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T. Duprat (9'), T. Gatelier (17'), J. Naseara (37'), J. Sovau (60'), J. Barrere (65'), P. Laperne (78')
Tries
T. Idjellidaine (49'), C. Egiziano (55'), T. Morgan (63')
R. Seguy (10', 17', 38', 61', 66', 83')
Conversions
J. Barraque (63')
R. Seguy (20')
Drop Goals
Six minutes was all it took for this to tilt. When Enzo Labadie walked for a red card, US Dax were handed a game state they badly needed after last week’s hiding. They didn’t faff about. They sped the ruck, widened the point of attack and piled up tries. It wasn’t sophisticated so much as ruthless.
This said as much about where Nissa Rugby are on the road as it did about Dax’s response. Nissa’s defence has creaked away from home all season; take a man out of it and the line bent too easily. They will point to a lively spell after half-time, but their missed tackles ballooned, their lineout wobbled, and by the hour their legs had gone. Dax didn’t let them off.
The pivot came not just with the card but with Dax’s immediate decision to lean into tempo. They hooked Paul Ausset on seven minutes and sent on Malo Hannoyer, who played like a man who understood the brief: carry, clean, carry again. He finished with 77 metres and 11 tackles off the bench, a tone-setter for the rest of the pack. From there, Dax’s shape stayed wide and fast. Théo Duprat and Théo Gatelier found the edges early, and Jope Naseara punched holes in the inside channel. Naseara beat seven defenders and scored before the break; his footwork turned gain-line into quick ball all night.
With the platform secure, Romuald Séguy ran the show. A first-half drop goal underlined the control, but it was the tempo changes and his accuracy off the tee — six from six — that kept Dax in front-foot rhythm. When Nissa briefly rallied, Séguy nudged the game back into their half and the forwards did the rest, with Jean-Baptiste Barrère driving through contact for a deserved try after a busy shift on both sides of the ball.
Discipline and defence did the damage for Nissa. They missed 34 tackles and leaked line breaks through the backfield, where fullback Julien Farnoux had a night to forget. Their best moments came when they played without the ball: the scrum was tidy and they pinched five turnovers. That bought them a window after the break in which Théo Idjellidaine, Clément Egiziano and Tyler Morgan all crossed — Morgan in particular offering the sort of direct punch that hints at what this backline could be. But the cost of the early card was paid in the last quarter. Fatigue, a leaky lineout, and then a yellow for Arthur Vignolles; Dax ran through the tape with tries from Jekope Sovau and Paul Laperne.
CARRIES
CLEAN BREAK
DEFENDER BEATEN
TACKLE
MISSED TACKLE
TURNOVER WON
TURNOVERS CONCEDED
PENALTY CONCEDED
YELLOW CARD
RED CARD
POSSESSION
SCRUMS
LINEOUTS
The numbers back the eye test. Dax’s lineout at 16/18 gave them reliable launch; Nissa’s 8/11 did not. The visitors actually shaded the scrum, but there weren’t enough of them to matter. Possession at 58% to 40% and a carries gulf (156 to 82) tells you how long Nissa had to tackle a man down. Missed tackles doubled for the visitors; that is what happens when you are spread thin and chasing width.
There were individual markers for Dax beyond Séguy. Barrère was excellent: 11 carries, two clean breaks and 10 tackles says impact on both sides of the ball. Ratu Nacika and Louis Couget were imperfect but ambitious — offloads stuck often enough to keep Nissa turning. Duprat looked sharp on counter, and Gatelier finished with a wing’s economy. The only real quibble for the home side is they coughed up 14 turnovers and conceded three tries to 14 men; against a fuller-strength outfit that sloppiness is costly.
For Nissa, the positives were thin but real. Morgan’s 93 metres and two clean breaks showed they can slice teams when they get ball to the 13 channel early. Egiziano’s three clean breaks were a reminder their edge pace is genuine. Jean-Pascal Barraque added calm when he arrived. But that doesn’t cover the headline: an avoidable red six minutes in wrecked their defensive structure and their lungs. You can’t win at this level like that, and their lineout accuracy has to improve if they’re going to relieve pressure away from home.
Does the margin flatter Dax? Not really. They had the game won by half-time and kept their boot down when Nissa spluttered to life. The final try came against 13, sure, but the contest was long gone. The real measure is how crisply they exploited the extra space: they did, and it mattered more than any refereeing debate.
What next? Dax bank the response they needed and a reminder that their attack hums when they trust tempo and execute at the lineout. Tighten the error count and the scrum, and this is repeatable. Nissa, meanwhile, leave with a blunt lesson in early-game discipline and defensive integrity. Their strike runners can hurt teams; the task now is to give them a platform and stop gifting opponents the field. Until that shifts, the road will keep feeling very long.
