While the English clubs generally took a step forward and the South African teams had a weekend to forget, Toulouse cruised on with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of class.
Having scored 61 points and nine tries to beat Ulster last weekend, they bettered that tally with an emphatic 64-21 victory at Exeter Stadium, crossing the line 10 times.
The European champions had an extra point – and, realistically, victory – secured before the break in Devon, but they did not calm down after the break. After scoring five tries in the first half, they also scored five in the second half.
Antoine Dupont, who started things off with an eighth-minute try, delivered a flying master class, finding space where there seemed to be none and opening doors that seemed closed. As he worked his magic, the crowd at Sandy Park looked on with a mixture of despair and muted admiration.
Ugo Mola, Toulouse’s head coach, expressed satisfaction as he addressed his players on the pitch shortly after the match. The message – don’t give up even if the game is won – was heard.
And in post-match TV interviews, the players said all the right things. Center Pierre-Louis Barassi was named man of the match, scoring two tries and making a phenomenal run around half the length of the pitch to secure Matthis Lebel’s score, but he only spoke of being happy with the team’s result.
Blair Kinghorn, brought on as a substitute to score one goal and create another, talked about how the strength of the team meant there was no room to rest in training if you wanted to play.
However, it was flanker Jack Willis who perhaps best summed up the thinking in the Toulouse camp.
“We made some amazing memories last year,” he told Premier Sports. “But we know the target is on our backs and we know we have to be better than last year.”
No team has ever won the trophy with decisive group stage victories. But Willis knows it. Just like his teammates. And that’s why the other big names in European rugby should be worried.
