14 August 2009: Toulon 22 Stade Francais 22. Two late drop goals from Noel Oelschig earned Stade Francais a draw at Toulon in the opening game of the 2009/10 Top 14 season.

The versatile half-back's 77th minute drop sealed a draw which had looked unlikely when Toulon took a six-point lead and seemed well in control of the match 10 minutes into the second half.

But the twin introduction of new Stade Francais signing Julien Dupuy and controversial centre Mathieu Bastareaud helped bring the visitors back into contention, and after tying the scores with a penalty and a drop goal only to see Jonny Wilkinson drop a goal to regain the lead, Oelschig kept his cool and sealed the two points with his late drop.

Wilkinson kicked 17 points on his competitive debut and gave Toulon an early lead with a third minute penalty, but the Parisians scored the first try through Juan Leguizamon on 10 minutes, the Argentinian flanker barging through a weak Toulon defence to touch down.

An Oelschig penalty stretched the lead on 18 minutes, but Toulon tied the scores through Thomas Sourice two minutes later, the flanker benefiting from a scrum half debutant Pierre Mignoni's charge-down of a Brian Liebenberg kick to ground the loose ball.

After a tight 20 minutes' play, the final action of the first half saw two of the new English arrivals in the thick of it, Stade No.8 James Haskell illegally picking up from the wrong side - and receiving a yellow card and seven stitches for his troubles - and Wilkinson converting the resulting penalty for a 13-10 half-time lead.

The second half was a kicking contest between Wilkinson and Oelschig, with the Parisians looking the brighter once the replacement merry-go-round started, Bastareaud in particular making a confident return after a difficult few weeks - the Stade Mayol faithful gave him a preview of what to expect this season with the kind of welcome usually reserved for a pantomime villain.

An under-strength Stade were good value for the draw in the end, and they'll take some confidence from this result, as their back line in particular had something of a makeshift look about it, with winger Marc Gasnier playing in the centre and centre Guillaume Bousses pushed to full back. Liebenberg's future at outside-half might be limited once Lionel Beauxis returns to full fitness, although the Dupuy/Oelschig charniere that ended the game might be a regular feature in the coming weeks.

As for Toulon, skipper Mignoni already looks like one of the signings of the summer with his sharp breaks and keen eye for a loose ball. Wilkinson's full debut saw him complete the full 80 minutes, and while two of his place kicks were wayward and a couple of late knock-ons would have earned him some serious stick away from Stade Mayol, he was unlucky not to have a first-half drop goal awarded, his tackling was strong and - fitness permitting - once he shakes off the rustyness he could well pay back Mourad Boudjellal's investment in spades.

Scores and scorers
Toulon: 1 try (Sourice 20), 1 conversion (Wilkinson 20), 4 penalties (Wilkinson 3, 40, 45, 49), 1 drop goal (Wilkinson 71)
Stade Francais: 1 try (Leguizamon 10), 1 conversion (Oelschig 10), 3 penalties (Oelschig 18, 43, 63), 2 drop goals (Oelschig 68, 77)