In the middle of Rowing's good period, third in the championship before hosting Toulouse (1st) this Sunday (9:05 p.m.), the statistic went somewhat unnoticed. Bayonne is also the third best attack in the championship in terms of the number of tries scored (28, or 3.5 per match). Unsurprisingly, the two leaders are ahead, in the reverse order of their ranking this time: UBB (2nd) is in the lead with 39 tries (4.88 per match), ahead of Toulouse (32 tries, 4 per match). match).
If we only take into account the last five meetings, which coincide with the revival of Grégory Patat's men (four victories, an improved defeat in Bordeaux), the figure is even more flattering. The Basques charge 21 tries, as many as Stade Toulousain, and only one less than Bordeaux-Bègles (22). Note that the two favorites of the championship were able to count on the stalemate of an opponent to score in a match – 8 tries for Toulouse last weekend against Toulon, 10 for UBB against Perpignan three weeks earlier – which is not the case for Bayonne.
Order, trust and DNA
Is this offensive momentum the result of a new orientation or simply the consequence of the rise in power of Camille Lopez and her teammates? The captain opts for the second option. “It follows from the rest. We all play rugby to have fun and have fun. In the last matches, this is the case because we are doing good things offensively, but also because we are respecting the fundamentals. We do things well. If you don't have guys who ruck properly, you can't play rugby. Today, we are quite consistent in all sectors. It allows us to play games.”
And as this game produced leads to positive results, it reassures the Bayonnais in their choice. Including mentally. “We win and we perform well so obviously we are a little more confident, a little more relaxed,” says third row Baptiste Chouzenoux. So we launch things that work. It works for now, so much the better. »
“The attack is the identity, the DNA of this club. The young people we train are more often three-quarters than forwards”
For Grégory Patat, the explanation also lies in the genetic heritage of rowing. “It’s the identity, the DNA of this club,” recalls the manager. There is a big appetite for attack, unstructured play, reading space… The young players we train are more often three-quarters than forwards. So this is just the consequence of them. »
“Don’t do anything”
Aviron Bayonnais in “All Basks” mode and Sireli Maqala top try scorer (6) in the championship: the odds were high last August. This obviously does not mean that we must attack all the balls and rush headlong like headless chickens. “We have waste, because playing games and trying things leads to waste, but the important thing is to maintain control and know how to sort the actions,” insists Lopez.
“We don’t want to do anything,” adds his manager. We want to play the situations if they are there. You should not overplay. » Especially against Toulouse who were brilliant on recovery balls. An area that the Bayonnais master rather well, like Xan Mousquès' first try, last Saturday in Lyon (38-49), on a hundred-meter action enhanced by a major interval catch from Guillaume Martocq. “This action is 50-50,” says Patat. At the start, on the scrum in our ten meters, Cassiem is put under pressure by the opposing nine. » The line between a stroke of genius and disaster is sometimes tiny.
The likely team
Orabé – T. Spring, Tuilagi, Maqala, Mousquès – (o) Lopez (c), (m) Machenaud – Chouzenoux, Habel-Küffner, Bruni – Moon, Iturria – Tagi, Bosch, Cormenier. Probable substitutes : Martin, Bordelai, Paulos, Heguy, B. Germain, Segonds, Martocq, Cotet.
