If they should not normally face Argentina, barring last minute injury among the 23 chosen, five players will remain with the XV of France until the match on Friday. Initially, these reservists had to join their club to participate in the Top 14 matches this weekend. Ultimately it won’t be the case. Explanations.
We know the names of the (un)lucky people chosen for this meeting between France and Argentina, these reservists of the French XV who will stay with the Blues until Friday, even if they are not included on the match sheet. , to compensate for a possible last minute package. There are five of them, as provided for in the agreement which regulates exchanges with clubs and according to our information, their names are Régis Montagne (Clermont), Léo Berdeu (Lyon), Grégory Alldritt (La Rochelle), Maxime Lucu (UBB ) and Maxmime Lamothe (UBB).
At other times, this announcement was innocuous and generally ignored. Not this week, for a simple reason: the scheduling of this France-Argentina, Friday evening (9:10 p.m.), technically allows these reserve players to participate in the weekend’s meetings in the Top 14. That’s what the managers of the clubs, Monday. It remained to know the legal possibility of such an enterprise. It is here that the exchanges were nourished, throughout the beginning of the week, between the LNR and the FFR. To reach a firm decision: no reservist will play this weekend with their club. Without right pass.
What do these texts say, then? Not much, in fact, except a gray area that everyone could interpret as they wanted. Or rather, a possible double reading: if the call-up of players in blue runs until Saturday morning, which leaves them technically available for their clubs and their matches from Saturday afternoon, the FFR-LNR convention poses it an international period lasting until Sunday. To see this clearly, the LNR (National Rugby League) therefore sent an official request to the FFR, at the beginning of the week, to confirm (or not) the availability of these five players. A request to which the staff of the XV of France chose to respond favorably on Tuesday evening.
The FFR and the LNR align their position, despite differences
In plain language? At this time of the week Alldritt, Berdeu, Montagne, Lucu and Lamothe were actually available to their club, from Saturday morning. In Bordeaux, for example, we were counting on the presence of Maxime Lucu and Maxime Lamothe for the trip to Vannes. Especially since this match, scheduled for Saturday evening (9:05 p.m.), left time to transport the two players to Brittany, from Paris, without urgency. And this is precisely what will end up blocking…
On Wednesday, we learned from the League that the five reserve players would ultimately not be authorized to play. In question, a situation of unfairness between the teams, depending on whether their match takes place on Saturday afternoon or Saturday evening, and their ease of being able to benefit from these key players. Faced with this imbalance, the LNR has therefore decided: reserve players are not authorized to participate in Top 14 matches this weekend, for the 10th day of this competition. the organizer of the championship. Clermont, Lyon, La Rochelle and UBB will therefore not take advantage of their player(s) on this occasion. An FFR-LNR press release should confirm this in the coming hours, with both institutions keen to display an image of good understanding. This will be the end point of an imbroglio which strained the start of the week and relations between the clubs and the French XV, where the vague situation irritated several managers of the Top 14.
Jalibert, like a shadow over the reservists
If the subject of reservists animated the week, it is also because of their status, the one which has caused so much ink to flow in recent days around the Matthieu Jalibert case. The Bordelais had refused the omen, before the match against New Zealand, judging it too far from his aspirations for a player who legitimately applied for a starting place at the opening for this tour, what is more in the absence of Romain Ntamack. Jalibert then preferred to return to Gironde. He was not recalled last weekend among the 42 players who prepared all week for this match against Argentina.
On this subject, coach Fabien Galthié cut short, this Wednesday at a press conference announcing the composition, a controversy that he himself had sparked a week earlier. “No controversy around Jalibert. He needs to regenerate. There are players in the France group who have other needs, we support them.” Last Thursday, before facing New Zealand and when commenting on this information, he was less protective. “It’s their choice, everyone is free to experience their emotions, to share them. We need determination, strong players. […] He will continue in the French team… if he wishes.”
