Solid winner in Bordeaux before the truce, the Rochelais stadium chains a second capital trip to Vannes on Saturday (23rd day of Top 14) to confirm his return to business and in the qualification race. Attack coach Sébastien Boboul was questioned this Thursday at a press conference on the risk of a relapse in Brittany, for a team very often with two faces from one week to the next this season.
What did the staff have since convincing success in Bordeaux (10-21), on April 26, to maintain this positive dynamic?
We have not activated a lever, we are really on the continuity of what was being done. The difference is that we found a little more confidence. The Bayonne match did us a lot of good, a huge relief. We moved to Bordeaux without pressure, with the desire to leave everything on the ground, not to think, and I think it was conclusive. So we are on continuity. We don’t want to get carried away either, because we know where we come from and we know what we have to do to try to hang a place in the top 6. So, really, we are on the continuity of the weeks. There is just the atmosphere which is a little better for training and daily.
How do you approach this trip to Brittany?
We know what awaits us in Vannes. We leave a period of three months, very long and very difficult, especially in the last month, to manage. Greg (Alldritt, the captain, editor’s note) said that we had not become a bad team, but that we did not become a good team in two weeks either. We know how to stay in our place. We know that we have a big challenge that awaits us on Saturday in Vannes. No one has ignited. We need to work. What is important is this confidence that came back. We have to keep it and not lose everything in a match.
Do you tell yourself that there is a risk that players will drop from one investment level box, in this season when this has often been the case from one match to another?
We try not to think about it. We are really focused on Vannes, on this continuity that we must have. I believe that the players are aware of the importance of this match which will really decide the rest of the championship, if we can reach the top 6 or not. We had time to prepare it, that’s good too. It’s been a long time since we had beaches like that of work, rest, to allow our players to be fresh on Saturday on the match. We want to be on this dynamic: continue to progress and win.
Vannes had come to go, in November, in Deflandre (14-23). What do you keep?
We remember that we took a lesson in realism with us. Conversely, we had a lot of opportunities that we did not put in the bottom. We left this team of Vannes in the game, as a lot of matches afterwards, and gave confidence to the opponent. We know that at home, they start strong enough. They often make very good first half. We saw it against Toulon, Montpellier or Bordeaux. Inevitably, we have a small revenge to take on home defeat, which hurt us and which led us into a very negative spiral for a few weeks. We are ready to start the match in the best way.
Did the Rochelais forwards, shaken in conquest on the outward journey, talked about it during the week?
I think there were … I heard about it in the corridors (smile). We feel our successful forwards lately. They will have at heart, I think, to respond present, especially in conquest. These are matches, like in Bordeaux, outside, where you have to be strong on our bases to hope to win. It necessarily starts with the fray and the touch.
The loser of this duel can lose a lot of illusions for the future …
It is sure that this match in Vannes will determine our end of the season, and surely that they will determine theirs too. It’s been a few weekends that the cleaner matches are linked. I honestly prefer to be in our place that in their own. There will be pressure on both sides. Of them to avoid this relegation. And we want to stay on this rather positive spiral for two weekends and not go down down as for three months […] We have four championship games left. We want to play them thoroughly, as two weeks ago in Bordeaux, to hang this sixth place and hope to make final stages this year.
Did you expect the images of your strong emotion after the victory against Bayonne to go around the networks so much?
No, it’s even a little embarrassing to see that (smile). I got a little at home and by the family. It was not calculated. After the difficult weeks, our daily life was not necessarily pleasant. That’s not why we are in this environment, and it was a huge relief to have won. All the frustration accumulated for some time has evacuated. It was complicated to see the club in this situation, with injured players and a staff in difficulty to find the right solutions. We didn’t necessarily have fun coming here, because we couldn’t do it. Even if we did not expect the worst, at some point, it was in our heads, looking at the ranking.
What did you in mind, at this precise moment?
An “phew”, really, since we still went not far from the correctional. I think I didn’t look at the last two minutes, because we were under pressure, we couldn’t get out of it. For the anecdote, I had “Carmi” (Romain Carmignani, forward coach) Connected to the microphone. He had not turned off his microphone, so he commented on me all the match and it was not bad (smile). I had this feeling that we were going to be penalized at the end, and that Segonds was going to mark the penalty of the win. On a cleaver match like that … Phew!
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