Jean Monribot, the third line of Aviron Bayonnais, winner of Oyonnax in the semi-final of Pro D2 (32-20) this Sunday, May 29, looks back on the victory, the reception of the supporters, the contribution of the bench and qualification for the final against Mont-de-Marsan.
Bayonne tames Oyonnax this Sunday, May 29 on Dauger’s lawn and goes to the Pro D2 final (32-20). Put in difficulty until the 50th minute, the Ciel et blanc made the difference thanks in particular to the contribution of their bench. They will play the Pro D2 final against Mont-de-Marsan next Sunday at 5:45 p.m. A qualification savored by the third line of Rowing, Jean Monribot.
You had promised yourself to reach the final. It wasn’t easy, but you made it…
We feared this game. We had a nice dance in Oyonnax. For the return match here at Jean Dauger, they came with the second team. We were somewhat in the situation of favorites and this label did not suit us too well. The first heat, in the first half, hurt us. It was difficult to get into the rhythm, I saw the team was a little stifled. In the second half, with a rather nice bench, we managed to bring a little more dynamism, to play more. It smiled on us. Now, we will have to dive into the recovery, then the home stretch.
What do you remember from this game?
In the first half, we struggled in the rucks area. Oyonnax “chackled” a lot of balloons. We corrected the situation, especially on our attacking supports in the second half. We had a lot of balls, they rather defended. In the 50th minute, when the Oyomen score, they come back in front and the game could have gone their way. But the bench and its freshness brought a second wind to our team.
How did you experience arriving at the stadium with this “Mayol” style guard of honour?
It was nice ! I had heard Urios talking about the final stages, the smell of Merguez, but that’s it! I slept at Guillaume Rouet’s, we had a quiet evening, lovers, and this morning, when we got up, the weather was nice. I’m almost 35 years old, moments like that, it’s only happiness! I arrived at the stadium with an impossible banana, I was not stressed at all. Just the desire to enjoy moments like this. I had warned the players by telling them “be careful”. The Bayonnais are hot-blooded. We shouldn’t get caught up in this emotion, be moved or waste energy on it. Everyone expected this fervor. It’s fun! We had a real audience that supported us. They supported us. There was a good atmosphere, it was a good final phase match. These are the moments you remember in a career.
Now, more than a march for Rowing, with this final against Mont de Marsan…
Mont-de-Marsan finished first. We second. Maybe it was written. It’s a final, we don’t play it often in a career. It will be necessary to be on the freshness this week. At the Montpellier stadium (the GGL Stadium), everything is programmed. We struggled against Stade Montois this year. This team surprised a lot of people. It’s up to us to be up to it, next weekend, so that there is also a great party.