Champions Cup: Lewis Ludlam, the English warrior of the Harbor

Arriving this summer from Northampton, English international third row Lewis Ludlam brings his rough style to bear on the Toulon harbor where he launched a new challenge after having made the difficult decision to give up his selection to discover the Top 14.

“The best way to progress was to discover this championship, the most competitive in the world in recent years, and to compete with world-class players” declared the native of Ipswich to AFP, a few days before facing Harlequins in the Champions Cup, this Sunday at 2 p.m.

A fan of Tottenham, raised in football and boxing from a young age under the influence of his father, the former Saints player tried his hand at rugby after discovering the sport thanks to England’s victory in the World Cup 2003.

“I had never watched a match before thishe explains with a big smile. I remember my first session: I ran and threw the ball like American football because that’s all I knew how to do.”

Grandson of Palestinian immigrants on one side and Guyana on the other, Luds, now 29 years old, initially struggled to break into rugby. Despite his now solid build (1m90 and 111 kilos), he was initially judged too small and too light to become a professional in Northampton.

“One of my sports teachers at school then said to me the best thing anyone has ever said to me: ‘There are different types of players. It’s like breakfast: the chicken offers the eggs, the cow offers the milk and the pig offers his whole body. If you want to be a top player, you have to be the pig for your team and give everything on the field.Lewis Ludlam recalls.

That dedication on the pitch became the motto for the flanker, who eventually made his return to Northampton and has stuck around, despite numerous loan spells at lower division sides.

Unfailingly supported by his parents in his dream, he achieved his goals in 2016. New Zealander Chris Boyd – a trainer “amazing” – definitively launches Ludlam’s career with the Saints, to the point of winning 25 caps with the XV de la Rose and playing in two World Cups (2019, 2023).

“He’s someone who will fight until the end, he’s done that his whole careersays second row David Ribbans, his teammate at Toulon. It was a big decision for him to leave England and his team. It wasn’t easy, but he came to Toulon and he bought into the culture of the club and the fans.”

Ludlam quickly integrated into the Var, to the point of awaiting the arrival in his family of a “little Toulonnaise” for next month, he explains in already well-established French. “The fans here appreciate passionate players who are committed, so I realized this was the right place for me because this has always been my game. People are now starting to understand the type of player I am “Whatever I can do to help the team every week, I will do it to help us win trophies.”traffic Ludlam.

Although he is not fully satisfied with his start to the season, Luds continues to work on his “patience” and his “calm” when he is left to rest for Top 14 matches, he who grew up marveling at the performances of the brothers Steffon and Delon Armitage, two other Englishmen with a triumphant career on the Harbor.

While waiting to return to the Top 14, Ludlam will be able to scrap in the Champions Cup on Sunday against an old acquaintance: the English team Harlequins against whom he has already scored five times.