There are two ways to view recovery day. The good part is seeing friends again and discovering new ones, and there are around fifteen of them at CA Périgueux. The bad part is remembering that it is devoted to physical preparation.
“The first day, we always dread it a little,” admits Vincent Fouillade, who is starting his fifth season in sky and white. “The next three weeks are not the easiest part, but one of the most important. There are a lot of new people. So, it also allows us to meet each other on and off the field.”
Physical preparation
Under the eyes of a few curious onlookers, the injured or convalescents, the entire staff, but also Romain Teulet, who came to see old acquaintances and his son who is arriving in Espoirs, it was not yet time to talk about the holidays on the grass of Dantou, between two stadiums under construction (Rongiéras and Font-Pinquet).
“We kept the same payroll as last season. We decided on positions where we thought we had some needs”
The first three weeks will be “based on physical preparation, quite intensive”, describes Didier Casadéi, the capist manager. The ball will not be the priority, unfortunately for the players. Moreover, this Monday, July 1st in the morning, they did not receive any. The season began with a “bronco”: a test to measure the ability to chain efforts over increasingly long distances. Then, a little administrative work and above all, getting to know the fifteen new elements.
“We kept the same payroll as last season,” Casadéi assures. “We made cuts on positions where we thought we had some needs.” In any case, the squad is complete. The only ones missing for the restart were Kakevini Tabu, who was held up in Fiji for visa issues, and Hendri Storm, who was due to return from South Africa in the afternoon.
Three friendly
In addition to the physical preparation, the players will learn “the codification of the game”, in order to quickly speak the same language on the field. “Then, there will be a week of rest to breathe and assimilate the preparation, then three friendly matches [NDLR : à Aurillac, contre Massy et à Langon les 2, 9 et 16 août] before the start of the championship”, scheduled for August 24 (the calendar has not yet been published).
“There will be 14 league matches before Christmas. So, if we want to stay up in the first instance, or even better, we will have to win matches straight away,” the manager insists. “The seasons are long, we need a lot of people in training to work well.” That is why several Espoirs have already been integrated into the squad.
Movements
Arrivals: Neisen (Aurillac), Dulucq (Tarbes), Camou (Tarbes), Leiataua (Oyonnax), Tabu (Bourg-en-Bresse), Kotze (Hyères/Carqueiranne), Lavernhe (Provence Rugby), Hughes (Padua), Vieilledent (Rouen), Merigan (Bath), Giresse (Albi), Gest (Blagnac), Lafforgue (Auch).
Departures: Chapon (Bergerac), Caillat (Arcachon Basin), Tallet (Saint-Astier/Neuvic), Cavalière (Rennes), Tournebize (Vergt), Ouchène (Massy), Rabourdin (Marmande), Jaubert (Floirac), Zibzibadze (Limoges), Vialle (Nîmes), Hardy (Chartres), Rousserie, Dittus, Labattut.
