REPORT | Dons 10 Toulouse Olympique 6

The Dons took a superb victory under the lights at the Eco-Power Stadium with success against high-flying Toulouse.

Richard Horne’s men fell behind early on after a spell of Toulouse pressure, but a late first half revival saw the Dons go into the interval with parity intact thanks to Luke Briscoe’s 36^th-minute try.

The sides were evenly matched throughout the second half, but Bureta Faraimo’s try 12 minutes from time ensured the Dons took victory.

Horne made three changes to the side that started against Widnes Vikings last weekend, with Connor Robinson, Josh Bowden and Alex Sutcliffe all coming into the starting XIII.

Jordan Baldwinson also made his debut for the Dons off the bench in what was his 200^th senior career appearance.

The Dons were made to face a repeat set in the opening minutes of the contest and looked to have defended well on their own line, but the ball bounced into the goal area on the last tackle, and Thomas Lacans put down to open the scoring after six minutes. Anthony Marion added the extras.

The hosts were put under a barrage of pressure inside the opening 20 minutes, but the Dons line defence held strong to keep the deficit to six points.

Faraimo looked to kickstart the Dons attack after powering his way to within yards of the line after 24 minutes, only to be held up on the last tackle.

The French side thought they were in again after 29 minutes when Olive Ashall-Bott latched onto the end of his own grubber kick, but the fullback put down on the wrong side of the line.

The Dons made that mistake pay and crossed the line after 36 minutes. Craig Hall found Reece Lyne, who disguised a pass out to the wing, where Briscoe charged into the corner from close range.

Horne’s men were determined to go into the interval on level terms, and they found the two points they were looking for when Robinson pinned a penalty kick between the sticks just before the hooter.

The sides were evenly matched throughout the first 20 minutes of the second half, with both making good yards in sets but neither troubling the try line.

That theme continued until the 66^th minute when the Dons made a goal line drop-out count. The hosts shifted play from right to left and found Faraimo, who held off his man and powered his way over the line for the lead.

The visitors desperately searched for a response throughout the remaining time, but the Dons defence held strong to return to winning ways.

Dons: Hall, Briscoe, Lyne, Hey, Faraimo, Boas, Robinson, Bowden, Burns, Matagi, Jones, Sutcliffe, McConnell. Interchanges: Smeaton, Misky, Knowles, Baldwinson.