Despite a promising end to the match, Nissa Rugby lost on the field of Périgueux. Trailing by sixteen points, the Azuréens managed to get back into the game and earned a well-deserved defensive bonus (19-15).
The match was the highlight of this second day of Nationale 1. On one side, Périgueux, who had started their season with a bonus victory. On the other, Nice, a clear winner in Tarbes the previous week. Two teams expressing their ambitions and aiming to confirm them.
The situation was not simple, however. The CAP pitch had suffered from the recent rains. The ball was slippery, and support was lacking. The start of the match turned into an arm-wrestle. Périgueux quickly took the lead thanks to Kotze’s kicking, who scored three penalties in the first half-hour. The team from Nice relied on Owen Williams to stay within reach. At 9-3, the match seemed balanced.
A first turning point occurred in the 30th minute. Winger Clément Egiziano received a yellow card for a high tackle. Reduced to fourteen, the Azuréens struggled. The Périgourdins immediately took advantage of this superiority. Lambert scored the first try of the match, converted by Kotze. The gap then widened to thirteen points (16-3) in favor of the locals.
Just before halftime, Borges was penalized on the local side. Nice then took control in the scrum, a sector where the Azuréens forwards made their weight felt. Despite this strong momentum, the score did not change, and Nice went back to the locker rooms with a significant deficit.
Nice resisted and reignited interest in the match
The second half started with a new twist. Périgueux was reduced to thirteen after Vieilledent received a yellow card. Nevertheless, Kotze continued his kicking work and extended his team’s lead to (19-3). The game seemed decided.
But Nice did not give up. Far from it. The Azuréen coaching staff relied on their team’s back-line speed. In the 55th minute, Arthur Duhau scored a symbolic try. The winger knows the Périgueux stadium well, having played there in the past. His effort was converted by the Welsh fly-half Owen Williams, reigniting his team.
The end of the match confirmed the rising momentum of Nice. Less penalized, more precise in their passes despite the slippery ball, they multiplied their initiatives. Winger Clément Egiziano, penalized in the first half, himself reduced the gap with a second try. At (19-15), the momentum had shifted. The CAP, shaken, fell back. Nice even had a match point, but an inaccuracy in the last meters extinguished the hope of a complete comeback.
At the final whistle, Périgueux won (19-15). But the defensive bonus earned by Nice rewarded their comeback effort. This ability to rally after being significantly behind illustrates the team’s spirit.
Lessons for the future
This match offers several lessons. Firstly, Nice confirmed their offensive potential. The wingers were decisive, and Owen Williams managed the pace with his kicking despite a few misses that may have cost Nice the victory.
Next, discipline management remains a work in progress. Two yellow cards in the first half weighed heavily. Facing a team as efficient as CAP, playing with a numerical disadvantage is costly. The Nice coaching staff will need to address these situations. Lastly, the capacity to respond and come back into the match is a positive sign.
With this defensive bonus, Nice remains near the top of the table. Before the other matches, Rugby Nissa remains second in the championship with six points. The demanding schedule provides no respite. But this trip to Dordogne showed that the team can compete with the title contenders.
The season is still long. For Nissa Rugby, the key may lie beyond the sheer results: the ability to raise their level, to not give up despite a significant deficit, and to turn a poorly started match into a source of learning. The Azuréens lost a battle, but they remained in the fight. And perhaps that is what will matter most as they plan the rest of their season.
The next match is scheduled for Saturday, September 6, again away from home. Nice will travel to Bourgoin-Jallieu.
