Top 14: big operation for Clermont who eventually bends Lyon and offers a bonus victory

Menaced and disturbed by a lively Lyon OU in the first half, ASM Clermont delivered a much stronger second half to outclass the Lyonnais and pocket five valuable points in the Top 14 finals qualification race.

The ASM players had things to make up for. A poorly controlled finish to the match and an ill-timed defeat against a direct competitor, Montpellier (20-17) on March 21. Then a 64-20 thrashing with five conceded tries in eleven minutes against Stade Francais, a week later. Following that, Baptiste Jauneau’s teammates, out of the running in the European Cup, had three long weeks to stew over it.

“We had to redeem ourselves. In front of our fans. For ourselves,” recounted Auvergne center Leon Darricarere. “To show pride, to show something. I don’t know if pride is the right word, but we had things to prove.”

Yet, at halftime of the match against LOU, where the stakes were relatively low, the Clermont players did not show the face of a team seeking revenge. “We may have been too excited,” analyzed Leon Darricarere. “It was not at all what we had planned. We did not plan to defend that much. We knew it was a dangerous team, with many X-factors. We had to keep the ball.”

Context: ASM Clermont faced a tough challenge after a series of disappointing performances and needed a win to get back on track.

Fact Check: Lyon OU had not won a game at Clermont (au pied des volcans) for more than seventy years, increasing the pressure on the home team.

“A unifying speech at halftime”

“We put the cart before the horse,” likened Coach Christophe Urios. “We were so eager to play a dynamic game that we were not patient. We did not build up. We were not in order.” As a result, many balls were lost due to lack of support. Lack of inspiration. And very realistic Lyonnais, like a stone in the shoe who, leading 16-10 five minutes into the second half, felt they could pull off a surprise, as they had not won at the foot of the volcanoes for more than seventy years. And thus, keep a glimmer of hope for a top 6 finish in a Michelin Stadium that had considerably reduced capacity.

So, if the walls of the Clermont locker room may have trembled a bit at halftime, it was at the initiative of captain Baptiste Jauneau. “Baptiste had some strong words about support,” recounted Leon Darricarrere. “He was not too happy…” “We said ‘don’t panic’,” assured Christophe Urios. We said we needed to be in control, have good starts, keep the ball.”

Things in order then. And an individual feat to electrify everyone. Delguy beautifully exploited the gap to serve Jauneau, scorer of the second Auvergne try. By the 48th minute, Clermont surged ahead. And the party could begin. Dominant in impact, imperious in the lineout around Tixeront, whose entry after halftime was crucial, the Clermont players found gaps in a suddenly porous LOU defense. Half an hour of breaks, offloads, acrobatic passes, favorable bounces later, ASM had overwhelmed LOU, inflicting a 31-3 defeat in half an hour. Six tries scored in total. Five points in the bag. And a place in the Top 6 secured by the end of the 21st round. “The president made a good point,” Christophe Urios recounted with a smile. “He said the delivery was difficult… but it all ended well.” At least for this time…