Questioned at a press conference, the captain of Stade Toulouse Antoine Dupont evokes the clash announced against the English Leicester, who can steal second in the group from Toulouse. The scrum half of the XV of France believes that his esteem will have to take Leicester on its strengths.
In what physical state of fatigue are you after these two long journeys, these successive thermal shocks? Did you prefer one direction or the other?
I had it harder on the way out than on the way back. The heat, obviously, is very hard to bear. You get used to the cold quickly and it's less bothersome on the physiological side. I feel better now than last week. I think most of the team also felt good given the training we had on Wednesday which went well. I hope we will be in good shape on Sunday too.
You lacked precision in finishing in Durban, how did you solve this problem?
In fact, we were able to do the most complicated thing, which was to cross the line, to arrive close to the goal line. Scoring was almost the easiest but we didn't manage to do it. Obviously, it's damaging, but it's rather encouraging for the future in the sense that there are no major changes to be made, other than more concentration, application, a little more patience also at times and above all keeping what we were able to do which was super positive against the Sharks.
We know that this Leicester team has improved its game. How can we face this type of team, which we know is formidable on high balls, occupation at the foot, power, precision of the foot play, physical density of its three-quarter line?
The first thing will be to answer on their strengths, to be able to face them where they are best. You said it, particularly on the physical density in their three-quarter line, the quality of their kicking game, the quality of their aerial game. If we don't compete in these sectors, we know that it will be complicated behind. And then we will have to be able to put our game in place which, we know, when we put the right ingredients in, works against any team. But first we will have to compete where they are best.
Before the match in Durban, Ugo Mola spoke about the initiatory path of Stade Toulouse this season. Where are you on this path?
The road is still long. We will switch back to the Top 14 next week. As we say every time, the group matches of this Champions Cup are extremely important for the future. When we see the impact that the classification can have on the fact of receiving or not the final phases, even if we do not understand much about the way in which the teams are classified, it is difficult to find the logic. We have to comply and therefore try to score as many points as possible in each match. We will then have time to concentrate on the opponent we will have in the eighth. Then, we will enter a period of duplication which will be, as we know, like every crucial year. This is often where the gaps are made, where the teams dip or on the contrary rise in the ranking in a championship which is truncated by absences due to the Tournament.
-UBB has had a truly remarkable run in the European Cup. Does this course stimulate you?
Yes of course. Every time there is a team that performs well, that has good results, we want to compete against it. We want to show that we can compete, that we can be better. So much the better that Bordeaux is at this level. It pushes us, and it also pushes the other teams. This also shows that French rugby is also performing on the European scene. Good for them and good for us. It will push us until the end of the season, I hope.
At the end of this weekend, you will possibly have played more in the Champions Cup than in the Top 14. Is this normal or is it the result of choice with the staff?
It wasn't really a choice. It happened like that. For example, I was supposed to play the match against Racing on the way back from the tour but I had shoulder pain. Then I had a week off after the Champions Cup. I was supposed to play at Stade Français but I had the flu. And the trip to La Rochelle, we couldn't send everyone because we were leaving for South Africa the next day… So it's not necessarily a desire neither of me, nor of the staff, that I also play little in Top 14 lately. I hope it will bring me luck at the end of the season and that I will have more freshness. Those are the positives, but the downside is that I may have missed a bit of rhythm at the Sharks as well because of that last weekend.
We are entering a sensitive period in terms of injuries. Do you find that these long journeys, these thermal shocks weaken you?
It is certain that it is not optimal for the body to make movements like that, nor to play a match with 30 degrees of separation. There is nothing optimal, as I said. But once again, we're in it. We do what we can in prevention, in preparation, in warm-ups, in treatment, in recovery, to try to be the best possible and protect our integrity every weekend. The best way to avoid getting injured is to commit 200% and try not to think about it.
