INTERVIEW. Stade Toulousain: “I have to be able to express my game…” Clément Vergé has his fangs before approaching the Perpignan match

Did this two-week break do you any good after a long block of nine consecutive games?

Yes, it feels good to cut away, to see something else. I went home to Ariège to see my family and it’s good to let the body regenerate. Now it’s time to leave.

Have you followed the Blues matches?

Yes of course. It was cool, great victories and what they did against New Zealand was very strong.

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Personally, this season you have played three matches (including 1 as a starter), are you satisfied with it or on the contrary, is there a little frustration?

I would have liked to play more, even a lot more, that’s for sure. But I try to put things into perspective by telling myself that if I didn’t play it was because there were reasons and I needed to improve. Now that I’m on the pitch a little and I have a little more playing time, I have to show that I want to stay there.

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Last season, you participated in 14 Top 14 matches, and you had the opportunity to see what is expected of you at the very highest level. What are the areas on which you want to progress?

I think I need to be more consistent in my matches. And I have to be able to express my game and that all the sliders that we expect at the second line position are very high. I don’t want to play “neutral” matches anymore. There’s no point in shining on a Saturday and then going back to normal the following week. I want to be consistent at the top level, and to play in Toulouse, there is no choice.

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You tasted your first Top 14 final last season (against UBB, 59-3), is that already the best memory of your career?

Let’s say that I already had very good memories during our first title of French junior champion, the first year. It was really incredible and it was my first title. But the Brennus is crazy because everything is increased tenfold. We’ve dreamed of it since we were little, the thing we watch on TV. But when you realize that you’re there and you’re experiencing it… It’s crazy. Two years ago, I played five matches and we watched the final from the stands. I said to myself “damn, it would be amazing if one day I could play one”. And the following year, I am lucky to be there. It was so cool.

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Lately your name has come up several times regarding your future, which must be quite new to you… (according to our information, the MHR, the UBB and Pau have shown interest in welcoming Clément Vergé whose contract with Toulouse ends at the end of the season). How did you experience this?

I try to discuss it with my family and especially to see it in a positive way. If we put things into perspective a little, I still have the chance to say that I have clubs who are interested, which is gratifying. Especially since in professional rugby, there are more and more guys who find themselves without a contract every season. I tell myself that I’m still lucky. It’s not easy to manage but it’s part of the life of a professional rugby player, you just have to put up with it.

And in fact, can you cope with it?

(He thinks) Yes, we will say that it is a virtuous circle. If we are good on the pitch, we will have requests and we will be exposed. You just have to see it in a positive way.

Are you still in negotiations with Stade Toulousain for a possible extension?

It’s in progress, yes, we’re talking. For the moment there is nothing decided yet, neither with Toulouse, nor elsewhere. I give myself time to think. What I want is to play rugby and progress. I’m at the start of my career so… For me the important thing is to play rugby, no matter where I am next year, what I want is to play rugby.

Off the field, you are following a master’s degree to be a school teacher (MEEF)…

To tell you the truth, it’s not easy. It took me five years to get my degree (two years of biology and an L3 to prepare for the master’s degree in school teaching) and the master’s degree is the same, I have schedules adapted to the training. It’s even more difficult to study since I became a professional. I go to class between two and four hours a week so obviously the years take a long time to validate. It’s not easy to follow but I like it and it’s not “by rote”. There, it’s more about thinking about how we can help children to progress, for example. It’s less hard than when I was in biology school, where for example I had to learn all the plants by heart, in Latin and French (smile).

Would working with children be important to you later?

When I was little, I wanted to be a doctor… My mother would laugh if she saw me say that, because I didn’t like blood (smile). Then I wanted to do physiotherapy or osteopathy but with rugby it was complicated. That said, as I had a bac S, I didn’t want to completely change path. So I did a degree in biology to see where things were going and that allowed me to join this master’s degree to be a school teacher, it’s a passion job, I like it, it’s engaging. And I find it interesting to take a class in September and see it progress until June. Telling yourself that you’re useful to children is cool.