Qualified, without playing. This Thursday evening, Erick Mathé’s players have confirmed their qualification for the European Cup next season. It all depended on the match of the 28th day of Starligue between Nantes and Nîmes, and Nantes won 39 to 28. The Savoyards will therefore be, at worst, fifth in the Starligue and are guaranteed to be in the European League next season. The last time Chambéry played at European level was in the 2019-2020 season after winning the Coupe de France in May 2019.
Goal now? Finish in the best place in the championship and beat Montpellier on Saturday night. Because there are still two games to play in the league: this Saturday at 8 p.m. on the road to Montpellier, and next Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. at Le Phare with the reception of Saran.
The ambition is to finish in the best possible way, and in particular at the Lighthouse
“I do not hide from you that if we were able to go and beat Montpellier at home and secure 4th place, it would be a very strong source of satisfaction (…) as long as the end of the season and the holidays do not are not announced, we must remain mobilized”, reacted Bertrand Gille, the sports director of the Chambéry club.
What does this return to European level change for the club? “It is the pride of evolving at the level at which we claim to evolve, that is to say to be part of the best clubs in Europe, to be a club recognized by all in the elite of French sport, and to ensure that may these meetings be a source of enthusiasm, sharing and promotion of our sport”.
But for Bertrand Gille, it’s a real satisfaction for the whole season. “I am proud of my team, proud of my boys, of what they have brought all year (…) the season has a certain amount of satisfaction on which we intend to build and which seems to us, before the result of tonight’s match (Nantes’ victory over Nîmes, editor’s note), already very satisfactory”.