Titleholders Toulon overhauled an 11-point interval deficit to power past Leinster 20-16 and knock the three-time winners out of the European Rugby Champions Cup on Saturday.
After three straight defeats in Pool 5, the Irish outift were as good as gone and their French visitors sealed their fate at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
The Top 14 giants came good thanks to a penalty try and a maul effort from replacement hooker Anthony Etrillard, converted by Tom Taylor, who added a 73rd minute penalty.
Photo: AFP
Leinster were on top in the first half, with Jonathan Sexton converting a 17th-minute penalty try and adding three penalties, only for the hosts to succumb to Toulon’s dominance in the closing 40 minutes.
“That was a big comeback by us in the second half, especially after we lost at Wasps,” Toulon’s man-of-the-match Juan Smith said.
“At half-time, we just said we needed to stick to our game plan and put faith in our set-piece,” the former Springbok captain added.
The precious win in Dublin put Toulon back in the hunt for the quarter-finals, eight points behind Wasps — who beat Bath 36-10 — in second place with a game in hand.
“It is not getting any easier. It was a disappointing defeat against Wasps, but it can only get better from here on,” Smith said.
In Pool 2, Bordeaux-Begles held on to claim a 33-27 home win in an eight-try thriller over Ospreys.
Bordeaux stunned Ospreys with three first-half tries and secured a bonus point after the break, only for the Welsh team to produce a stirring fightback, claiming a losing bonus point and a try bonus point.
Ospreys lead the pool on 12 points, with Bordeaux third on six. Second-placed Exeter were to play at Clermont yesterday.
Saracens continued their perfect start to the season with a dominant eight-try rout of French outfit Oyonnax.
England international wing Chris Ashton scored a hat-trick, while Fiji-born Italy No. 8 Samuela Vunisa added a brace, and Alex Goode, Mike Ellery and Jamie George also crossed the whitewash.
The 55-13 victory, a tenth out of 10 matches this season, stretched Sarries’ Pool 1 lead to 14 points ahead of Ulster’s trip to Toulouse yesterday.
Oyonnax are now sure to miss out on the knockout rounds after a third defeat in a row in the competition.
However, they did get a second-half interception try from Fetu’u Vainikolo.
Stade Francais kept the pressure up on Pool 4 leaders Leicester with a 40-14 bonus point win over Treviso.
Fijian wing Josaia Raisuqe scored two of the six tries and flyhalf Morne Steyn kicked five of six conversions.
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