RNCA qualified for the round of 16 of the French Fédérale 1 Championship after defeating Grasse (27-17) this Sunday at Stade des Arboras. Limoges will be their opponent in the first and second leg of the round of 16, with the first match taking place at home for the Nice team on Sunday, May 8th.
While the end of the match was tense, the Nice team controlled the entire game despite the harsh sending off of Karim Dahbi for a dangerous tackle (34′). From the beginning of the match, Manu Boutet’s men were dominant. However, it was only through penalties that Nice initially widened the gap. Malavard successfully kicked his first four penalties (10, 14, 17, 26) (12-0).
It was then that Dahbi was excluded. With 14 against 15 players, Nice still managed to reach halftime with a twelve-point lead (15-3). After the break, Moxham intercepted a poorly managed lineout throw by Grasse. He countered, and ten meters from the opponent’s line, executed a perfect dummy to set up Kacharava at pace. The strong Georgian finished the action between the posts (22-3, 43′).
Despite being one man down, David Penalva and his team extended their lead further a few minutes later. Derrstroff set up Mathet after a strong run. The latter offered Lapierre the opportunity to break away down the touchline. The Nice winger sped past his two markers to seal the game. However, Malavard failed to convert (27-3).
From then on, substitutions were necessary for both coaches as the initial heat was challenging to handle.
Grasse clawed back two tries, including a penalty try during the extended stoppage time (over eight minutes). Nevertheless, Nice secured the victory 27-17.
Nice thus qualified as third in pool 2 and will face Limoges (2nd in pool 3) in the round of 16. The first leg will be held in Nice this Sunday, May 8th, and the return leg in Limoges on the following May 15th.
The RNCA team: Dahbi, Faurois, R. Uipa (Viset, 67) – Derrstroff (Okouya, 55), Penalva (captain) – Espagno, Moxham (Catoni, 67), Ormea (Canizares, 34, Kaikelikofe, 78) – Delmonte (Guerre, 73), Mc Hugh (Roman, 50) – Lapierre, Kacharava (Mege, 73), Keil, Mathet – Malavard
