Morning Chronicle - Dupont 'beyond surprise' for Toulouse's Kinghorn

Scrum-half Dupont scored a nine-minute hat-trick as a replacement last weekend in his first game since helping France to Olympic sevens gold in July.

During his break 27-year-old Dupont spent more than a week in the United States meeting Argentina football icon Lionel Messi in Miami as well as NBA legend LeBron James in California and visiting the Los Angeles Chargers' NFL set-up.

"I wasn't surprised at all, I don't think anything surprises anyone anymore," Kinghorn told reporters on Tuesday ahead of this weekend's trip to Pau.

"It's good to have him back. He's had a massive year, so it’s nice for him to have a bit of down time.

"It’s now back to work, enough travelling around for him," he added with a smile.

Toulouse lifted a record 23rd Top 14 and a leading sixth Champions Cup last season barely six months on from Kinghorn's arrival from Edinburgh.

They have looked sluggish this term, however, winning four out of their six games and suffering two straight defeats, to Castres and Bordeaux-Begles.

Dupont's quick-fire contribution helped Ugo Mola's side to a hammering of Clermont last Saturday, putting them second in the table.

"The first three games we won but didn't play our best rugby," said Kinghorn, who also features on the wing and at fly-half.

"Losing two on the bounce was going to come because we weren’t playing that well.

"We had a good performance on the weekend.

"Hopefully that’s the start of our season and we can put out our rugby on the field because it's been a bit slow for our standards," he added.

- 'Spectacle'-

After the Pau game and two further league matches, Kinghorn's mind will switch to Scotland's November Test series.

He will miss their opener against Fiji as it clashes with facing Bayonne in the Top 14 but he will available for Gregor Townsend against Rugby World Cup winners South Africa, Portugal and Australia.

Scotland's hopes have been boosted after Glasgow’s United Rugby Championship title success in their first league final since 2019.

"It's only going to be good for the national team having players who have had a taste of success in big games," Kinghorn said.

"For a long time that wasn't the case.

"Hopefully for the next campaign it will be good," he added.

Before the international break, Kinghorn's focus will travelling to the foothills of the Pyrenees to face Pau.

Their Stade du Hameau home has been sold out for the tie since Monday, with the prospect of Dupont's presence.

"Anywhere you go in French rugby the cities and towns love their rugby teams, they get right behind it," Kinghorn said.

"Is it an addition to the spectacle having the best players coming? Potentially but most of the time the cities love their rugby teams."

This weekend is also the French players' last chance to impress Fabien Galthie before the Les Bleus head coach names his squad next week for the November Tests against Japan, New Zealand and Argentina.

Fixtures (times GMT)

Saturday

Bayonne v Racing 92 (1230), Clermont v Vannes, Castres v Stade Francais, Toulon v Montpellier, Perpignan v Lyon (1430), Pau v Toulouse (1905)

Sunday

La Rochelle v Bordeaux-Begles (1905)

L.Gastrell--MC-UK