Northampton (United Kingdom) (AFP)

A very opportunistic try by Argentinian winger Santiago Cordero, registered with six minutes from the end, allowed Bordeaux-Bègles to open victoriously the new European Cup of rugby on the ground of Northampton (16-12), Friday evening .

Two and a half months after its semi-final of the European Challenge lost in Bristol (37-20 AD), the UBB took revenge on English soil.

It was not easy for Christophe Urios' men, dominated in possession, strongly sanctioned by the Welsh referee Mr. Whitehouse, often rightly, and who had in all and for all only two actions of test.

Both times, Cordero, back from Tri Nations, who even got it for ten minutes behind his scrum after Maxime Lucu's yellow card, stood out.

First by lighting a first fuse in the axis, taking back the local defense.

But his pass "breeze block" surprised his captain Mahamadou Diaby, author of a forward (35th).

Then, following a penalty from Matthieu Jalibert crashing on the post, the swift Argentinian took advantage of a favorable rebound to finish behind the line under the nose and beard of 5 arrested Saints.

The Bordelais thus passed in front for the first time in the match (74th).

It was time.

This favorable outcome was far from obvious against the last Premiership, which set the pace for a good part of the match, except in the last ten minutes of each period when the Girondins made up their delay - from 9-3 to 9- 9 at the break - then the difference at the end of the match.

Discipline was the black spot for Diaby's teammates who were twice shorthanded (Cameron Woki and Maxime Lucu received a yellow card) in the second period but did not fold.

They were able to repel five Northampton penals, hardly inspired offensively despite the presence in its ranks of some individuals like Dan Biggar or Courtney Lawes.

The Gironde conquest, however, reassured.

The scrum first, which brought two penalties, the counter in touch with a Woki in the continuity of his harvest of Twickenham, and the zone of rucks, fruitful with Thierry Paiva in leader.

© 2020 AFP