Champions Cup Final: Toulouse Player Ratings v La Rochelle

Champions Cup Final: Toulouse Player Ratings v La Rochelle
Toulouse clinched their fifth Champions Cup title beating La Rochelle 17-22 in the final at Twickenham.
 
 
 
Here is how we rated Ugo Mola's side. 
 
 
 
15. Maxime Médard - 6
 
Solid at the back but offered little on the counter-attack. Somehow managed to re-emerge from an HIA. Solid without being outstanding. 
 
14. Cheslin Kolbe - 6
 
Had little to do in the first half as he did not touch the ball on attack but did make his two attempted tackles. Timed his run perfectly to almost score in the second half but was denied by an incredible try-saving tackle. 
 
Saw little ball throughout the game but did well when asked to field the high ball and weighed in defensively. 


 
13. Juan Cruz Mallía - 7
 
Ran an excellent support line to score his try. Mallia took his chance to shine and took it well. He made some good reads on defence and carried well. 
 
 
12. Pita Ahki - 7.5
 
Got the Toulouse backline firing in the opening minutes of the game but had a nightmare kick that almost resulted in a try for La Rochelle. Lucky to escape a card early in the second half. 
 
He was a pivotal link for the Toulouse backline and was just as important on defence. 
 
 
11. Matthis Lebel - 6
 
A performance not to different from Kolbe's as he defended well and saw little ball on attack. 
 
10. Romain Ntamack - 6.5
 
Early errors with a knock-on under the high ball and a kick out on the full in the opening 24 minutes, he did however take his first two shots at goal. 
 
Threw a wonderful pass out to Tolofua to set up the opening try for Mallía. 
 
Almost threw the game away with a shocking pass at the end but was otherwise cool enough to slot the chances which steered his side to their fifth title. 


 
9. Antoine Dupont - 8
 
A great support line saw him make slice through the La Rochelle defence where he placed a perfect kick in for Kolbe who was superbly tackled into touch. 
 
Dupont was calm in approach in the first half and continued in that manner for the majority of the game. He defended well too and was a real threat with ball in hand. 
 
Topped the running metres in the encounter. 


 
1. Cyril Baille - 7 
 
Put under pressure in the early scrums of the game. Recovered well as the game progressed and was busy on both sides of the ball. Played a massive 71 minutes. 
 
2. Peato Mauvaka - 7
 
Had some bright moments with ball in hand while the Toulouse lineout operated sharply throughout the game. Not quite Julien Marchand but good enough to see his side home.
 
3. Charlie Faumuina - 6
 
Got worked over in the scrums early on in the game but solidified just before going off. Some great touches with ball in hand and made his tackles. 
 
 
4. Rory Arnold - 7
 
Lead the lineout well and took the fight to La Rochelle's pack. 
 
5. Richie Arnold - n/a
 
Lasted just 10 minutes as he threw his weight around. An injury ended his game early. 
 
6. Rynhardt Elstadt - 7
 
A silly yellow card shouldn't take away from an otherwise strong game from the South African. He topped the tackle count at 19 and worked tireless throughout the game. He also made five carries and three passes.
 
 
 
 
 
7. Francois Cros - 8.5
 
Made an excellent break in just the second minute of the game and just continued in that fashion throughout. 
 
He defended strongly, carried superbly and was a solid option at the lineout. His only down fall was getting caught out of position at the ruck for Kerr-Barlow's try. 
 


 
8. Jerome Kaino - 7.5
 
With Toulouse's scrum backtracking in the first half, Kaino managed to get the ball away cleanly from the base. He put his usual strong shift in on defence and carried well making 18 metres from 7 carries. 
 
 
Replacements:
16. Guillaume Marchand - 6: Picked up nicely from where Mauvaka left off.
17. Clément Castets - N/A: 10 minutes off the bench.
18. David Ainu'u - 6: Strengthened the scrum and made his tackles.
19. Joe Tekori - 7: Still plenty of gas left in the 37-year-old's legs. Carried and tackled well for a 71 minute shift. 
20. Thibaud Flament - 7: Seven tackles in just 11 minutes as he made a telling contribution from the bench. 
21. Selevasio Tolofua - 7.5: Picked off from where Kaino left off and even improved on it. Assisted a the try and made some telling hits on defence. 
22. Baptiste Germain - n/a: unused with Dupont playing a full 80 minutes 
23. Thomas Ramos - n/a: Came on for the HIA for Medard and wasn't seem again after the starting fullback returned.

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