We have already written dozens, hundreds, even thousands of lines about Baptiste Serin. And yet. At a time when all of Toulon is mourning the absence of Charles Ollivon, “Bapi” is the leader to whom all eyes are turning. Again and again.
This genius rugby player, capable of playing a low for himself in a telephone booth, of dropping a diagonal to the foot of his winger from the top of the Faron, of sending a 40-meter chistera or of arguing with the widest from the third row of the team opposite.
It’s especially this guy behind who, when Toulon is doing badly, when Toulon is pale, when Toulon is looking for itself, the whole team rests. Whether we accept it or not, there is indeed an RCT with Baptiste Serin, and one without.
David Ribbans, its captain, details its importance: “On the pitch, we know what he can do when he has the ball in his hands. He gives us a lot of energy with [Il mime, hilare, toutes les positions dans lesquelles il peut faire des passes]. But the most important thing, for Baptiste and me, is to lead this team. He is immense in his role as leader. He’s someone who played for the national team, at the highest level, who was captain… He’s essential for the team.”
South Africa before the happy event
Baptiste Serin has experienced more or less classic weeks of rugby in his career. But the latter, without a doubt, had a particular flavor for the scrum half. At the end of December, he became a father for the first time.
SO? He says, with a broad smile: “I’m not going to deviate from the rule: it’s a happy event, an incredible moment to experience.”
Does he still sleep so much? He laughs: “For the moment, he’s not bothering us too much. Well, for two or three days, a little more. But it’s great. Everyone is doing well and that’s the main thing. As for rugby , we will say that I try to pay more attention to myself, to my body, because we waste a little more energy at home (smile).”
Although he did not play in Bordeaux to attend the birth of his child, Baptiste Serin experienced, three weeks earlier, a special moment in South Africa (the week of December 7).
If his friend Leicester Fainga’anuku had been left to rest to be with his wife, who is also pregnant, the scrum-half must have made the trip.
He says: “When I took the plane, I wasn’t too calm. The baby could arrive that week. Finally, we had a crucial appointment and my wife told me that it wouldn’t be for this week, so it freed me a little. Everything went well until the match in Bordeaux. [le 28 décembre]where I was obviously a little more stressed than usual since I wasn’t playing. But everything is fine now!”
His trainer, Pierre Mignoni, confirms, everything is fine: “I find him very connected with the progress of the team. That is to say that the team is progressing, but so is he. You will tell me that he is always flamboyant, with his talent, but on leadership , the way of having control over the team, of managing the strong times and the weak times, I find him improving.”
Liberated in his head, natural leader and as decisive as ever on the pitch, Baptiste Serin has everything to lead this Toulon to the top.
