Second in the regular season behind Palavas, SOM has had time to prepare for its second part of the season, which begins this Sunday. Interview with Baptiste Majorel, co-trainer alongside Sébastien Petit.
What state of mind are you in heading into this round-trip round of 16?
We can say that we have finished the first part of the season and that a second part is starting. When you play rugby, the objective is clearly to participate in the final stages. This second phase is different. Everything is played out in a round trip. If everything goes well, you go back for two matches and if not everything stops. This is the essence of our sport, it is to experience these moments. But our discourse does not change: we approach our opponents game after game.
And still the desire to achieve the objective at the start of the season, namely to do better than last year?
We always want to do better than last year. We always have the end of last season in the back of our minds. But this episode also built us for this season. Our project is progressing in terms of intensity and preparation; we must also highlight the good work of the cells dedicated to physical and medical matters.
This break of almost a month, is it an advantage or a disadvantage?
It’s always good to qualify directly to adapt to one of our two opponents. And then we hope that their play-off match will have been held so that they leave feathers there.
It will ultimately be Bourges*, an opponent you don’t know?
I played against this team when I was younger. We had time to discover this training with videos.
Would you have preferred to face Villefranche-de-Lauragais, which you have beaten twice this season?
Whether we beat this team twice or not, it’s not an advantage. We start from scratch for the final phases. They lost to Saint-Jean-en-Royans and it’s a team that has grown too.
Observers are talking about a more accessible Pool 4, do you agree?
I leave that to the philosophers. Let’s respect our opponents and not disrespect anyone.
During the regular season, we had the impression that Millau was leveling with its opponent. What is your point of view?
I have heard some people say that we are a great team of chameleons. But when we see Palavas five points in front of us, we can also say that we did the job. All our opponents were playing something. We will win at Castanet with the bonus. I think Palavas’ defeat means we win at Alban the following weekend and I don’t think we would have gone for victory away if we had beaten the leader a week earlier. A season is built.
For this second part of the season, will the strategy change?
No, away and at home, we will play for victory and avoid calculations.
