“In Toulon, we want to go even further,” announces Charles Ollivon

How do you approach this new season of Top 14 ?
Charles Ollivon : We prepared well, we worked well on our rugby. We are ready to get down to business. I was able to cut and then prepare well. I was able to play, cut and then regenerate, it’s the normal cycle for any player, it’s good to respect it. I hadn’t been able to do it as well in recent seasons. It was different, let’s say… There could have been tours or the World Cup, these weren’t normal cycles. Now, it’s good to be able to develop qualities rather than doing maintenance.

Have you gotten over the disappointment of this dam lost at home at the end of last season against La Rochelle ?
We talked about it a little bit at the end of the season. We know what it’s like, when it’s over, it’s over. But we were able to talk about it and learn from it. Above all, we had to stay humble about this match where we came up against better players than us. We had to learn from this failure.

However, you were back in the final stages for the first time since 2018, which was the positive point…
It’s true, we did better than in previous seasons. Now, when we get here, we want more, we want to go even further. But we’re going to stay humble because this championship is very tough. Everyone wants to win, it’s very difficult…

I like this club, it’s a different club, a real club with a history. The city vibrates for rugby

Charles Ollivon

What were the words of your manager, Pierre Mignoni, upon resuming?
Work, above all! Be focused, don’t waste time. Prepare well to be ready from the start of the season. There was a lot of energy and a lot of desire.

One of the big black spots of last season was your inconsistency. How can you erase that?
Yes, it’s true. It’s hard to work on. You have to try to have the most homogeneous group possible, do things together, be well connected. It’s something you work on every day. For now, that’s what we’re doing. The atmosphere is good, the group is motivated, serious.

You start off with a big challenge in La Rochelle…
Yes, we find them! We will immediately get to the heart of the matter…

Last year, you played as number 8 for the club, will that be repeated?
I liked it. Pierre (Cute) had suggested that to me at the end of the Six Nations Tournament. It changed a few things for me but it also did me good to think a little differently, to find some automatisms that I had been able to have in the past. It was refreshing and interesting for me, I enjoyed playing in that position. Pierre didn’t tell me anything about the future, we’ll see when we resume.

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You seem to be really fulfilled in Toulon…
Yes, I like the club, it’s a different club, a real club with a history. The city vibrates for rugby. Mayol is a stadium that I love, which is right in the city center. There is really a fervor around the RCT that is very strong. I love this club.

And the Toulon supporters are very demanding.
That’s good too! It can be great when you win and very difficult when you lose. But that’s the way the club works, you have to immerse yourself in this culture which is very strong. So much the better, it’s very positive.

It’s going to be another full season. We’re preparing for all that. Then it’s management for 11 months of competition.

Charles Ollivon

Everything is going to go very quickly for you and the internationals, with the November tour coming up very quickly. Are you looking forward to it?
It’s going to be another full season. We’re preparing for all that. Then it’s management for eleven months of competition. It’s not always easy but it’s very exciting and rewarding to be able to play all these competitions. You have to find the right balance to be the best performer on the field.

You have two new English teammates in Toulon, pillar Kyle Sinckler et third-row Lewis Ludlam . How is their integration going?
They brought something different to the dressing room, a different vision. They bring a lot of energy. It feels good, David Ribbans had already started to bring that last season. We learn every day. It’s rather fluid and simple. They have this very square Anglo-Saxon culture, very much based on work routines. It’s very serious, very clinical.

As a former captain of the French XV, how did you experience the various rugby affairs that hit the headlines this summer? ?
These are very tough cases, and a (the death of Medhi Narjissi, Editor’s note ) was dramatic for this young player. It’s difficult… It’s certain that stories like that can’t do any good to the image of rugby.

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