PARIS: Toulouse boosted their hopes of making the French Top-14 playoffs with a battling 12-10 win at struggling Toulon on Saturday.
All their points came from penalties as star-studded Toulon struggled to find a way to break down the Toulouse defence despite dominating possession.
The win leaves Toulouse in fifth place on 61 points, eight points clear of Bordeaux and Castres who were both due to play later Saturday.
Only the top six qualify for the playoffs.
Toulon managed a late try for a defensive bonus point to draw level with Montpellier on 68 points in second place behind leaders Clermont.
Toulon had by far the better of the first half but after 40 minutes all they had to show for it was a penalty from fly-half Eric Escande against six points from the boot of his Toulouse counterpart Sebastien Bezy.
Centre Florian Fritz took over the kicking duties and strikes from him after 58 and 69 minutes moved Toulouse 12-3 clear with the home crowd voicing their disapproval of their team.
Toulon brought on powerhouse centre Mathieu Bastareaud in a last-ditch attempt to break down the Toulouse defence and they finally crossed the try line in the last minute, South African flanker Juan Smith providing the finishing touches.
They had one last possession to pull off what would have been an undeserved win, but Australian winger James O'Connor was bundled into touch on the halfway line.
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