South African winger Dillyn Leyds was present in front of the press this Thursday noon to discuss the trip from Stade Rochelais to Castres (Saturday, 4:30 p.m., 10th day of Top 14). He also spoke about his teammates on tour with the XV of France.
The staff keeps you in charge on Saturday against Castres, after a first captaincy crowned with an improved victory against Stade français (35-18) just before the break…
It’s really cool, it’s an honor to be captain of this club. After the match against Stade Français, I told the guys “thank you for the week”, but it was hard to be captain and play at the same time, it was really a “skill” (laughs). Because often, on the ground, I thought “What do we do, if there is a penalty, do we take the 3 points or do we take a throw-in? “. I felt that I didn’t play against Stade Français, I was just on the pitch to make sure there were fifteen guys (laughs). But it’s an honor, it shows the respect the team and the staff have for me. I remain captain and I hope to remain 100% too (smile). It’s going to be hard but I think it’s possible for us to do it.
Yes because being captain at Castres is not necessarily a gift…
No (smile). Castres is still a hostile environment. The stadium will be full, the supporters are always noisy. When you play on the wing, there’s a roar and you get whistled (smile) but it’s a good challenge for us. Castres are a team in good form, who have not yet lost a home match, and it’s going to be tough, they’re a team that hits hard and likes it when it’s war on the pitch. It’s really a good challenge to go to Castres, to do something and win the match.
Show your ability to keep going, to maintain consistency between home and away matches? La Rochelle remains on two very complicated trips (37-7 against Bayonne, 16-0 against Montpellier)…
That’s really the thing for us now, to not have moments that are very high and others that are very low. We must try to keep the momentum we have after the Stade Français match. It’s good to come back here, to the training center, and to see that everyone is fresh, that everyone is ready to play. There are a lot of young people who will have the opportunity this weekend and it’s good to change the team too, to have new energy in the group.
Daily life The Team announced mid-week that Jonathan Danty would be repositioned on the third row on Saturday for the first time in his career…
(Laughs). Yes, that may be an option. He said he was ready if we needed him. He did a session. Not even one session, in fact, 10 or 15 minutes with the forwards, he arrived with a mark on his shin, someone stepped on him and he said “maybe not” (laughs). No, he said he was ready, but we’ll see.
Alldritt? I think the staff is just giving him a rest. We know Greg’s qualities. For me, after Antoine Dupont, Greg Alldritt is the second man on the French team!
Icon Sport – Eddy Lemaistre
You were personally present at the Stade de France for the France – New Zealand match last Saturday…
It was huge! It’s always a pleasure for me to go see a match at the Stade de France. It was full, it was cool, the atmosphere was really… It’s something special. A friend called me at half-time, he was in South Africa, and he told me that France knew how to put on a good show for rugby. It’s really a spectacle with the Haka. I was lucky because it was “TKB” (the Black Tawera Kerr-Barlow, his teammate at La Rochelle), very close to Sam Cane, who had an extra ticket. I went to Paris with him, and we saw Victor Vito after the match.
You were also present in the stands during the Olympic Games, to see the Seven. You will end up supporting the French team!
(Laughs). When Fabien Galthié comes to watch training (in La Rochelle), I tell the guys [Il murmure] : “Tell him I’m ready!” » (laughs). I don’t even have a (French) passport but it’s already been five years since I played with the Springboks, I’m ready (laughs). No, but it’s cool when you play in France, and you have friends and teammates who play for the French team, you’re always proud to know them, to tell yourself that they’re your friends.
Paul Boudehent, for example?
It was a proud moment to watch him on the field, to see how he played this fall tour. He’s a really good player, he’s starting to show it to everyone now. He’s a machine, he doesn’t stop. Even after the match, you feel that he is never tired, that he can still play 80 minutes. He scores tries, he tackles everywhere, he scratches the ball, it’s huge. I’m very happy for him!
And your view on your usual captain at La Rochelle, Grégory Alldritt, who came out earlier against the Blacks and was not selected to face Argentina this Friday evening?
I don’t know what’s going on in the group in Marcoussis, but maybe it’s like us. We played nine matches and we had two weeks of vacation. I was in Tenerife with my family, in the sun. Greg, he was in the maul, in the scrum (laughs). He needs a little rest. We know well that Greg, when he plays in La Rochelle, he plays 80 minutes, all the time. He gives 100% in all training sessions, all matches. I think the staff is just giving him a rest. We know Greg’s qualities. For me, after Antoine Dupont, Greg Alldritt is the second man on the French team!
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