Rugby

Connacht overwhelm Brive to ease into last 16

Alex Wootton tops scoring honours with a hat-trick as rampant home side run in nine tries against brittle French outfit

Alex Wootton celebrates following Connacht's comprehensive victory over Brive at the Sportsground, Galway. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho

Mon Jan 16 2023 - 06:00

Connacht 61 Brive 5

Connacht coach Andy Friend is not reading too much into his side’s comprehensive win over Brive, knowing another challenge awaits in Newcastle this week.

Already qualified for the round of 16 from Pool A, Friend says Connacht cannot get ahead of themselves with the final games still to determine the rankings for the European Challenge Cup knock-out stages.

“It was a good win, but we need to finish this competition well and see where we are next week,” he says. “It was about making the knock-out stages, and now it’s making it in the best position, so there’s a lot to play for in a bid to get home advantage.

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“We definitely deserved the win, but we are not getting carried away with it. We are fully aware of who we played, and the good things we did, and areas we need to keep improving, but we won’t get too excited.”

Connacht showed no mercy against a callow Brive outfit in this third European win, producing a nine-try scoring spree at the Galway Sportsground. Not since 2011 when Connacht posted an 83-7 win against Cavalieri in Italy has the club scored a bigger margin of victory.

Ahead 33-5 at the break, Connacht delivered two tries within the opening eight minutes – the first as early as the third when, from a penalty, Jack Carty cleverly deceived the visitors by kicking cross-field where right wing John Porch collected and scored with ease. Carty added the first of eight from nine conversion attempts, pushing him closer to Eric Elwood’s club record of 1152.

“The wind was pretty fierce at times,” says Friend, “so a call-out for Jack Carty. He’s had some tough times with the boot this year, but to kick eight out of nine tonight, I think he is six points shy of Eric Elwood’s goal. Just great to see him get that rhythm – best kicking display this season without a doubt.”

Five minutes later Connacht bagged their second try, when after Alex Wootton and Mack Hansen had carved space up field, Finlay Bealham had the pace to finish.

The one-way traffic continued. Cathal Forde added the third try before Wootton, in his fourth start this season, grabbed his second try with Cian Prendergast having provided the supporting role.

Brive finally got on the scoreboard before the break when a chip ahead bounced ideally for right wing Kevin Fabian to cross, but there was no coming back in the second half for the French outfit.

The onslaught continued when man of the match Wootton claimed his hat-trick on 52 minutes – becoming the 12th Connacht player to do so in the professional era – and before the final whistle, Conor Oliver, and replacements Conor Fitzgerald and Kieran Marmion had added to the tally to ensure Connacht’s third successive European victory and a place in the next round of 16.

SCORING SEQUENCE – 3 mins: J Porch try, J Carty con 7-0; 8: F Bealham try, Carty con 14-0; 17: C Forde try, Carty con 21-0; 24: A Wootton try 26-0; 32: Wootton try, Carty con 33-0; 35: K Fabien try 33-5. HT 33-5; 52: Wootton try, Carty con 40-5; 57: C Oliver try, Carty con 47-5; 71: C Fitzgerald try, Carty con 54-5; 77: K Marmion try, Carty con 61-5.

CONNACHT: M Hansen; J Porch, B Ralston, C Forde, A Wootton; J Carty, C Reilly; P Dooley, D Heffernan, F Bealham; J Murphy, N Murray; C Prendergast, C Oliver, J Butler.

Replacements: J Duggan for Dooley and J Aungier for Bealham (both 52 mins), T Daly for Forde and C Fitzgerald for Porch (both 58), L Fifita for Murray (59), C Booth for Butler (60), K Marmion for Reilly and D Tierney Martin for Heffernan (both 63).

BRIVE: M Biasotto; K Fabien, W Douglas, N Lee, V Tirefort; T Raffy, V Lobzhanidze; H Thompson-Stringer, V Karkadze, T Tuimauga; A Zafra, O Rixen; M Voisin, S Gue, A Papali’i.

Replacements: T Danovaro for Tirefort (21 mins), F Coria Marchetti for Tuimauga (38, HIA), L Carbonneau for Lobzhanidze and E Herve for Lee (both 46), N Fraissenon for Thompson-Stringer, J Matalaweru for Papali’i (both 52), A Tronc for Karkadze and N Bedou for Biasotto (both 59).

Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy).

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