RCT's offensive touch, a seized launch pad

For a long time this season, Toulon's touchline was a strength. Defensively, Esteban Abadie's teammates delighted in disrupting all the lineups in Europe, while offensively, they enjoyed imposing their rugby thanks to this sector of the game.

"In just half the season, we scored as many tries on carried balls as we did in the whole of last year," adds Jules Coulon, a regular on the wing of Pau's third row. Except that...

The last two encounters against Stade Toulousain have largely frustrated the Varois. "It's a bit like what we're like at the moment," sighs coach Pierre Mignoni. "But it's not just the lineout, the scrum, the conquest... it's a bit everywhere. The lineout, of course, is much more visible. There are a multitude of details that you have to do well, and it's true that lately, we've been doing them less well."

Only 58.33% success rate at the Vélodrome

And the numbers confirm this. In their last seven outings, Toulon have never been as inaccurate as in the double-header against Stade Toulousain.

These performances are far from their standards. For example, during the Champions Cup quarter-final at Mayol, Mignoni's team misplaced four of their 18 touches (a 77.78% success rate).

Worse, at the Vélodrome, Teddy Baubigny's lineup lost five of its twelve shots (a 58.33% success rate). A far cry from the percentages to which the RCT had become accustomed.

The proof? He shot 92.86% in Vannes (13/14), 83.33% against Clermont (15/18), 93.33% against Saracens (14/15), 90% in Castres (9/10) and 93.33% against Perpignan (14/15).

"Individual errors that penalize the collective"

Much less confident in the air, Toulon's forwards are struggling to get their game going. So, how can this be explained? Dany Priso Mouangué offers a few insights: "The lineout is a team effort. Whether it's the lifters, the heels, the jumpers, there's a lot of work to be done together. So, yes, the opposing team has the right to defend certain lines well. But you have to do what's necessary. The mistakes we make are forbidden. When the lifter doesn't carry the jumper well, when the jumper takes longer to launch... those are individual errors that penalize the team."

Are these "errors" due to concentration, technique? The international left prop (31 years old, 18 caps) continues: "In a lineup, one error leads to another. If the jumper mistimes his run-up and the heel throws at the moment when, for him, it was calibrated, it leads to a loss of ball. The lifters can't be in the right timing and, behind, you lose it. And we have to erase that. We didn't bother building something all season to have to question ourselves now and ask ourselves: "What's happening in the lineout?" No. We have it in us. We've worked on it, we know how to do it. Yes, it worries us but we can only find that through work. Now, we just fill ourselves with frustration."

Simplicity and speed

How can we regain confidence in such a highly contested and scrutinized sector? Jules Coulon continues: "It's a cliché, but we need to get back to basics. Much simpler, faster things. We can't have a perfect season in every sector. Sometimes we're not as good. We need to find a real sense of unity. We know where we're lacking a little and where we need to be stronger."

Still without their captain and jumper David Ribbans, Toulon will also have to cope without Matthias Halagahu, who has withdrawn. At Hameau, new players will have to emerge at kickoff.

Like the young Pierre Damond, starting for the first time in his life with the number 2. And, in the lineup, count on Esteban Abadie, Jules Coulon and Corentin Mézou to raise their heads.

More than ever, Mignoni and his men must find the keys to a truck that has earned them so many points this season.