Antoine Dupont delivered a reminder of his class as Toulouse tightened their grip on the Top 14 summit with a 59-22 victory over Pau on Saturday night.
The France superstar laid on two tries but also spent time in the sin bin as Toulouse ran in nine tries at Stade Ernest Wallon to move six points clear at the top of the standings.
In his final club appearance before linking up with France’s Six Nations squad, Dupont created scores for prop Dorian Aldegheri and centre Kalvin Gourgues, pulling the strings as Toulouse tore Pau apart in a dominant first half.
There was a blemish, though, as the Toulouse skipper was yellow-carded in the second half for a high tackle on opposing scrumhalf Thomas Souverbie.
“It’s a super positive result. It’s good to have confidence in our game,” Dupont told Canal+.
“Starting a Six Nations is always exciting. It’s special for me because it’s been almost a year since I’ve worn the France shirt.”
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Dupont was one of 12 France squad members in Toulouse’s match 23, alongside flanker François Cros, who made his first start since June. France internationals will now miss three league fixtures, with Test players unavailable to their clubs until the end of March.
Despite the defeat, Pau remain second on the table, though their cushion has shrunk to four points after Stade Français stunned Bordeaux-Bègles 33-28 earlier in the day.
Stade Français’ win was powered by tries from Peniasi Dakuwaqa, Joe Marchant, Tanginoa Halaifonua, Jeremy Ward and Yoan Tanga. Damian Penaud started for Bordeaux just days after being omitted from France’s Six Nations squad.
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Elsewhere, Gael Fickou played the full 80 minutes as Racing 92 edged Lyon 35-34, with Wallabies prop Taniela Tupou scoring twice. Peceli Yato crossed twice for Perpignan in a 31-8 win over Montauban, while Castres held on to beat Bayonne 13-10.
On Sunday, Toulon host Montpellier before La Rochelle travel to Clermont.
Photo: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
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