Pro D2 – The thousand and one lives of Boris Bouhraoua, the new manager of Biarritz

• The first steps at RC Bonneval

“I come from Eure-et-Loir. From three or four years old, I followed my father, who created the club and who played rugby at regional level. With my two brothers, Terry and Lou, we have always been on a rugby field. During the week, I had school but I still went to see my father at training. I was at the edge of the pitch, then in the locker room from five to ten years old, with the adults, screaming. It was great to hear the sound of the crampons. These are things that have always driven me and which make me who I am today. I am very proud to have participated in the amateur world, it is real rugby, the one that does not deceive, the one where there are sincere relationships between the players and with the staff. I love that world.”

• Discovering the professional world in Brive (2000-2004)

“At home, there was no rugby, except in Lakanal. I went to study sports in Ussel. I was supported by my family, I tried the adventure and I signed for Brive, which is my training club. It was the discovery of the high level and the gateway to the childhood dream that I had, that of becoming a professional rugby player. There was still the Challenge Sud Radio, Brive had moved up to the Top 16 and I was part of the professional group. Well, afterwards, I collected the crumbs, like a young 18-year-old player.”

• Arrival at the same time as Caucaunibuca in Agen (2004-2005)

“I was at the training center, in the professional group. I was on the third nine, Mathieu Barrau played a few matches with the French team, that allowed me to do a little less than ten sheets with the pros. Two years earlier, the SUA was in the Top 16 final. There were legendary players. I arrived there the same year as Rupeni Caucaunibuca. There was Gelez, Elhorga, Bonetti… I was trained by Lanta, Deylaud. It was extraordinary.”

• The France VII parenthesis (2004-2005)

“As I am in the professional group of Agen, but I do not play too much, Thierry Janeczek calls me. Before, you went to VII when you weren’t playing to XV. There weren’t fourteen professionals like now. I play tournaments in Dubai, South Africa… Before that, I played France U18 with Shaun Hegarty and Marc Baget. It’s great to find them there.”

• The Stade Bordeaux, just before the UBB (2005-2006)

“I left for Stade Bordeaux because I wanted more playing time with the professionals. This is the last year before UBB. We were in the top three of Pro D2, it was the first time I was on all the match sheets. I continued, I discovered the pressure of results. It really launched me into the senior world. Stade Bordeaux was, at the same time, professional on the level, but very amateurish in the approach. It was a great human club. We were coached by Patrick Laporte and Vergé.”

• With Dal Maso in Limoges (2006-2008)

“I liked the speech by Marc Dal Maso, who is a great technician. He was looking for a young newbie. He taught me a lot. I did two full years. In addition, Limoges brought me closer to certain friends from Brive. It’s very rugby there. There was a big audience. It was in Limoges that I started coaching rugby school. This Pro D2 championship was already, at the time, very attractive.”

• Bobigny to get closer to family (2008-2013)

“I was coming out of Pro D2. Going to Federal 1 was a way of understanding that rugby was starting to perform less well. I couldn’t stay in Pro D2. I realize that I need to do something else. I’m getting my diplomas, the BE, the DES. I was also sports director of the Bobigny training center. We played the climb with the team, we made the quarter-finals twice. I’m doing five years 100%, the goal was to play. During my time there, I immersed myself in the multicultural side of Paris. There were lots of people from the Basque Country or the Landes, police officers, PE teachers. There was a huge mix between the Parisians of Bobigny and the provincials. It made a great mix.”

• The Algerian selection (2010-2018)

“In Pro D2, I have this desire to play at international level. My grandfather was born in Algeria. It gives me the right to play for the selection. I had the chance to play for eight years for Algeria, I then coached them at VII and XV. It’s a matter of great pride. I am lucky to have this dual culture, I wanted to highlight it through rugby. Rugby is a passport that allows you to travel, to meet people, to play with different people.”

• Rugby in New Zealand…

“At 30, I went to New Zealand for three seasons. I had been around, a bit of Top 16 when I was young, a lot of Pro D2 and Federal 1. I told myself that I had been around French rugby. I wanted a new challenge. I headed off into the unknown, with my bag, to play at Napier Old Boys Marist. When you get there, the deal is simple. If I’m good, I play in one. Otherwise in teams of two, three or four. I’m doing three seasons first. For the record, Brad Weber, who I met last year at Stade Français, comes from this club. Except that Brad played in Super Rugby, because he was very good. If he hadn’t played in Super Rugby, he would have been in the Napier Old Boys squad, so suffice to say that I wouldn’t have played much (laughs).

• …and catering to earn a living (2014-2017)

“Besides that, I had to work, because rugby is amateur. There is money for Super Rugby. It opened my eyes to real life, because I had been a professional rugby player my whole life before that. Apart from playing rugby, I hadn’t done much. I worked in catering, with three months of diving. I didn’t speak English. The boss told me that as soon as I spoke a little English, I would go into the room. I started with one day of service per week, then three days, before switching to full weeks of service. Two years later, I was manager of the bar-restaurant. It was a huge experience. We had to find the right balance between work and training. My time in New Zealand is instrumental to who I am today as a human and how I coach rugby. I was able to coach at Napier Boys’ School with Brendon Ratcliffe. I was already interested in training. I asked him if I could come and observe him during a session. He answered me: “No, you’re not going to come watch me, you’re going to come train with me.” It was a Tuesday afternoon, I remember. It was gone…”

• Progress on the Paris bench (2019-2024)

“As soon as I stopped playing, Stade Français called me to coach the juniors. Paris is the club we went to see when I was a kid. There was Dominici. My brother, Terry, played there. I had the diplomas, the desire. It was an honor to join this club. I coached the junior offense for two years. The third year, I became manager and sports director of the training center for two seasons. The fifth year, I kept these caps and I also became an assistant with the professionals. I had an extraordinary year in terms of experience. I learned a lot with the hopes, because the level is very unstable. You never have the same guys, sometimes they are at the top, other times with you… When Karim Ghezal and Laurent Labit were at the World Cup, Laurent asked me to join the professional staff with Paul Gustard. It was only supposed to be temporary work, but it worked out. Karim wanted me to stay all year. It happened several times that I overtook, Saturday with the professionals, Sunday with the hopefuls. It’s been a very busy, but rich, year. It ends in apotheosis with a direct qualification for the semi-final and there is great disillusionment in Bordeaux, at Matmut.”

• Biarritz and the “raison d’être” (since June 2024)

“I am truly passionate about rugby. The BO refers to the Brennus, the European finals, the very high goals, the great players across all generations. I would like to bring them together, so that the players can talk to all the former glories of this club. When management calls me to offer me an interview, I know this club very well as a rugby fan. There, I feel like I have a mission. Arnaud Dubois and Shaun Hegarty are meeting me in Biarritz. I have three or four days to prepare a project. I’m sending everything I have in my heart to show them the project, if I ever have to pilot it. This is based on state of mind and performance. I have a reason for being, I know why I coach: to give happiness to the people who are around the club. I also want performance for the players and the team. The project revolves around club culture, Basque culture and performance. How can we be the best in Pro D2? Rugby is a mix of work and humility. These are the values ​​that I try to transmit to our group. I am very happy with the dynamic of the group, which I feel powerful.
My new life? It’s going very well. I have a fairly calm character, I try to be very conscious of what we do. When you have your head in the handlebars, it’s very hard to gain height, that’s why I work with Fred Noirot, my personal coach. I am aware of the mission we have and I am in phase with the staff and the players. It allows me not to be stressed. I want to perform well. The weeks pass very quickly. My granddaughter, Billie, started bilingual school. It alternates between two days of French and Basque. My partner, Marie, is here too. It’s important to find family balance. My father, mother and brothers got me into rugby. Today, my partner and my daughter support me. It is thanks to my family that I can make my passion my profession. It’s a huge opportunity.”