the essential
Following the announcement, during the break, of his departure from SU Agen at the end of the season, the Welshman speaks out and reveals the reasons, also discussing his near future far from Lot-et-Garonne.
“Yes, I will leave the club. » Barry Maddocks confirmed this Monday. The day after the resumption, the Welshman himself announced his departure from the SUA at the end of the season, two years after his arrival from Biarritz. The three-quarter coach plays transparency in order to silence the rumors circulating everywhere about his case.
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“The club needed a quick response, and we agreed to come to this solution,” explains Maddocks, eager to take his time. “I haven’t yet decided on my future, and I’m giving myself time to think about it. » However, the SUA had the desire to continue the adventure with the Briton.
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“We had built with him, and we made him a medium-term offer, but that’s the lot of the high level. The most important thing is that Barry’s departure is without conflict, as with Martin Devergie. It is not linked to the project, nor to the human. There is no problem,” adds Sébastien Calvet.
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“It’s better this year than last year”
The premature end of this adventure leaves Barry Maddocks with “regrets”. “It was not an easy decision to make. It was even very difficult. There were a lot of good people at the club, whether it was Jean-François Fonteneau, Thomas Léger, but also the staff,” notes the Welshman, thanking everyone for “this very good experience.”
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“Séb’, Dave Ryan, Rémi Vaquin, Adel Fellah… I came from a club where there were a lot of English speakers. Here, there are only French people. This pushed me to work on my French. It was very difficult work, but I am grateful to them. » With Bernard Goutta, then Ryan and Calvet, Maddocks will have had three head coaches in two years.
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With them, he also admits having taken “a little time” to develop his offensive method. “It can’t be done in six months… It obviously takes time, and it’s better this year than last year. Our offense is much better. »
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So, when it comes to making his wishes for the coming year, the Welshman wants to be quite clear again. “I would like to play in the finals. The team is strong enough to be in the top 6.” It would be a good way to end this adventure in a good way.
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Before heading off to another challenge? The name of Nice, where Jean-Baptiste Aldigé is, is widely circulating, but the coach of the three-quarters of Agen denies any agreement and only mentions “possible things”. “There is nothing done. I have several options. I will take the time to think and choose. Maybe I will still have other opportunities…”
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A future which will therefore lie far from Lot-et-Garonne, which upsets Sébastien Calvet. “Jean-François Fonteneau told me to make the effort to meet the staff from last year. With Barry, I got to know a remarkable man. We are going to lose an important element and a beautiful person,” regrets the Tarn-et-Garonnais, now looking for his successor. “It’s annoying, because we would have been in continuity with Barry. But we are adapting, and I am not worried about our ability to find a replacement. »
