“What are the stakes of this match against New Zealand on Friday?
It is above all an opening match with a stadium that promises to be boiling, a big pre-match ceremony which promises to be exceptional with the Patrouille de France which is announced. We have been working for four years to live this evening so we are just looking forward to it. This is the first game of a long series, I hope, in the competition. We want to play to win and we will do our best to do so on Friday night.
Quand on dit All Blacks, on dit haka…
France-New Zealand is always a big game. Often lost by France unfortunately. It remains a mythical adversary, the haka participates in this mythical touch, in the match. It adds yet another thing to this opening night but for us it shouldn’t change anything.
“We are going to have a boiling stadium, family, our friends in the stands. We are going to take this positive to use it on the pitch.”
You are one of the leaders of this group. Do you already know what you are going to focus on this week?
(He smiles) It is misunderstanding us to think that we have prepared the speeches (Charles Ollivon, seated on the right, laughs). We are both quite spontaneous people. We know that the fervor is enormous around us, we have been feeding on it for two months, taking and trying to give to the public, in open training sessions in particular or at the campsite in Seignosse. We didn’t wait for this week to realize the expectations, it’s only positive for us. We experienced a World Cup in Japan four years ago, it was quite special, we did not feel this fervor in a very large country which does not have this rugby culture. There we are going to have a boiling stadium, family, our friends in the stands. We will take this positive to use it on the pitch.
You are based in Rueil-Malmaison and not in Marcoussis, what does that change?
The staff left nothing to chance and we already know this hotel, especially for the days before and on match days. We celebrated the Grand Slam there (in 2022) so we have very good memories there. We are lucky to be welcomed in Rueil-Malmaison with facilities that are just brilliant. We are very well and pampered to prepare well.
“We had less good shots in the preparation matches, small slumps that we were able to rectify in the last match (against Australia)
What are the keys to this match against New Zealand?
At the defense level, we see that all the teams take more tries also because the refereeing is more favorable to the attack, so we have to adapt to that. We have similarities in the game with the New Zealanders, and I think the most consistent team over 80 minutes will win. We had less good shots in the warm-up matches, small slumps that we were able to rectify in the last match (against Australia on August 27, 41-17). Physically, we’re pretty good so we’ll have to be there for 80 minutes to take up the challenge.
How to evacuate the pressure of an opening match of the World Cup with the previous 2007 and the defeat of the Blues at home against Argentina?
We are already talking about it, without lying to each other. It takes pressure to play a rugby match. You have to know how to dose it, anticipate things as much as possible. For example, we are aware of the opening show before the match, we worked on our warm-up which will be shortened in real conditions before Australia, we also took the visitor’s locker room to prepare for what will happen on Friday. Here, we try to evacuate the most details quickly to have the head focused only on rugby.
“I imagine the match they want to play on Friday evening. We have been warned »
What do you think of New Zealand’s heavy defeat against South Africa (35-7) a week ago?
That doesn’t say much. We can not summarize the package of forwards of the Blacks in this match, it can happen to everyone to go through. I read a bit of what was said in the New Zealand press and I imagine myself in their place. I imagine the match they want to play on Friday evening. We have been warned and we must not dwell on this match.
A quick word on Anthony Jelonch’s return after his cruciate ligament rupture at the end of February. Did his quick return blow you away?
In the end, he was not good because Kolisi (the captain of South Africa, victim of the same injury) has already played two matches (laughs). No, it’s very nice to see him again. He’s my roommate, he always brings a good mood, lots of smiles. He’s been in the group for four years so it gives the whole group a boost. »
