Women's TFC: “We went from 50 spectators to more than 10,000…” the pride of coach Antoine Gérard before the match at the Stadium

How do you feel about your players a few days before the match?

There is a lot of excitement, desire, motivation. The week started very well, today's session (mardi) was very good but I'm not surprised, there is a little over-investment in the run-up to the Lille match but it's very good as it is.

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Barely two years ago, you were still playing on the Brice Taton annex field in front of less than 100 people, today you will play at the Stadium in front of more than 10,000 spectators…

We went from 50 at the Taton, to 300 on the main field and finally to 12,000 on Sunday against Lille, obviously the gap is significant, we're not too used to it. But the communication that was done around the match was quite good and, thanks to the media relay, made it possible to give real value to this match. There will be curious people, people who know a little about women's football, others not at all… It will bring together lots of people and that was also the aim of this free entry. That people can see this women's team and we hope that we will retain supporters so that the enthusiasm continues in the years to come.

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We have the impression that something is happening this year with this team… Is that your opinion too?

There are several reasons, first we moved up to the Second League, this championship has become professional, the players convey a good image of the structure to the people who follow them and who support them every weekend. I think that people who travel a long way to come see them, this was again the case in Poitiers in the Coupe de France in a first round… I think they are attached to the personality of the girls and that's what is important. We have a good group, made up of good people and I hope they continue to show this image in the future.

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You will play five matches at the Stadium this season, this is also part of the club's dynamic of highlighting its women's section…

Redbird has been there for four years now and Damien Comolli took over as president of the structure, saying from the start that he wanted the women's project to grow year after year and he keeps his word. We climbed the mountain gradually. We had a match at the Stadium two years ago, last year we should have played two, it didn't happen and now we have five scheduled. The club is in the process of supporting its women's team to accentuate its development and progression.

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How do you prepare your players to play in a context like that, with a lot of spectators?

We will try to give them as much guidance as possible because there will be a lot of emotions. They are not used to having so many audiences, so many people in front of them. I think they will need a lot of guidance, to know both what awaits them and how to try to counter this opponent in order to limit the level of uncertainty.

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Having more than 10,000 spectators for this match is also a great reward for all the people who work behind the scenes for the women…

Yes, for all the people who work to train and promote all the young girls who will be on the field or who have been on the field since the start of the season, this is a great gift. They will be in the stands and they will be able to watch them and tell themselves that they had something to do with it. That's what's important.