Jean-Baptsite Poux, in charge of the Union Bordeaux-Bègles scrum, was obviously satisfied with his team's victory on the Castres pitch because the Girondin forwards were very efficient in the direct conquest but also in the fight.
What a performance from the UBB forwards. Is this the main satisfaction of this success in Castres?
It was a real test because we took forty points here last year. We had escaped a bit in the physical challenge. We responded this time and we believed in it until the end so we are very satisfied this evening.
Your scrum was particularly efficient…
We knew we were expected and we responded. I think the players were also excited about this match. The players worked well this week and there was a positive atmosphere. They were challenged by the fact that against big teams, against big opposition, we were sometimes in difficulty. There, it went well.
How do you judge the performance of the bench players who kept the team in front?
It's a positive point but we especially had difficulties at the start of the match but we still have a great state of mind with a hard-working group, even if everything doesn't necessarily go well. We saw it again tonight with quite a few changes. There is an emulation in this team which means that we never give up, even if we can miss starts we manage to recover in the second half. Tonight we were in the game from the start. It helped us. We are happy but it will be another step next week.
Winning in Castres at the end of such a performance, will this allow us to find more balance at UBB between the forwards and the three-quarters?
it will help us. We are a dynamic team and our opponents are trying to take us in front, in the showdown. This evening, we responded so it's positive but it's not over. We know that Toulon will pose other problems for us next weekend and we will have to find answers. But we were also good in defense even if everything was not perfect but it shows that our team is not giving up.
Your competitors like Toulouse lost here. Is this a victory that will count as a valuable bonus?
That's for sure, but above all, given our ambitions, we can't miss too much. But it will be the same against Toulon, who are a team in great shape at the moment, especially since the preparation week is going to be special. We're enjoying it but we'll have to quickly re-mobilize.
