When you ask frontline colleague Hayden Thompson Stringer what he thinks of Luka Japaridze, this is what he says. “For me, Luka is becoming the best straight pillager in the championship. Look at him in the scrums, on the pitch! He’s young … to have this level at his age, it’s huge! He must continue. to work, to maintain confidence, not to put too much pressure on himself, to take advantage of the moment, but he will become a world-class player.
Huge room for improvement since 2018
A dithyrambic portrait that the 23-year-old Georgian takes with great modesty. “Frankly, I don’t know. I think I’m still missing something. In three or four years, maybe, but not yet.” laughs the young man, who is otherwise characterized by his broad smile.
A smile but also a great ability to work. In Brive, Luka Japaridze has forged a real reputation as a hard worker, since his arrival at the club in 2018. He was spotted by Jeremy Davidson ahead of the Under-20 World Cup where he played 4 games with Georgia. Arrived at the club, his first year at the CAB was however quite complex to manage. “I didn’t understand a thing at all, I just barely knew how to say hello or how are you” tells the native of Tbilisi. “It’s difficult when you are not in your native country” he concedes. “Fortunately, he has a lot of Georgians here, it’s important to adapt.”
– Stephanie Para
The pillar post, where how not to falter
Luka Japaridze now has a better understanding of melee orders. The proof: since the Hopes and an injury followed by the Covid, he won last year until he started 6 of the first nine games of the current season. “I have confidence in my head” he explains, “This is important because if you don’t trust, behind you you have the second and third line.” Do not flinch, and offer great services, this is important. Luka is also found in the Brivist group, alongside Vano Karkadze or his roommate Tedo Adzandadze.
“I love Brive” says the Georgian, “It’s like my second family. At the CAB, I know all the players, the staff, the administrative staff in the offices. And then, the city, I like it. It’s a quiet little town, it doesn’t there aren’t many cars. “ He likes the calm, he who grew up in a small village near the Georgian mountains. “Over there, we are very high, and it is very cold” remembers the young pillar.
– Stephanie Para
A Sunday match against the XV of France
From now on, he no longer wants to leave France. Luka Japaridze has extended until 2025 with the Corrèze club. He dreams of playing for his country, at the World Cup in two years perhaps, but before that, Saturday against the XV of France in Bordeaux. “Playing for your country is different. When you sing the hymn … it’s a source of pride. I sometimes sing “ laughed the young Georgian.