Victorious against Montpellier this weekend (40-29), the team from Nice takes advantage of Grenoble’s stumble to take the lead of their National 1 group on their own.
Announced candidates for first place, the players of Cavigal couldn’t afford any mistakes against Montpellier’s young reserve team, which is third in the championship and always very difficult to play against.
Second before the match, the team under “Edu” Fernandez Roura had the perfect opportunity to pull away from their direct pursuers.
Despite a start to the match clearly in favor of Cavigal (10-6, 13th minute), Montpellier’s hopes, carried by the 8 goals of their star player Allan Villeminot, managed to limit the damage and ultimately headed to the locker room trailing by just one goal.
Angered and driven by their coach in the locker room, the team from Nice attacked the second half with much better intentions. Against Montpellier players physically and tactically outmatched, the gap quickly widened (30-23, 45th minute). Led by their captain, Raphaël Tourraton, who was simply stellar on Saturday (15 goals out of 18 attempts), the home team ultimately won 40 to 29.
A strong signal sent to the competition, especially as simultaneously Grenoble, the solid leader since September, finally stumbled on the field of Rodez (28-27).
This result allows Nice to claim the top spot in National 1 for the first time this season. It bodes well just before kicking off the return phase, which promises to be long and thrilling.
