Championship. TO XIII / Featherstone Rovers. Toulouse to Olympus and beyond

This weekend, the Toulouse Olympique XIII will try to achieve the feat: access the Super League. An ascent whose last step could be climbed this Sunday, October 10 from 7 p.m. at the Stade Ernest Wallon. The Championship semi-final, English Rugby League second division, against the Batley Bulldogs (51-12) was passed without a hitch for the men of Sylvain Houles, favorites of the competition. From now on, the whites and blues of the TO will face those of the Featherstone Rovers. But for this final, it will not only be the colors that will bring the two teams together. Indeed, the two teams finished in the first two places of the general classification this year. During the regular season, the Haut-Garonnais had taken over the English, by a score of 6 to 23, inflicting their only defeat of the 2021 exercise.

Unbeaten since the start of the season, TO XIII could not play home games before their semi-final last week which had gathered around 7 000 supporters. For several years, the Treiziste team of the Ville Rose had been experiencing infrastructure problems. The installation within the red and black temple brought stability to the whites and navies.

Pure product of TO XIII, Justin Sangaré, hopes to win the title this weekend.

Despite more than 500 days of famine , the young Justin Sangaré, a pure product of Toulouse training, felt at ease within the Stade Ernest Wallon. He tells us: ”I think it’s great that we have the infrastructure of Stade Toulousain at our disposal to play and to train. Everything is stable now if we except the Covid. I’m very happy. ” Veteran Rémi Casty, who will play his last match on the occasion of the final, thinks for his part that the health crisis has had an impact on adaptation to infrastructure: “I think that with the lack of fans and home games, we have not yet been able to achieve the quintessence of what this stadium offers us. But I think everything is done to move into another dimension which is the Super League. The club operates all the necessary levers. ” Super League. Historic moment for the Catalan Dragons and their supporters: ” We have bosses and talent everywhere ”

Despite his announced end of career, the pillar evokes a possible French derby between the Catalan Dragons and Toulouse Olympique next season: “This is what the French XIII needs. It would be a poster that would bring people in and create a rivalry. ” ) For Justin Sangaré “there is no favorite this week- end, the only goal is to win ” this Sunday’s final. However, he tells us about the possible poster between Haut-Garonnais and Catalans next season. He said: “It would be great for our sport in France. Clubs from the region could come and watch the matches. A derby like that would make the French rugby union world proud. And we’ll make it happen. ”