In the eyes of Christophe Urios, Clermont should have won in La Rochelle this Saturday (20-15). Regardless, the manager is proud of his troops and the progress of his collective, which is increasingly feared.
Does this point satisfy you?
Let's say it's better than nothing. We were well prepared even if the week was average. The end of the preparation had been very good, all the same. I knew there was a space… For a team like La Rochelle, I felt that there could be something, a kind of relaxation, after the European Cup. There was no let-up, to be honest, but I found that my team was up to the task. We have to win the match. When you fall into the goal three times, you have to win the game. But, at the same time, we are moving forward. We continue to make progress in a lot of areas. Today, we are satisfied with one point.
What did you miss?
Efficiency. When you fall into the goal three times, you have to score. It had already happened to us in Leinster. Although on the last maul… I would have liked him to take the video. Because “Babe” (Massa) told us he scored. At the same time, he's not going to tell me otherwise (smile). We generally lacked precision close to the lines.
What did you say to yourself at halftime?
It's funny. At halftime I wasn't worried. I thought they were super realistic. They score a try on a maul when there is nothing. We were wrong at the time but we didn't suffer. And on the first try, we accompany Thomas into the goal when, well, we have to tackle… What bothered me, a little, was that we weren't playing rugby. We made the law. But at the same time, when you come to La Rochelle, if you don't lay down the law, you're dead. I had already come several times, notably with Bordeaux, and on each trip, we said that we were going to lay down the law but we never did so. We were getting crushed. There, we wanted to explain ourselves to them. If you don't show that you're there, the Skeltons and others will walk all over you. But now, we have forgotten rugby a little. In the second half, on the other hand, we kept this intensity, this aggressiveness, especially in the rucks. And we put them in difficulty. They were even physically blown up.
We have the impression that as the weeks go by, your team gains consistency, even if victory is not always there…
We are definitely gaining consistency. At the start of the season, we had air holes outside. Our game wasn't strong enough. Since the resumption, we are able to be on the move like we are at home. That is to say, a difficult team to beat. We have gained consistency, we are more solid, we are stronger. We believe in ourselves, we have confidence in ourselves. There is a good relationship between the guys. We are a rugby team. Today, even if we don't win the match, I believe we won this. This respect. For me, it can't be measured. I want us to be feared at home but especially outside.
You still have one more step to overcome to make the decision, like in Leinster and here…
This is the reality of great teams. Sometimes you get shaken, and even with one, two or three situations, you manage to score. We are moving forward but we are not a great team yet. We are not in the courtyard of La Rochelle. On the other hand, we are laying the foundations which will ensure that, tomorrow, we will regain. And everywhere. If we continue to work as we do, if we continue with the state of mind that we have, this club will win again soon. We don't yet have this confidence in ourselves, this quality of certain teams but we are progressing. Obviously, I am not satisfied with this point. We'll be happy with that. But when I see where the team was 8 months ago…
This process does not tolerate any relaxation. How do you see the future?
We want to impose our temperament on Michelin and everywhere outside. Now, there is a big match awaiting us on Saturday against Montpellier, a very difficult team to maneuver, especially up front. It is through these meetings and these moments that we grow. We come from so far away.
A word on Sébastien Bézy's decision to touch down, after the siren, to preserve the bonus?
He's right. That's what I told Seb and the locker room. He's right because we didn't have any momentum. We were at home, facing a team that put pressure. We were not safe. The conditions were very difficult, we had to go back 50 meters… I think he's right. Today, it's important to take points everywhere.
