Top 14 – “I hope that we will not repeat the same mistake as against Bordeaux-Bègles” explains Frédéric Charrier (Clermont)

Frédéric, how did you digest this disillusionment with the Sharks?

When you come so close to an opportunity it’s obviously frustrating. The players were given three days of rest so that they could regenerate physically and mentally. This disappointment must serve us as a group. Some players were playing their first semi-final so it will be useful to them, I am thinking of the younger ones like Baptiste (Jauneau), Léon (Darricarrère) or Yérim (Fall). It’s a huge experience.

For you, where did the fate of the meeting play out?

There are two halves. The first, we are physically dominant and we are above this team but they stick to the score because of our indiscipline. Their scorer was also having a good day… This first period should have allowed us to break away. And in the second half we had several highlights but we didn’t make it happen, they were two marks away and we should have had more of a gap… We lacked precision.

How to bounce back?

We found some physical freshness, we did different things this week in training. The Sharks match was huge in terms of intensity, but we know that Usap will be there with a team in great shape. They are in the race for the top 6.

How are you going to present yourself in Perpignan?

The desire is to keep the dynamic we currently have, we are coming off a great performance against Stade Français. And even if we didn’t manage to qualify for the Challenge Cup final, we had a good match. We were very disappointed with the match in Bordeaux a week after our good performance against Ulster, so I hope we don’t make the same mistake again.

Despite this defeat, ASM shows a serious rise in attack with more than thirty points scored in three of the last four matches. How do you explain it?

Confidence and work. This progress did not happen overnight. We try to improve every weekend. Obviously the games against the Cheetahs and Ulster gave us confidence in attack. We want to move towards this rugby. The victory against Paris also gave us guarantees. We play more confidently. When we have players who are capable of making differences we rely on them but their replacements are also up to the task and raise their level. I think about Joris Jurand notably.

You also manage to play without George Moala and Alivereti Raka, how is that satisfying?

We try to have a game which is based on a structured organization and which does not rely solely on individuals. We try to play with our qualities. We adapted rather well to the Sharks’ defense, but against Perpignan, the strategy will be different. They like to have possession and hold the ball. So the less they have the ball, the less dangerous they will be. If we play the same match as in Bordeaux it will be very long for us!

More personally, what more do you expect from your three-quarters?

May the young players we have integrated this year continue to progress and gain strength!

Are you surprised by the evolution of Léon Darricarrère who has put together high-level performances for his first season with the professionals?

He doesn’t surprise me but we didn’t expect him to play so much. He has the same trajectory as Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Nicolas Depoortere. They are prepared for the high level with a very good state of mind. And when he had his opportunities, Léon took them. I see him improving every week, he has a good margin in defense in particular. He also needs to improve in his off-ball play and his ability to perform well standing up.

You have four games left. What is Clermont’s goal now?

The top 8 inspires us. When you taste the final stages of the Challenge Cup and see the Champions Cup matches, you want to take part. We want to finish as high as possible to finish the season well. We have regrets about matches that escaped us, there have been many…