On the eve of the Top 14 final on the pitch of the Vélodrome stadium, Bordelais and Toulouse residents will appear in front of the press this Thursday afternoon to discuss this unprecedented poster, since the UBB will play its first final. The Stadium is its 30th.
The Toulouse players are in place
The Toulouse press conference will begin
Ugo Mola, François Cros, Thomas Ramos, Antoine Dupont are invited to answer questions from journalists.
2:25 p.m. End of the UBB press conference
“Toulouse thwarts almost all the teams”
Lucu: “It’s always good to arrive in a final and be Little Thumb. You can see a lot of things going on over 80 minutes. You never know in advance the outcome of a match. We knows that Toulouse thwarts almost all teams. We showed that we could be capable of responding at times with them. We just want to show that UBB deserves to be in the final and to enter the battle. We are focused on our game and on the quality of the group which is extraordinary.”
On the wait until tomorrow evening
Lamothe: “Playing a final is not every day. Some like to spend time as a team, others prefer to concentrate alone, watch a series…” Lucu: “There are a few games of Coinche. “
Lucu and his love for Marseille
Lucu: “I found the enthusiasm of the supporters for a football match impressive. I found it super beautiful. I spent my time watching the stands. I started following Marseille, we did the “European epic with my brother When I saw that the final was in Marseille, I checked the date. It was additional motivation for me.”
Toulouse? “The best club in the world”
Yoram: “As Max said, we know that Toulouse is a great club. I think it’s the best club in the world. It gives us excitement to be able to play against them tomorrow. Since we were little in Colomiers, we’ve always played against Stade Toulousain It was always good matches with intensity.”
Tameifuna, “it is obviously very important”
Lamothe: “Well, he brings a physical dimension which is very important. He is very good on the ground, crucial in scrum. He is obviously very important to our team.”
Matthieu Jalibert? “He will test himself this afternoon
Lucu: “For Matthieu, the signals were rather positive. He was training away to save time. He will test himself this afternoon and they will make the decision, particularly him and his ability to play a final at 100 % It’s more than normal support. He will see if everything is good. If that’s the case, he can wear number 10. We know his talent, his importance. “It’s a positive point. It changes a lot of things in the game system if it validates the steps.”
“Marking the history of UBB”
Lamothe: “We want to make history and mark the history of UBB.”
“In a match, anything can happen”
Lucu: “It’s clearly a mountain given their season, their track record, their habit of playing these matches. There will be an imbalance in experience. In a match, anything can happen. We will have to unleash all our strength in the battle. In terms of experience, they have more experience than us.”
“We come to win the title”
Lucu: “A lot of expectations, a lot of excitement. We wanted to bring the club to the final, to experience that with this group. It’s the accomplishment of this year’s work. We come to try to have a good final, to win the title.”
Time for the press conference of Bordeaux players
Yannick Bru and Jean-Baptiste Poux finished
“Toulouse is very strong”
Bru: “The injured Toulouse players? They inevitably have scars in the squad. All season, we have seen the consistency of their training. There is not much interest… Toulouse is very strong, whatever its configuration. A strategy that is always painful for the opponent. We focused on ourselves instead, doing what we could do so as not to have any regrets on Saturday morning.
“It’s incomparable”
Bru: “We focus on ourselves. We know the efforts we have made this season. We don’t compare ourselves, it’s incomparable. We talk very little about the opponent. We know that we will have to provide our best performance of the season and consistently, which we are not always capable of doing. Let our players be at their best for an hour and a half. We will see what the rugby gods decide.
“Toulouse looks more like us”
Bru: “Toulouse is more like us. We risk seeing a great match tomorrow evening. The conquest will be very important. It will still be important but we will have a different style of match than last weekend.”
“We carry a philosophy that is closer to the people of Toulouse”
Bru: “We recognize ourselves more in the opponent we are going to face tomorrow, with all the respect we have for them, than in that of Stade Français. It is difficult to play against Stade Français. We hope that it will be a “more positive” match. We carry a philosophy which is closer to the Toulouse residents than to the Ile-de-France residents in terms of play.”
“Jalibert and Tameifuna want to participate in this match”
Bru: “We won a lot of games without Matthieu (Jalibert). We won a few without Ben (Tameifuna), but we prefer to have him with us. They have a big impact on our team. They want to be part of this game. We used every minute of the week to see if it’s possible. It will be the player who decides. Their contribution is important.”
“This group is very relaxed”
Lice: “This group is very relaxed. Compared to our time, we prepared matches differently.” Bru: “It reminds us of nice moments. We shouldn’t have a bad time with them. We tried to spend the weeks with a smile. We know that the work has been done. We have to recover, not be a spectator of the match.”
“We were amazed by the passion of the UBB fans”
Bru: “It was a very cool week. The general public is not super into rugby, so we didn’t feel any additional pressure. We were amazed by the passion that drives the UBB fans. We passed a quiet, discreet week.”
“The players want to play this match”
Lice: “The players want to play this match. The group will put in all the ingredients, physical and mental. We did not manage to stay focused throughout the game against Stade Français. In tomorrow’s match, it will not be the case.” Bru continues: “I hope we will be there in terms of money-time.”
“Fight a very good battle tomorrow”
Bru: “I felt the guys relieved, happy with the performance with just the desire to extend one more week. To deliver a very good battle tomorrow. There is no relief, no pressure, no stress. We know where we are. This generation wants to have maximum fun. They just want to be up to the task.”
A “very short” week and “concerned” players
Bru: “The week was very, very short. I felt no form of pressure on the players. We have a young group, full of energy and freshness. I think the players are concerned.”
Decisions taken this Friday evening
Bru: “We have had very intense weeks. We have trained very little. We know our opponent very well. Everyone knows him very well. We focused on ourselves. We used every day of the week to try to do what could be done. It’s a special match. We will make decisions this evening at the end of training regarding the gray areas.
1:49 p.m. Bru and Poux have arrived
1:45 p.m. Hello everyone !
Welcome to this live to follow the press conference of the Union Bordeaux-Bègles as well as that of Stade Toulousain on the eve of the Top 14 final between the two teams. Kick-off of the press point at 1:45 p.m. with the Bordelais. The Toulouse residents will follow from 4:00 p.m.
