Pau garners valuable points. GAİZKA IROZ / AFP
The Béarnais struck a blow by beating Bayonne in an exceptionally relocated meeting in Spain.
From our special correspondent in Saint-Sebastian
An air of finals hovered over San Sebastian in Spain this Saturday. The Reale Arena stadium or Anoeta for some – usually reserved for the Real Sociedad football club – was the dream scene of a meeting of the 21st day of Top 14 between Bayonne and Pau. And in an incredible atmosphere (nearly 39,500 people, sold-out meeting), Aviron Bayonnais broke down, and suffered the first defeat of its season “at home” (20-30).
Nine years after their last game in this lair, Camille Lopez’s men were too clumsy and made too many bad choices. Opposite, the Paloise Section, ultra-realistic, takes advantage of the defeat of Perpignan against Montpellier and temporarily leaves the red zone.
Bayonne too clumsy
In the absence of an international break which left the Top 14 players at rest, the match started at a pace, certainly high, but the blunders came to annihilate certain actions. Bayonne had the first clear chance on an offensive by Buliruarua and Yarde (6e). But the Palois reacted. Players, the men of Sébastien Piqueronnies opted for the touch rather than the poles (12e). Without success. The young back from Mauleon from Rowing, Yohan Orabé made a full-axis breakthrough on a serve from Maqala (15e) but a forward from Ceyte on the knockdown returned the ball to Pau. The first points were finally scored by Camille Lopez (17e) on a penalty, after a clear domination in the scrum. The Béarnais reacted by following and scored a first penalty by Henry (20e) before the man in form on the Pau side, Émilien Gailleton, came to plant the first banderilla of the meeting (23e). At the origin of the action and after relays from Manu and Gorgadze, the young three-quarter center – co-top scorer in the Top 14 with nine achievements – concluded in the in-goal. The Honhada, the anthem of the Pau club, then took a little more over the Peña Baiona…
Injured, the Bayonne left pillar Swan Cormenier left his place (23e) and the Basque club began to take water in closed scrum. This allowed Henry to make the break (26e) on a new penalty. Buliruarua, Baget or even Héguy chained forwards / bad choices and left Rowing without a solution. Before Facundo Bosch, the fiery Argentinian hooker, scored the first try for the Blue and Whites (36e). Behind a well-orchestrated carried ball, the Puma allowed Bayonne to get back into the game. But a new penalty on the siren allowed Section Paloise to go to the locker room with a slightly more comfortable lead (10-16).
A reaction and then… nothing
But the blower inflicted by Grégory Patat and his assistants at the break finally paid off as soon as the lemons returned. After a pass at the foot of the master in the matter Camille Lopez, Huguet was stopped a few meters away. Before Thomas Ceyte, in force, points in the in-goal (43e). Rowing took the lead without dominating the debates. Until then, the English opener from Pau Zach Henry had tried three foot passes, in vain. But on his 4e attempt, the former player of Nevers delivered, with a magnificent exterior of the left foot, a pass to the foot for Clément Laporte in a completely bare corner. The Pau winger flattened and this same Henry managed the transformation into a corner (54e17-23).
Vexed, the teammates of Camille Lopez but stumbled on a solid defense of Pau and committed many blunders. And missed an almost unmissable opportunity. Maqala chose to fake the pass and give, after contact, to Marland Yarde. The Englishman – who was celebrating his second tenure in the Top 14 – had returned spectacularly by Tuimaba (65e). But a foul had been reported and Lopez was quick to put his own three points behind their counterparts of the day. Pau had not said his last word. The “finishers” did a very good job and Papidze, all in power, allowed the Béarnais to make the break (72e, 20-30). The Béarnais supporters pushed and extinguished the Bayonne fans. At the end of the match, the Basques came out of their match and, like a rough collision punctuated by a yellow card inflicted on Ceyte, showed their frustration.
With this defeat, Bayonne comes out of the top six while Pau gets some fresh air before a capital reception against Clermont on April 15th.