cap, how about a cap on the number of foreign players a team can field in a European Match….
That would never be allowed to happen Robert at least be realistic.
Not better than munster. No money and 2 Heineken cups. Booyakasha
Jonathan O’Flanagan – sadly, Munster are unlikely to be lifting the European Cup again any time soon. They haven’t got the financial muscle to bring in the very top NIQ players (like they used to able to), and the academy is severely hampered by a dependence on too small a pool of rugby-playing schools.
For a stark reality check: of 28 players in the Ireland U20 squad for this year’s U20 RWC, 2 are from Munster. 2 from 28. Connacht have 5, Ulster 6, Leinster 15.
Unless they can find a way to make better use of the club game, Munster may be the new Liverpool. I sincerely hope that will not be the case.
There is nothing We love more than being ruled out Brian, You should know that by now.
I know that Eoghan – as a club, Munster has an admiral spirit that not many teams can best! They are going to need it more than ever over the coming few seasons, i fear.
I believe that, of the Irish teams, only Leinster and Ulster currently have the economic and infrastructural set-ups to compete over the next few years at the top end of European rugby.
Leinster won’t be winning much for a while either, the seeding they’ve given themselves for next year will make sure of that.
Imagine if this game had been at stade de France and Munster and Leinster were the finalists. No way the stadium would have been half empty!
This was actually a very good final. Some excellent rugby played by individually great players.
Yes, French clubs have the money to attract the best players but the rules of the competition (and French climate!) allow them to entice these players. And in fairness to LaPorte, he motivates them to perform consistently.
Well done, Toulon. Worthy winners today.
Brian Hodge…That was a decent balanced synopsis. I, likewise, thought there was some decent rugby played and it thankfully didn’t turn out to be the dour slugfest that many predicted. (though it has a hardy old game). Disappointed that Clermont couldn’t win, but Toulon deserved it, to be honest. All the other talk is for another thread. Simply, a good quality final that was on the knife-edge right up to the final whistle. Bravo !!!!!
Thank you and likewise, I agree fully with your comments.
Eat schmidt Leinster Cumts
I’ll assume that that’s a recent photo then Daniel.
Wow. That’s possibly the most childish and idiotic post I’ve ever seen on this site. You must be real proud of yourself.
Wow that really is a childish and petty comment, pathetic really
Why are they the greatest European team ever ?
Because by winning 3 in a row they have done something that the previous greatest side, Toulouse, didn’t achieve.
Great to see Old Man Johnny take that tough kick and lift the Trophy at the end. One mistake from Clermont and it was Game Over. Either Munster or Leinster were up to that level today…no stress. My thinking is that we don’t care this year. …let em have it. …but RWC here we come and Heineken Cup Next year will be different … To one of the provinces. . I don’t care if my Ma or Ma A Nonnu is on the pitch.
Why are so many people getting club and national rugby mixed up?
What?
Exactly
Bickering gentlemen. Bring on the world cup. Good euro final today and with the irish set up folks makes me think. How many of our current internationals would make both teams that played …and remember leinster nearly caused a shock in the semi .. a pity for club European rugby. Its cup rugby at the end of the day. My point is that we have a good thing going on here but if cash is king cash is king.1 game at a time in the wc we are settled . From a munster man