the essential
He had done a stint at the end of last season. Finally, the winger officially leaves Stade Français to return to the club that made him grow. To the great delight of everyone, starting with him.
The Tarn-et-Garonnais will finally get down to business after very long weeks of preparation. It was time to find that adrenaline of the field, and of the result. The players say they are ready, like Stéphane Ahmed. In just a few games last season, he showed that he had lost none of his enormous qualities that had caught the eye of a Top 14 club. The one who arrived as a medical joker is now in “green and black”.
A return to his roots that he rightly relishes: “I was obviously really happy to play the last matches of last season here. We managed to keep the club in the final moments. That was the main thing. Today, I’m back in the bowl not as a joker, but as a full-fledged member of the team, an “old-new” in fact (laughs). As always, I’m going to give my all for this club which obviously remains very special to me, where I made my professional debut.” This Tuesday, he appeared at a press briefing with a large bandage around his right elbow: “Simply the scars of a hard fight at Soyaux-Angoulême, but it’ll be fine (big smile).” Precisely, the Sapiacains are coming out of two preparation matches that could probably have gone better, but he is not too upset about it: “The team worked pretty well. I think that we should perhaps not dwell too much on the matches against Castres and Soyaux-Angoulême. It’s a new team, which is starting to find its marks. We are getting better and better at playing together, we find each other more easily. I think that in Dax, we are not going to see the same USM that we saw during the two preparation matches. They are not called preparation matches for nothing, it is an opportunity for all the teams to do a broad review of the squad. We lost twice, so what (smiles). It takes time to find the right combinations, there is a lot of potential in this team. These two matches allowed the staff and the players to see what was positive, and what still needs to be improved.”
“Everyone is hungry”
Tomorrow, the Sapiacains will start their season in Dax. With relish: “We’re fed up with the preparation, everyone is hungry (smile). We can put anyone on the sheet, everyone will give their all.” If the Landes pitch is grass, the majority of the “green and black” season will take place on synthetic pitches, which will not displease the winger: “It’s pretty good (smile). Whether it’s the forwards or the backs, we like playing rugby, passing the ball around. Same for the staff. I think it’s likely to go pretty quickly. It’s up to us to live up to our ambitions. In Dax, it will be a grass pitch, but it doesn’t matter, we’re going to show up to do something there. We don’t have much to lose. They’ll be favourites, so much the better, but we’re not going to give them any gifts, they’ll be just as hungry as us, I’m sure of it.” The “green and black” will be the first to get their fill…
