Courrent accounts for former Toulouse teammates

PARIS: Two-time defending French champions Toulouse slipped to their fifth defeat in all competitions this season yesterday as new boys Grenoble beat them 15-6 in their Top 14 clash.
Former Toulouse player Valentin Courrent kicked all his side’s points in what was their eighth win — their seventh at home — of a successful return to the elite league while also denying Toulouse a defensive bonus point.
Defeat — their second in a row after losing in Wales to Ospreys last weekend in the European Cup with all five this season coming away from home — leaves Toulouse five points adrift of leaders Toulon, who play second from bottom Agen later.
The 2010 champions Clermont are second — two points ahead of Toulouse and three behind Toulon — having beaten Bordeaux-Begles 28-24 on Friday.
Toulouse were forced into recalling hooker William Servat for his fifth start this season despite his retirement at the end of last season after 18-year-old Christopher Toklofua was ruled out shortly before the kick-off because of a hip injury.
It was Grenoble, though, who opened the scoring through an eighth minute penalty from Courrent after Yannick Nyanga had not released Jonathan Best in the tackle — however Toulouse leveled two minutes later through 21-year-old scrum-half Sebastien Bezy. Courrent, though, was having a storming start to the game and another piece of delightful positional kicking by the 30-year-old led to a penalty for the hosts, which he converted in the 16th minute.
Bezy, who had been preferred by Guy Noves to Australian star Luke Burgess for the starting spot, again levelled the game but Courrent — who made 33 appearances for Toulouse from 2006-08 — then kissed two in a row before edging the hosts three points ahead on the stroke of half-time.
He extended the lead to 12-6 shortly after the restart while Bezy missed one and with under-10 minutes remaining the hosts moved to 15-6 ahead with a superb long range penalty by Courrent.
Meanwhile, English rugby giants Leicester received a double boost on Saturday as two of their foreign stars agreed to new contracts that will see them stay beyond the end of the season.
Tongan international Steve Mafi — who can play both in the backrow and at lock — and Australian flanker Julian Salvi joined the English trio of brothers Ben and Tom Youngs and lock Graham Kitchener in agreeing new contracts.
Mafi, 23 and who opted to play for Tonga instead of his country of birth Australia, joined the nine-time English champions in the summer of 2010 and enjoyed a superb campaign last season, scoring in both the Premiership semi-final and the final and then was named man of the match in the domestic Cup final.
Salvi, 27 and a former captain of the Australian Under-21 side, is in his second season with the Tigers — although he had already played in England before with Bath — and has scored eight tries in 41 appearances.
Leicester Tigers director of rugby Richard Cockerill was delighted that both of them had agreed to their new contracts.
“Steve and Julian have become key members of our squad and firmly established themselves among the outstanding performers in the Premiership,” he said.
“I’m delighted that they have agreed to stay and that they feel this is the best place to play their rugby.
“Steve is just 23 years of age and we believe he will get better and better in this environment, playing alongside other top-class players.
“Julian Salvi is an important player for us as an out-and-out openside. He’s just 27 but he’s an experienced player and has been in very good form with us.” The English champions are presently fourth in the table ahead of this weekend’s matches, just three points off leaders Harlequins.
The two-time European champions are also top of their European Cup pool, leading France’s four-time Cup winners Toulouse by a point with two games remaining.