how the nugget faces a difficult season II to manage

“I already had my feet on the ground during my first season.” The response came forth. Like one of his interval shots. Less used during important Toulouse matches at the start of the season, Paul Costes must manage the year of confirmation, “the hardest for a young person”, and which he was not necessarily aware of at the start, despite warnings. But the young 21-year-old center has crazy talent, wants to “react” and intends to show it during the doubles period which begins this Saturday against Montpellier.

10 matches played for Paul Costes, but…

U20 world champion in 2023, author of a very high-level first professional performance, Paul Costes has played 10 matches, but almost none important with Toulouse this season (only 25 minutes against Ulster in the Champions Cup, Editor's note). Arnaud's son had difficulty restarting the machine, and at the same time he saw Pierre-Louis Barassi explode everything in his path. And as everything moves very quickly in high-level sport, the Toulouse staff have used their services less.

Paul Costes comes up against a wall, and with a certain logic: confirmation season. “It’s not easy for any young person,” emphatically emphasizes 3/4 coach Clément Poitrenaud. “Year II is always difficult. The first year, it's just a permanent bonus. Somehow it's quite easy to deal with mentally. There, Paul's status changed. The opponents also have a different look at him.”

“The first season, we're not going to say that it's easier, but we are in a position where we are an outsider, where we have everything to gain,” recognizes Paul Costes. And the person concerned admits that even when warned by many people, he had not realized that it would be so hard to apprehend: “Now, I am completely aware of it,” he says.

Questioning

A boy with character, Paul Costes takes it but doesn't break. “I had a real questioning this summer. I try to react to things that I can control. Instead of getting more and more frustrated, I try to focus on what I am able to change. I am young, I am still in the process of assimilation and the experience of learning to manage this second season: I think that this will be useful to me in the future.”

Clément Poitrenaud also recognizes that the staff “raised the demand slider” regarding Paul Costes. “It’s normal. It's a little more difficult for him at the moment, but he remains this player of temperament, of talent, and we are counting on him a lot, especially from now on and this start of the doubles.

Paul Costes, who has set himself “new objectives” which he tries to “apprehend with serenity and vigilance”, for his part shared this observation: “The less you think about a field, the more you try to play with your instincts and spontaneously, the more likely you are to bring out the real you.” The real Paul Costes back this Saturday against Montpellier, where he will start for the occasion?

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