Cardiff Blues 9 Toulouse 6:HOW THE Cardiff Blues have waited for this result. They have endured some lean seasons since becoming a region in 2003, surviving an eight-match losing streak in 2004-05 and Heineken Cup humiliations at the hands of Stade Français, Perpignan and Leeds, among others. But, on Saturday, the Blues reached the semi-final of the premier European competition after defeating the five-time finalists, and three-times winners, Toulouse.
The Blues have now won 11 cup games out of 11 this season, a streak that has taken them to the EDF Energy Cup final against Gloucester at Twickenham this Saturday. Two weeks after that, they will play a Heineken Cup semi-final against Leicester back at the Millennium Stadium.
In 2007-08, Toulouse and the Blues met at the same stage of the competition, in France, and the Welsh side lost 41-17.
“If we can beat Toulouse on our home patch, we can beat anyone in Europe. We’ve taken a step forward again,” said the centre Jamie Roberts.
It was a tight and excruciatingly tense contest, decided by the finest of margins. Thierry Dusautoir was inches away from scoring the game’s only try, the ball squirming from his grasp as he slid across the line in the 20th minute. Frederic Michalak saw a drop-goal drift narrowly wide just after half-time. Either score would have changed the course of the match.
At times it was not clear what was keeping the Blues in the game, other than their sheer determination not to concede. Toulouse are leading the French Top 14 because they have the meanest defence in the league. The Blues never came too close to cracking it, but they did produce an outstanding defensive performance themselves.
Ben Blair kicked what proved the Blues’ final three points in the 57th minute and from then on Toulouse cut loose, with Yannick Jauzion, Maxime Medard and Dusautoir all scything from the deep into the home line.
One effect of the result is that an extra English team will qualify for next season’s Heineken Cup, as no French team has made the semi-finals.
CARDIFF BLUES: Blair; Halfpenny, Shanklin, Roberts, James; Robinson, Spice; Jenkins, G Williams, Filise (Yapp, 69), Davies (Jones, 58), Tito (capt), Molitika (Powell, 64), M Williams, Rush.
TOULOUSE: Medard; Clerc, Fritz (Kunavore, 58), Jauzion, Heymans (Poitrenaud, 71); Michalak (Skrela, 58), Kelleher; Human, Servat (Montes, 58), Perugini, Pelous (Lamboley, 66), Albacete, Boulihou (Nyanga, 58), Dusautoir, Sowerby.
Referee: C White (England).
