Heartbreak for heroic Connacht against French aristocrats

Connacht 10

THERE is an outrageously positive element to Sunday’s heartbreaking defeat for Connacht in the south of France.

Jump back ten years in your mind and try and contemplate how unlikely this fixture would have seemed. The West of Ireland’s finest in a battle with the mighty Toulouse on the final day of European Cup pool action for the sole remaining place in the last eight of the competition.

The Stade Ernest-Wallon is as hallowed a venue in the world of rugby as any you could mention, from Thomond Park to Eden Park and here on a Sunday afternoon in late January, the men from the Sportsground entered the final ten minutes of an enthralling encounter within three points of glory, three points away from a place in the quarter finals. Rugby enthusiasts throughout the continent tuned in, hoping for another great moment.

It didn’t come. The poise and conviction that underpinned last year’s glorious PRO12 triumph deserted Pat Lam’s men in those closing few minutes at the weekend. For all their heroic commitment and endeavour, no assessment of this defeat could accurately tell the tale of this encounter without first underpinning the calamitous conclusion to contest. Connacht botched a glorious opportunity here.

There was no hiding from it either. Jack Carty was in the pocket poised for a drop goal attempt in front of the posts with nine minutes to go, Tiernan O’Halloran, John Muldoon, everyone knew the scenario. Connacht were only nine points down and a defeat by less than eight would be enough to keep them ahead of Toulouse in the pool. For five or six seconds, Carty and his team seemed to be on the same page.

Yet, the pass never came to the Buccaneer and one phase later, the Athlone man had slotted back into the line and was executing a brilliant bullet pass out to the wing to Matt Healy. Had the former Lansdowne sharp shooter held it, the drop goal tale would have been a footnote, that he didn’t hold it was down to bad luck and a high difficulty level.

The game wasn’t up for Connacht at that point, there was still time on the clock and as it transpired, they got the ball back and had two more promising forays into the Toulouse half. Yet both failed to yield a score and in the aftermath, only one moment stood out. The conviction and command of the situation that was needed wasn’t there. Toulouse survived.

Full coverage in this week's Connacht Tribune