XV of France – Romain Ntamack: “I know how beautiful this blue jersey is”

Romain Ntamack, cut down by a serious injury to his left knee on this cursed August 12, 2023 and largely absent from the World Cup in France, should have made his long-awaited return with the Blues during the last autumn tour. On October 8, he spoke for almost half an hour, speaking with modesty and sincerity about this moment which was fast approaching…

“Given the circumstances in which I left this jersey in August 2023, you understand the feelings that will be mine when I have it on my shoulders again”he said. But, during the reception of Clermont four days after this interview, the Toulouse opener collapsed on the lawn of Ernest-Wallon. For a few minutes, he believed that his Achilles tendon had failed and that his world had once again slipped beneath his bruised foot. With misty eyes, he returned to the locker room before realizing the reassuring diagnosis: torn calf and a month of unavailability.

In agreement with Fabien Galthié, he had drawn a line under the November episode. If caution logically prevailed, his words nonetheless remain relevant today, a few days before a list of the 6 Nations Tournament of which he will of course be part. “In fact, I don’t think too much about my first steps in Marcoussis, about wearing this blue jerseyhe assured us. From now on, I prefer to let things happen and I will see at the moment. Simply, if I have the chance to wear the blue jersey again, I will have a lot of emotion because it’s been a long time.” An eternity on the scale of Romain Ntamack, who had his first selection at 19, played his first World Cup at 20, then has already won four Brennus and two Champions Cups at just 25.

“Not tasting it for all this time feels weird”

On the evening of January 31, when the Tournament kicks off with the French XV against Wales, it will be almost eighteen months of international drought for “NTK”. “Since 2019, I was used to being there. So, not tasting it all this time feels weird. I don’t know how to explain it but when you’re in every list, at every gathering, in every selection. .. It’s not that we no longer realize our privilege, but I understood one thing: when we are no longer called up, we really understand what the French XV represents. , it’s huge. I know how big it is. How beautiful this jersey is and how lucky I am when I put it on.”

A declaration of love from a boy whose blue of the XV of France runs in his veins as much as the red and black of the Stade Toulouse, as he has been in all the selections since his earliest childhood. He who even joined the under-20s when he was only 17, and who lifted the World Cup with the Bleuets in 2018. Obviously, his attachment to the national team is beyond measure. But, faced with the immense pain of seeing his friends attack the Webb-Ellis trophy without him, the person concerned had felt the need to protect himself during the last World Cup, as he had admitted in these columns: “I experienced the competition from a distance. I went to see my teammates only once, in Marseille (for France-Namibia, Editor’s note) but I didn’t want to go see matches of other nations, and go to stadiums. I really wanted to ignore it because I knew it would have hurt me. I preferred to keep my distance to shield myself and concentrate on myself.” And about his recovery.

An obsession: to come back even stronger, even if contact has obviously never been cut with the French management. “I didn’t have Fabien every day (Galthié) or the members of the staff on the phone but it helped me in my rehabilitation to maintain the link with them, to have them on the line from time to time. I won’t hide the fact that it also motivates… We always feel concerned by the French team, it’s not possible otherwise. Personally, it made me want to make every effort to get back to my level.”

“Since the arrival of my son, I have arrived with the banana”

Once on the pitches of the Top 14 from the end of March 2024, Romain Ntamack had a terrible end to last season. Holder in the final phase of the Champions Cup and championship, he even scored a symbolic double. And the projection of his return to the selection never came to pollute him. “I knew that this moment could not take place before the November tour. I had time and so I focused on the club, to come back as best as possible. The idea, like any player, was to to perform well with Toulouse, to prove myself and then earn my place in the French team. Nothing is ever a given in the national team, even if I had done the “job” before my injury and perhaps everything doesn’t start again. not at zero, you just have to get back to your level. That’s what I tried to do.” However, with one big novelty: Ntamack has been the happy father of little Noah since last summer.

This affects the man more than the player. Even if one always influences the other… “Fatherhood has given me so much. But what I remember first is that I feel more lightness in my everyday life, and in my sporting approach. I see it in the way of understanding the matches and especially the big meetings. Be careful, I’m absolutely not saying that I don’t care or that I prepare for the deadlines with less seriousness, but I really have more perspective on things. And a face to place on the famous notion of pleasure, which he illustrates as follows: “Before, a certain routine had established itself for me. Since the arrival of my son, I have arrived at matches with the banana. Rugby is my passion, my profession, but it is only a sport. We are here to have fun and give it to people, then we will see the result at the end. There are much more important things. Even if, I assure you, my thirst to win is still very great. (smile).” As it was for Emile, his international dad whom he ran to join at the end of the matches. “I’m obviously thinking about it. I can’t wait for Noah to be old enough to take him to a game and take him on my shoulders on the field. I became a father at 25. If all goes well, he should have the chance to see me play for a little while longer. It’s great. It gives me a lot of happiness and this desire to surpass myself even more for him.