Credit: Ievgenii Karanov, Chronicle.lu
On Saturday 25 October 2025, Rugby Club Luxembourg (RCL) hosted Berliner RC for Game Day 6 of the German Rugby Bundesliga 1 at the Josy Barthel Stadium in Luxembourg-Belair.
Head Coach Antoine Alric’s team entered the match with two defeats and one victory, having two postponed games still to play.
The first half proved challenging for the hosts against a Berliner side positioned lower in the table. It was the visitors who struck first, with Quentin Hickstein opening the scoring in the eighth minute, successfully converting a try and a kick from Anatolij Sidak to lead 7-0.
Midway through the first half, RCL levelled the score when Yared Ketema crossed the line, followed by a successful conversion by Casmier Yandall to make it 7-7.
Ten minutes later, Sidak restored the visitors’ advantage with a well-taken penalty, but RCL responded almost immediately. Eamon Reily added five points with a try, and Yandall added a successful conversion to put the hosts ahead 14-10. Berliner managed to strike back before the break, adding another try to edge ahead by a single point at half-time.
Reflecting on the opening period, Antoine Alric told Chronicle.lu: “The conditions were tough. A lot of rain in the second half, and we started the game with the wind against us, which made it quite complicated. We didn’t manage to get outside our half, but going into the break at 15-14 was more or less what we expected.”
The second half began with another strong attacking move from Berliner RC, who extended their lead to 20-14 through a further try. However, from that point on, the match belonged to the home team.
In the 63rd minute, Oscar Whiteman scored a try to bring RCL back into contention, before Federico Inciarte crossed the line eight minutes later, with Reily adding a successful conversion to give Luxembourg a 26-20 lead.
RCL continued to build momentum in the closing stages. Tries from Whiteman and Leon Pelletier, both followed by a successful conversion from Reily, sealed a convincing 38-20 victory for the home side.
Commenting on the team’s second-half performance, Alric added: “We managed to reverse the pressure on the scrums and made good use of the wind to gain territory. The bench made a big difference, they brought fresh energy. We’re on a good path now, starting a winning streak, which was exactly what we were aiming for.”
Rugby Club Luxembourg will next play on Saturday 1 November 2025 in Heidelberg (Germany) against TSV Handschuhsheim, who currently sit one point ahead in the table but have already played five matches.
