Moving forward for Aviron Bayonnais, which is now preparing the reception of Racing, Saturday at Jean Dauger. After the inaugural setback in Toulon (40-25) and in this marathon of ten matches to start the season, there was no time to feel sorry for the Sky and White, when receiving the Ile-de-France, who won their first meeting against Castres (25-19), with more or less difficulty. “We targeted this game in particular”recognizes Denis Marchois, the captain of Aviron Bayonnais.
“It’s our first at home, at Jean Dauger. We wanted to be ready for this moment, we want to put in a good performance and, we hope, bring home a victory, in any way, but a victory.”
Maintenance requires victories from the start of the season.
“I think there is a certain form of pressure, even if it’s the second day, there is no fire either. But to build the maintenance, we know that it goes through big matches at mainly at home, and take points from the start of the season. Inevitably, especially for a promoted player. At the same time, if there were a defeat, it wouldn’t be Berezina either, but that would put us in a rather uncomfortable situation. […] It is sure that it will be harder and harder on this first block of ten matches, arrived at 7th, 8th, 9th, it may creak a little at the level of the bodies. But at that time, we hope that there will be returns and in this context, the depth of the workforce will be important.
“We know that we were not there in the aggressiveness, the combat phases, the duels, the rucks at the end of the line at Toulon. Me first. We reviewed the pictures, etc. We can not afford to be promoted, to abandon these basics of rugby. The combat sector, static phases. We’ve been pushed around or we know we have to get back together, otherwise we won’t be able to exist. Racing will undoubtedly come with intentions, like all teams with a promoted, that’s for sure.”
No accounting targets were mentioned.
Ten matches to start this Top 14 championship, a marathon for which accounting objectives have been set within Aviron Bayonnais? “No, we didn’t talk about that. Honestly, it was not mentioned, exposed to the players. It may take away some pressure that Greg (Patat) doesn’t want to put on us. Either way, I don’t know if it’s beneficial or not.”
The premature end of career of Virimi Vakatawa, forced to stop at 30 for medical reasons. “We all know that it can happen overnight. We see it in football, guys who do where they are even more medically followed than us and players sometimes have cardiac arrest in the middle of a meeting, it’s unfortunate. We hope to see as little as possible and live as little as possible. But we know, even if we are surrounded, that we are not safe. I hope for him (Virimi Vakatawa), whom I don’t know personally, that after rugby is going to be fine for him. It’s already not easy to hear as news, it must be terrible to live with. Especially at 30, with the level of play that was his and all that remained for him to do. It’s unfortunate for him.”
► To listen to the full interview with Denis Marchois (15 minutes), it’s HERE in 100% Rugby