Toulouse 34-12 Featherstone: Player ratings and major talking points

In a terrific game to end a superb Championship season, Toulouse secured their place in Super League with a 34-12 triumph over a gutsy Featherstone side in France. The Rovers deserve credit for a great campaign themselves but now we can look ahead to two French teams in Super League next year.

Major Talking Points:

1. Fast start from the French

Toulouse’s quick start set the tempo for the league leaders as they went on to secure their place in Super League. On the back of Remi Casty and Harrison Hansen’s brilliant forward play and a smart kicking game, they sapped energy and hope from Featherstone. At one stage they had twice as many play-the-balls than their opponents as they bossed the game and put themselves into a winning position with a 16-0 advantage. They’d then seal the win late on with a pair of tries.

2. Gutsy Featherstone

The Rovers should be commended for their efforts however. They could’ve been easily blown away in the first half but hung in their and threatened an unlikely comeback late on when Brett Ferres scored to trim the lead down to 10 points. The base of a good team is there for sure, and in 2022 they build again and have another crack at promotion.

3. Two, two and more twos.

Taking the two is often an underrated tactic. But today, Toulouse used it expertly today to constantly nudge themselves further ahead at key moments in the game including at the very end when yet another penalty saw them take a key 24-12 advantage as they clawed their way into Super League. We can now look forward to a French derby next year.

Player Ratings:

Toulouse
1 Mark Khierallah – 8
2 Jy Hitchcox – 8
4 Mathieu Jussaume – 9
3 Junior Vaivai – 7
21 Latrell Schaumkel – 7
6 Johnathon Ford – 9
31 Tony Gigot – 8
8 Remi Casty – 8
9 Lloyd White – 7
10 Harrison Hansen – 8
12 Dominic Peyroux – 7
16 Joe Bretherton – 7
13 Anthony Marion – 7
Substitutes
14 Eloi Pelissier – 7
17 Joseph Paulo – 6
18 Mitch Garbutt – 6
23 Justin Sangare – 6
Featherstone
36 Alex Walker – 6
1 Craig Hall – 6
3 Kris Welham – 7
4 Josh Hardcastle – 6
5 Gareth Gale – 6
7 Dane Chisholm – 6
9 Fa’amanu Brown – 6
8 Craig Kopczak – 6
14 Connor Jones – 6
13 James Lockwood – 6
20 Frankie Halton – 6
11 Brett Ferres – 8
19 Callum Field – 6
Substitutes
15 John Davies – 6
16 Jack Bussey – 6
21 Dean Parata – 7
24 Dale Ferguson – 7