French fightback hits Quins
Toulouse produced a remarkable turnaround to stun Harlequins 23-19 at the Stoop to all-but end their Heineken Cup bid.
By Paul Higham
Last Updated: 17/10/09 8:34pm
Toulouse produced a remarkable turnaround to stun Harlequins 23-19 at the Stoop to all-but end their involvement in the Heineken Cup this season.
No side has ever lost their first two games and made the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup, but the Londoners looked odds-on to get the win they needed after dominating the first half and going in 14-0 ahead.
Toulouse simply did not turn up in the opening 40 minutes but two tries within ten minutes of the second half drew the three-time winners level, and suddenly there was a real game on.
Man of the Match Ugo Monye grabbed a second try to send the game back in Quins' favour, but three penalties resulting from Toulouse pressure gave the French side a hard-fought victory.
Quins started quickly against a brooding Toulouse side and they deservedly went ahead when Nick Evans kicked an eighth-minute penalty, but the home side's joy was tempered somewhat by skipper Will Skinner's departure with an ankle injury.
Injuries
The visitors then lost a player themselves as flanker Yannick Nyanga was carried off, but those he left on the field continued to make mistake after mistake in a woeful first 40 minutes.
Credit to Quins though, they were sharper and hungrier and Evans doubled their lead when he nailed a superb curling kick from the left touchline on the 20-minute mark after the lazy Toulouse pack was caught offside.
Monye and David Strettle had looked lively from the off and a deserved try came for Monye when the England winger came off his left touchline and collected a pass in midfield before leaving Jean-Baptiste Elissalde for dead and scorching through the Toulouse cover.
Evans hit the post with his conversion attempt but just a few minutes later he got another crack at it from a similar position, and he made no mistake this time to hit the penalty and stretch the lead to 14-0.
Danny Care almost added a second try four minutes from the break as he caught Toulouse napping with a quick tap and chip over the top. Care kicked on and outpaced the defenders but crucially stumbled as he got over the line and the ball bounced out of play.
Turnaround
After such a subdued first 40, Toulouse typically emerged from the break looking like a new team and within ten minutes they were level - with Yves Donguy going over after five minutes and number eight Shaun Sowerby just four minutes later.
The signs looked bad for Quins but they manfully hit back with Mike Brown's simple stab down the left enabling the galloping Monye to touch down and restore their advantage, but Evans crucially missed the conversion.
The game was now evenly poised and Elissalde kicked a penalty on the hour before leaving the field with an injury, but his replacement Frederic Michalak then kicked Toulouse in front for the first time at 19-20 after a line-out infringement.
With the game still there to be won, Quins wasted a golden opportunity after Gonzalo Tiesi charged down Michalak's kick inside the 22, and Tom Guest tried to burrow in under the posts instead of moving the ball out wide.
Michalak then missed a penalty and hit the crossbar with an outrageous drop-goal attempt from almost halfway, ensuring the final five minutes were played out under the utmost pressure.
Inside the final two minutes Quins were pinged for holding on a couple of metres inside Toulouse territory, and Florian Fritz's big boot landed the penalty to put Toulouse four points in front as they claimed a thrilling second win of the campaign.
