Bayonne start with a bang

Bayonne began their challenge for Amlin Challenge Cup glory with a 71-7 thrashing of Mogliano.

The French side outclassed their Italian opponents who struggled to keep pace in their first-ever European encounter.

Bayonne scored 11 tries in total to start pool Five in the best possible fashion.

Left wing Marvin O'Connor was the only man to cross twice as the rest of the tries were shared between forwards and backs and starting players and replacements, with a penalty try thrown in for good measure.

Mogliano only trailed 19-0 at the break despite Bayonne going ahead as early as the second minute but the Top 14 team broke clear to cross a further eight times in the second half.

The tournament debutants did claim a try of their own through Marco Barbini on 49 minutes but by then they were already 38-0 down as Guillaume Bernad, the penalty score and Sam Gerber added to first period tries from O'Connor, Vitolio Manukula and Abdellatif Boutaty.

A seventh try from Francois Carillo and O'Connor's second saw Bayonne past the half-century mark 15 minutes after the interval and a further three tries followed in the final 12 minutes.

Thibault Lacroix and former All Black wing Joe Rokocoko added their names to the scoresheet before Matthieu Ugalde converted his own try in the last minute.

The scorers:

For Bayonne:

Tries: Manukula, O'Connor 2, Boutaty, Bernard, Gerber, Carillo, Lacroix, Rokocoko, Ugalde

Cons: Ugalde 3, Boyet 5

For Mogliano:

Try: Barbini

Con: Galon

Grenoble 59-3 Cavalieri

Grenoble kicked off their European Challenge Cup campaign in style as they hammered I Cavalieri Prato.

The French side marked their return to Amlin Challenge Cup competition after a seven-year absence with a comprehensive success at Stade Lesdiguieres.

Grenoble crossed for eight tries courtesy of eight different scorers to build on their fine start in the Top 14, although it took them a while to get going on Friday night.

The home side had touched down just once in the first 25 minutes and twice in the opening 33 but the game to bed in a 15-minute spell either side of the interval.

A penalty try on 34 minutes added to earlier efforts from Matthieu Nicolas and Clement Darbo, before quick-fire scores from Rudolf Coetzee and Anthony Hegarty helped Grenoble build on a 19-3 half-time lead.

The scorers:

For Grenoble:

Tries: Nicolas, Darbo, Coetzee, Hegarty, Fabro, Pollard, Pelissie

Cons: Cooke, Laharrague 2, Darbo 3

For Cavalieri

Pen: Della Rossa