Fax hammered in France as Kheirallah racks up 28 points for Toulouse

Richard Marshall’s side, who conspired to lose the Good Friday derby against Bradford after holding a 14-point lead going into the final quarter, were effectively written out of the contest inside the first quarter.

Toulouse, inspired by their Australian full back Mark Kheirallah, blasted into a 22-0 lead after 18 minutes to banish memories of their own Good Friday nightmare at Sheffield.

It was all too much for an injury-ravaged Fax, whose less-than-ideal preparations included a 3am airport rendezvous on Sunday morning, who trailed 28-4 at the break, with tries from Anthony Marion (2), Kheirallah (2) and Joe Bretherton, plus four Kheirallah conversions, eclipsing Shaun Robinson’s unconverted try six minutes before the break.

The second half was predictably one way traffic, with Kheirallah and Marion both completing their hat tricks and Mathieu Jussaume, Bastian Ader and Ilias Bergal also crossing.

Kheirallah finished with eight conversions for a personal tally of 28 points as Fax finished the Easter weekend in eighth spot on the league ladder.