The defending champion traveled to South Africa for the first time since the integration of that country’s provinces, to face the Sharks on Saturday. A unique “pilgrimage” with a time of contemplation in Cape Town, in all modesty, where Medhi Narjissi disappeared last summer.
It is a “headache” that French clubs are facing for the third season, since the South African provinces joined European competitions. For the first time, Stade Toulouse found itself concerned and had to organize itself accordingly, in the manner of a victorious RCT of the Stormers in Port-Elizabeth a little over a month ago, which had led people to say to Ugo Mola: “Congratulations to Toulon and to Pierre Mignoni who prepared the match very well.” The Var technician had counted on an extremely special week, with little rugby and a lot of additional activities (safari, township visit, etc.) to immerse himself in the place and strengthen cohesion. Which bore fruit. Ideally, the Toulouse staff had thought about a similar program, in order to blend into the local environment and take the opportunity to break away from the usual routine. An unthinkable plan nonetheless, at least in Durban, where the Rouge et Noir will face the Sharks this Saturday (4:15 p.m. French time), because of the restrictions – particularly health restrictions – relayed by the EPCR (organizer of the Champions Cup). Recommendations that the club has obviously chosen to respect. In this sense, the Toulouse leaders were able to discuss with their counterparts from Exeter, whom they faced during the second day of this 2024-2025 edition, and take advice from them, who had gone to Durban the previous week.
Medhi Narjissi on everyone’s minds
Once the schedule was known, the Toulouse decision-makers decided to take advantage of this trip to South Africa to make a detour to Cape Town where the club tragically lost one of its members last summer. Reference to the dramatic disappearance at sea of young Medhi Narjissi, aged 17, swept away by the waves on the dangerous beach of Dias Beach on August 7, while he was on tour with the French under-18 team . “We planned to stay the full week in South Africaexplained President Didier Lacroix at the microphone of South Radio early December. This will allow us to give a nod to a country that touched us and that touched one of us last summer. We will go and spend some time there.” Until then a resident of the Crabos, the son of the former hooker Jalil Narjissi was to move to the hopefuls during the current exercise and, a sign of destiny, to evolve alongside the many promising Stade players who shone in La Rochelle on Saturday, snatching a valuable defensive bonus point. Cyril Baille, captain of an experimental team returning from injury, did not fail to allude to it: “I have a big thought for the Narjissi family, from the bottom of my heart, because we were with young people of the same generation as him.”
First training Wednesday
Although the vast majority of executives were not in the larger group sent to Charente-Maritime, staff and players returned to Toulouse overnight on a specially chartered plane (which was due to take off before midnight!). Then it was a contingent of forty-nine people – including around thirty players – who left the pink city on Sunday evening, around 9 p.m., heading first to Paris Charles-de-Gaulle airport. , before boarding a flight to Johannesburg. Then to go to Cape Town on Monday, where Ugo Mola’s troupe stayed for around thirty hours during which the institution, like the men, voluntarily showed extreme modesty when it came time to proceed on Tuesday to a time of contemplation near the scene of the tragedy. No official communication from the club has been made around any tribute, no photos have been released, nor are there any publications from players on their social networks. The moment was intimate and the idea was that this “pilgrimage” remains only shared internally. Tuesday evening, the Toulouse residents finally arrived in Durban, where they took up residence in the hotel chosen by the EPCR. For the reasons mentioned above, no outings were planned outside of training. The first took place on Wednesday on the grounds of a nearby university. At best, three sessions were scheduled during the week, including the start this Friday, before Saturday’s shock. The Stadistes will still sleep there the evening of the match, before taking off for France on Sunday. With, they hope, maximum points in their baggage…
