After another laborious outing and this victory at the last minute against the Toulouse C team, the international wanted to reassure his supporters.
Hell was promised to the Toulouse kids and it is La Rochelle which is not that far from hell…
I don’t have much experience yet but it looked like a trap match. First of all, we must avoid promising hell to anyone. A little humility… On the other hand, I agree with you on the fact that we have not gone far from… perhaps not from being corrected but from losing at home. We need to focus more on ourselves. I feel like we have all the keys to success but we can’t find the lock.
Is there any concern?
No, that’s not the right term. There is a desire to resolve this. Without being nostalgic, I think we all have in mind this period two or three years ago – and I’m not saying it’s over – when we were conquerors. Where we managed to find solutions in this type of trap match. We have this experience where things worked out for us. There, we have the desire to find solutions. Nobody is worried. We are all still enthusiastic and we all have the desire to move forward. Afterwards, we remain lucid, we know that things are not happening like two, three years ago. We’re not burying our heads in the sand, but no one is giving up. The result, against Toulouse, was not what we hoped for because we really wanted to put on a great show and win in style.
Doesn’t the content spoil the celebration of the hundredth consecutive sell-out in the Top 14 at Deflandre, precisely?
We are perfectionists. One hundred sold-out matches, in the history of a club, is exceptional and we would have liked to offer something very great to our supporters. It’s not even for us because, quote, we have four points. But we wanted to convey joy to all the people who follow us every weekend, all the people who travel, who pay for their Canal or stadium subscriptions. I’m very happy when all these people come or invest their time and money to support us. It’s true that things are not going well at the moment but I would like to express all our gratitude and that we want to do the best for our supporters.
Do you understand the questions about your abilities to achieve your double goal?
Know that we are the first to be frustrated. So far, it is certain that we have not shown the best image. If we had the solution, it would be a lot simpler… But we have the will to win. When we go outside, at no time do we think that we are in a dead end. That’s really not the idea. On the contrary. We are very keen to correct this.
Is Toulouse even more “scary” after this match where its tank is growing even more?
Fear, no. I have respect for the young people, they had the will to win and they did everything to do so. It means almost nothing that they tie. I remember that a few years ago, when we sent a team a bit like this away, it was difficult to put in good performances. They get there. They are working in this direction. It’s also good that they are rewarded.
