While the problems linked to alcohol in Rugby have pushed the authorities to bang their fists on the table, Matt Giteau recounted his setbacks during his discovery of pastis…
Matt Giteau spent six seasons at RC Toulon. With three European championship titles (2013, 2014, 2015) and a Top 14 coronation. The former Australian international also had the time to discover local customs, helped by his teammates, first and foremost Frédéric Michalak. Just a few days after his arrival in France, the Sydney native was able to discover pastis through the care of the former Toulouse native.
“Fred poured me this drink. He told me, you'll see, it's good. After 3 glasses, I was dead. It was horrible. I don't like it. I never drank it again,” said Matt Giteau during a live on the Rugby Club Toulonnais Twitch channel. And pastis isn't the only French drink the former Wallaby struggles with. This is evidenced by his comments on wine. “In France, I find wine weird, especially when it’s too red. For me, it’s disgusting”he continued.
Retired since this winter but removed from the field since the summer of 2021 the end of his adventure in the United States, where he played for a season in Los Angeles, winner of Major League Rugby, Matt Giteau does not only have bad memories from Toulon. Quite the contrary. “I owe so much to the RCT and to French rugby because I rediscovered my love for the game there. I won so many titles in Toulon, two of my three children were born there… It also allowed me to reach 100 caps with Australia because I was part of a wonderful team”he recently confided in the columns of Midi-Olympique.
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