The most successful side in the history of European rugby believed, correctly, that they were fresher, fitter and in better form than when losing their previous three semi-finals here against Leinster. Fat lot of good it did them, as ultimately they returned to the Haute-Garonne with an overwhelming sense of deja vu.
“Yes, it is a bitter spill to swallow,” admitted Ugo Mola, who was comparatively phlegmatic after last season’s 40-17 defeat.
“We were not disciplined at all. Having the ball, we could have hurt them but they scored the points very easily and when you do that it is difficult and we were trying hard to make some tries.
“It is not the same score, the score has grown and we haven’t fully learned the lessons of last year but we had two yellow cards and we paid the price for it.
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“Toulouse showed some commitment, we waged a battle, but we were not precise and accurate enough in the deciding moments.”
When the Toulouse head coach was reminded that Toulouse conceded 28 unanswered points in the 20 minutes they were reduced to 14 men, Mola said: “That’s why we have some questions about that match. If we had played 15 against 15 it may have been different, but Leinster put us in that corner.
“Thomas’ error is severe and Rodrigue’s error is serious and we paid the price for that. It’s a bit disappointing but we have a long way to go in order to put Leinster in a bad patch.”
A bone of contention among the French media concerned the tackle by Andrew Porter on Juan Cruz Mallia when lifting the Argentinian winger and dumping him on the ground in the build-up to Emmanuel Meafou’s 35th minute try.
“Of course, we could have played 15 players against 14 but the error was not mentioned,” said Mola. “Wayne Barnes is a high-level referee but in that time there was the weight of a potential try and this mistake, this foul, was not whistled.
“We could have been in the position to get back to 13 points in the first half and it could have been a watershed. Lots of facts didn’t work in our favour and we paid dearly for it and we have to be more lucid against this type of team.”
But Mola and his coaching team did not help themselves by opting for a risky 6-2 split on the bench, and limiting their backline options to a scrumhalf and a scrumhalf/winger. They then reacted to the loss of Pierre-Louis Barassi after 15 minutes by bringing on Paul Graou at scrumhalf rather than Arthur Retiere, and so shifting Antoine Dupont to outhalf and Romian Ntamack to outside centre, although admittedly Grau played well.
“We have made a potential error so when you lose you are an idiot,” said Mola wryly. “So my coaching advice was not a winning one but Paul came in and we were under pressure collectively and he did a good match, total commitment. It is a learning for him, but we don’t regret the choice.”
The scale of the defeat diluted any temptation Dupont might have had to feed some of the French media’s narrative.
“Collectively we were under pressure, we managed to break some lines and attack them but they defend very well and they do not concede tries even though they are dominated,” he said.
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“In the weak moments they don’t concede and when they have a lead on the scoreboard it is very different to talk about strategy especially with that final scoreline.
“I felt a difference from last year even with a similar scoreline. We got a good start, scored a try and we were lacking some discipline but after the first yellow we recovered well, we were physically fit and we broke their lines but we thought we could be dangerous and score.
“Last year was different but once again, when you get two yellow cards, when you give away some points, it is very difficult to argue. You can’t talk about the referee or the strategy when you concede 40 points. There is nothing to add.”
