JOHNNY SEXTON FEATURED as Racing Metro earned a hard-fought 13-9 victory over Clermont in the Heineken Cup this evening.
In Paris, three Morgan Parra penalties to one from Sexton saw Clermont hold a 9-3 lead at half-time.
But the hosts came firing back with a breakaway Marc Andreu try after a turnover following a scorching break by Sitiveni Sivivatu, the former All Black winger who was one of the sole bright attacking lights on a night of desperate defence.
Sexton converted Andreu’s try and hit a 54th minute penalty to stretch the lead, Parra missing a straightforward effort in reply.
Racing-Metro’s defence held firm for the remainder of a hard-fought second period, while Clermont had to be happy with a defensive bonus point to begin their Pool 4 campaign.
Additional reporting by Paul Fennessy