Heat’s on for Teague as Bordeaux’s bid slumps
Rory Teague, the English coach handed the top job at Bordeaux-Begles, is discovering just how heart-rending it can be. His target in taking over early last month from France-bound Jacques Brunel was to qualify his team for the top six and another Champions Cup joust.
The reality is that Bordeaux’s third defeat in a row – and fourth in five games – at Montpellier has given them virtually no hope of doing so.
The most galling aspect for Teague, an England coach under Eddie Jones in recent times, is that two of those losses have been by one point.
First by 7-6 to Castres to concede their first home defeat last Sunday and then, yesterday, by 11-10 on the ground of Top 14 leaders Montpellier.
What makes it worse for Teague is that his team looked like winners against an outfit so rich they have announced the signing of South African fly-half Johan Goosen from Racing in a package that will cost them more than £4m in transfer fees and wages.
Teague will regret losing despite scoring two tries to Montpellier’s one through his Samoan winger Teofilo Ed Fidow, who joined Bordeaux as a medical replacement from Brisbane last October.
Teague will rue, too, a knock-on from full-back Nans Ducuing when a third try seemed certain shortly into the second half.
And a yellow card for his substitute lock Cyril Cazeaux just four minutes after coming off the bench. As well as the winning try scored in his absence by South African centre Jan Serfontein.
Add to that list of misfortune and waste the fact Bordeaux have been unable to make progress under Teague in the second-tier European Challenge Cup and he must already be feeling hot under the collar – especially as he admits his appointment and methods have not been greeted with universal approval by some staff and players.
Managing to blunt the most fearsome points-scorers in the Top 14 and their giant winger Nemani Nadolo will count for little with Toulouse knocking on his door next Saturday night. The Bordeaux crowd, the biggest in the country, will demand a rapid improvement in their fortunes.
Joe El Abd, another English coach as No.2 at Castres, followed a win at Bordeaux with an exhilarating 33-22 win over Lyon that propelled his team into the top six.
They received a symbolic boost early when Argentine captain Rodrigo Capo Ortega, in hospital after the last game with a worrying eye injury, returned to score their opening try.
He delivered a cry of rage to inspire his men, but victory did not come easy with six tries shared by the teams.
Castres ordered their men to undergo sessions of body-freezing in a crytherapy chamber in the week, but it was Lyon who were caught cold.
Not for long, though. They struck back with tries from Samoan Taiasian Tuifua and Kiwi centre Toby Arnold to give themselves the lead on the hour.
El Abd saw his men clamber above Lyon in the rankings – they were tied on points before – with decisive tries from winger Armand Battle and, in the final seconds, full-back Julien Dumora.
Hard to imagine that Clermont, beaten by Lyon last time, should emerge from that reverse to lose at home to Oyonnax. English winger Nick Abendanon, voted European Footballer of the Year not too long ago and a Top 14 champion with Clermont last year, must be at his wits’ end.
Clermont have had a cruel run of injuries, but their fans lost no time in letting them know that this 18-12 defeat was a slump too far.
There is a history of French champions poorly defending their trophy. Rarely, however, have they done so in such a humiliating manner.
So, when they host Racing in the quarter-final of the Champions Cup, there are no great expectations. Bottom club Oyonnax had lost all previous away games and their single victory at home was won against Agen with whom they were promoted.
Abendanon helped create an opening try for Clermont centre Remy Lamerat, available only after being slung out by France for his part in a late-night scandal last Sunday.
Tries by Argentine winger Axel Muller and sub prop Vincent Debaty gave Oyonnax a lead a late response from Aussie centre Peter Betham could not retrieve.
Stade Francais now know for sure they are involved in a desperate scrap not to blacken their image as former multi-champions by relegation.
That is because they, like Clermont, produced a home performance close to the unthinkable in a 36-34 defeat by Agen, who trail them now by a single point.
Stade led 28-15 at the break, but, to the horror of Hans Peter Wild, the billionnaire who bought them out with the hope of better times, they collapsed.
So badly that tries from centre Pierre Fouyssac, twice, and lock Thomas Murday pulled Agen level. In time for Aussie fly-half Jake McIntyre to boot the winning conversion.
“Teague admits his appointment and methods have not been greeted with universal approval by some of his staff and players”