The players of the Vertou club are preparing to experience a great adventure. They take off this Monday, November 25, in the evening, for Reunion Island. Twelve hours of flight and in sight an 8th round of the French Cup, Sunday December 1, against Saint-Denis FC. Vertou plays in N3, one division above the Réunionnais.
“The weather is nice, 27 degrees”
“We looked at the weather. It’s nice there, 27 degrees. It’s going to be fine”announced under a little Vertavian drizzle this Monday morning Thomas Boucard. But be careful, warns the defender “It's not a vacation! We're going there to play a big match and bring back the qualifier!”
In their suitcase, most players confide, they first thought of the Football outfit: jerseys, shorts, crampons. But, they also slipped the flip flops, the sunscreen and the swimsuit. “I know there is a swimming pool at the hotel, but it's not the priority. It's still the terrain, but hey, if we can squeeze in a little beach or a little jump in the swimming pool, we're not going to deny ourselves anything”, admits the captain Fabien Jarsalé.
These players will spend a week together when normally, their trainer Yvonnick Sidaner reminds him during the week “They all work, they only see each other for training. Apart from the bus trips on Saturdays which create a bit of conviviality or the pre-season training camp, we don't have time to share many moments between players .” “These are moments that we will surely experience only once, it is an experience that we must live to the fullest”, estimated Abdoulahi Diaby.
“It builds a group”
For the young attacker, “It’s an adventure that will stay with everyone. We’re going to have lots of memories.” His trainer is not going to contradict him, he who in 2012as a player was on the move from Vertou to Martinique, then as assistant coach, in 2015 in Reunion. “It builds a group. With the generation of 2012, we remained very close. Twelve years later, we still talk about it very often.”
After having digested the twelve hours of flight, the players must train for the first time on Reunion Island, Wednesday November 27. Just to get used to the temperatures, much higher than those currently in mainland France. Some supporters plan to travel for Sunday's match. The federation pays for the stay of 23 people. The team's senior players decided to raise money to offer travel to two injured teammates.
A call from Étoile Maritime studied on the road to the airport
Let us remember that the preparations for this trip were not easy. While they were still in the mini-buses to reach the airport, in the Paris region, the federation was studying theappeal made by Étoile Maritime. The Charente-Maritime club contested the decision taken a few days earlier in favor of the Vertavians. The latter, although beaten during the penalty shootout in the 7th round, had recovered the ticket for the 8th round, due to an invalid license of an Étoile Maritime player. As a result of this imbroglio and the Vertou draft, the Saint-Philbert-de-Grandlieu club (N3) does not play in Reunion, but will welcome Pau, a Ligue 2 club. After this 8th round, it's time for the weekend of December 21-22 for the 32nd finals with the entry of Ligue 1 clubs.
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