Big win for Les Rouge et Bleu!

Comptes-rendus

Paris came from behind to beat Saint-Raphaël 37-29 on Friday and maintain their lead at the top of the league. Here is our recap of the Liqui Moly StarLigue Round 24 clash.

After seeing their unbeaten run come to an end last time out against Nantes (35-32), Paris returned to league action with a clear objective: to overcome a tough Saint-Raphaël outfit and maintain at least a three-point lead over second-placed Nantes.

In front of their home crowd, Les Rouge et Bleu put on a show from the start, both defensively and offensively (4': 4-0). The side from the Var region did not give up, however, and gradually found their rhythm in the opening minutes (9': 6-4). However, the capital club's enthusiasm was not to be dampened, and a splendid kung-fu move by Elohim Prandi restored their four-point lead after a perfectly controlled first quarter of an hour (14': 10-6).

With his team struggling to make up ground, Benjamin Braux called his first time-out (23': 15-12). Despite their best intentions, Saint-Raphaël came up against an imperious Jannick Green, who made his seventh save of the evening to help his side maintain their lead (26': 18-14). Always at the heart of the Parisian action, Luc Steins sent a pinpoint pass to Luka Karabatic, who scored his second goal of the game (29': 21-16). Raul Gonzalez's men went into the locker room with a five-goal advantage after a dominant first half (30': 21-16).

Les Rouge et Bleu started the second half with the same intensity and took the lead thanks in particular to two more saves from Jannick (36': 24-17). As had been the case in the first half, Saint-Raphaël went all out and once again managed to start closing the gap (42': 25-21). The Parisians redoubled their efforts to extend their lead, but Braux decided to stop the game once again, at the start of the final quarter (46': 29-22).

Raul Gonzalez's men went into the final minutes well in control, with the fate of the match already seemingly sealed (51': 31-24). Léo Villain, who had just come on as a substitute, took part in the Parisian festivities, firing home from the seven-metre line before pulling off a splendid pastis right afterwards (55': 33-25). Les Rouge et Bleu were in total control throughout the match, and showed their seriousness to win (60': 39-27). Raul Gonzalez's men are thus full of confidence ahead of a decisive week, marked by the Coupe de France final against Nantes on Saturday. Before that, the Parisians take on Cesson-Rennes in the league on Wednesday.

REACTIONS FROM RAUL GONZALEZ, KENT ROBIN TONNESEN AND LÉO PLANTIN :

(Credits: L. Valroff/Team Pics/PSG)