The Racing 92 assistant coach regretted the lack of consistency in his team. He expects an immediate awakening, to receive the French champion Toulouse in five days.
How do you view this poor performance?
We were in the match for twenty minutes and then they managed to get past us, to do off-loads. We ran behind them, we looked at them too much. In the 65th minute, we woke up a little and they, given their lead, lowered their intensity a little. We knew how to take advantage of it. But it's a very frustrating match. It was the derby, we had put the emphasis on it, and we didn't live up to it. It's very frustrating.
Your defense has shown surprising signs of weakness…
We were a little too busy in the rucks, and in defensive traffic, we were a little wait-and-see. We looked at them too much, which created discrepancies. We also expected a more direct game from them, and even if there was some, they mainly managed to pass, and particularly in defense, which put us in difficulty. We must congratulate them, given the pressure they had on their shoulders.
In terms of attitudes, we felt your players were a little inside. Do you share this opinion?
In a match, it can take two or three tries, but the most important thing is to never give up. And we had the impression that sometimes we were lowering our weapons. That's the most disappointing thing. I hope it's just a poor performance and that with an adjustment we'll be there next week. Because if we take forty points at the Stade Français, without disrespecting them, what will it be like against Toulouse? We'll have to wake up quickly.
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And what's good about rugby, and particularly in our championship, is that we can put the dots on the “i”s the following week. Our work week will be short, since we will play on Saturday. To tell you the truth, we are going to return to this match on Monday. We were supposed to do it on Tuesday, but we need to gain time to prepare for the arrival of Toulouse. You have to wake up.
After a match like this, during which no rebellion seemed possible, do you think you suffer from a lack of leadership in your team?
Necessarily. We focus a lot on this sector. But in recent years, we have suffered a lack of consistency. We have two or three good matches and then we lower our vigilance in the fourth. This is what Stuart Lancaster is trying to provide, in terms of personal development. Be good players, but also determined men.
