Connacht ran in five tries against French champions Castres Olympique last evening but it was not enough to get the Pat Lam era off to a winning start.

But Connacht’s new coach was given plenty of encouraging signs as they matched a strong Castres side for lengthy periods of a good workout in the mountain village of Lacaune where Connacht are based for a five-day training camp.

Lam selected a different team for each half on an evening when 10 players made their first appearance for Connacht.

Winger Matt Healy, who played three Rabo PRO12 matches last year, caught the eye in the opening half with a brace of tries down the left-wing while Conor Finn looked sharp in the centre.

Scrum-half Paul O'Donoghue gave Connacht an early boost with a ninth minute try before Castres hooker Marc Antoine Rallier got the first of two tries.

Good work
Healy got his first try after 17 minutes after good work by Finn and he added a second seven minutes later after Eoin Griffin had created the chance.

However, Connacht trailed 20-17 at the break after Rory Kockott, one of the heroes in Castres’ surprise Top 14 win last season, snatched a try off a Connacht lineout five minutes from the interval.

John Muldoon announced his arrival with a 48th minute try and the tempo of the game remained high despite all the changes.

Castres, who open the defence of their title next week away to Perpignan and who were playing their third preseason game, pulled away with tries from Paul Bonneford and a second from Rallier, but Connacht battled on and were rewarded with a Kieran Marmion try in the closing stages.