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Morgan Hardoin and Jules Huet in the yellow light of the port of Caen, where we met them. (©AC / Sport in Caen)
They may no longer play on the same team, Jules Huet and Morgan Hardoin are rarely a week without seeing each other. The two often offensive defenders spent the evening together, Friday April 22, 2022, on the eve of a much-awaited confrontation in National 3. Jules Huet, who left Avant Garde Caennaise last summer to join Vire, will welcome her boyfriend, who stayed in Caen, who is fighting to maintain it. After the 6-1 first leg, in which neither boy participated, there will be revenge in the air. The AGC, which flirts with the red zone, is under pressure. Double H crossover interview.
Morgan, if Jules hadn’t left AG Caen, would the season have been different?
Morgan Hardoin : If he hadn’t left, we wouldn’t have had the same season. For sure. He was a pillar of the team and a locker room manager. With us, he chained the matches.
Jules, are you surprised by the trajectory of the Avant Garde this season?
Jules Huet: One year does not make the other. They were unlucky at the start of the season. They lost points and that put them in a negative spiral. They had a team to do the job. They had also recruited in my place… But yes, I am really surprised. We were expecting them at the top, at least in the top 5. It’s a complicated season but they have senior players to get by.
Morgan, are you starting to stress about posture?
MH : The more the season passes, the more the pressure increases. The positive point is that we only have two injuries left. The infirmary, which was full at the start of the season, is starting to empty. It can only go better after five games without a win.
You are living a rather incredible season, between your poor performances and all the adventures at the level of the staff…
MH : When a season goes badly, often everything goes wrong. Basically, things were going badly on the pitch, but things were going relatively well between the players. Then there were disputes between some players and the coach. The results do not help to have a good overall dynamic. It is above all our fault. It is us, the players, who are on the pitch.
Morgan Hardoin: “I will have a taste of revenge”
The first leg marked a turning point for AG Caen, as Julien Le Pen was dismissed after the 6-1 defeat.
MH : At that time, it was still pretty much going because we were quite a few points ahead of the red zone. This defeat made us fall into a hyper negative spiral because it generated a lot of changes afterwards. Doubt has set in, we have also suffered a lot of injuries.
Not everything has been easy for you this season either, Jules.
JH : We also had a lot of physical glitches. I myself was absent for four and a half months. There were four starters on the sidelines. We had a little trouble earning points and that created a negative spiral. We raised the bar just before the break. Since then, we have been doing well.
Will there be a taste of revenge on the side of the Avant Garde?
MH : I hope there will be a taste of revenge among my teammates. I will have it! We must win to facilitate the end of the championship. We will make sure to play a game. In the first leg, there was no match.
Personally, you seem to be swimming this season, Morgan.
MH : In terms of my stats, it’s going pretty well. I achieve consistent performance. I was also given a lot more responsibility this year. I take all the set pieces, I take the penalties. This is also what allows me to have these stats. But it’s still a team sport. If we don’t win, it’s because I’m not doing everything right. It’s complicated to throw flowers in this context.
Jules Huet: “In football, it matters little”
It is often said of you that you could have claimed a higher level.
MH : If we’re here, it’s because we made choices. Both of us could have played in National 2. We had the opportunities for that. Jules also had opportunities higher up.
JH : It comes down to very little. It’s football, it’s a bit of a weird world. I was not far from signing for Avranches and QRM when they were in National. Last summer, I still had opportunities to sign in N2. I took 27 years. After a while, you have to put football second before it’s too late. I prioritized my professional life. I found a CDI (as a real estate diagnostician, editor’s note). The goal is to have a stable life following my small career as an amateur footballer.
Sans regret ?
JH : You should never have any regrets. Sometimes, we say to ourselves: “why not have tried even six months to be able to gauge ourselves? ” But it’s like that.
MH : Football is made of choices. We both favored the professional aspect. You should also know that between the National 3, the National 2 and sometimes the National, there is not so much difference in terms of salary if you combine work and football. These are also financial choices. We might as well live well and have a good career in National 3. We may have regrets in five, ten years, thinking that we could have played in National 2. Maybe even against each other ( to smile). But we make beautiful memories in National 3. Afterwards, we will see at the end of the season, there may be new pages that will open.
You don’t close a door?
MH : Normally, I will be at the Avant Garde next year.
Aren’t you jealous Jules for leaving then?
MH : I confused him at the start of the season. These are professional and human choices. When you want to go see something else to move forward in your personal life, you have to do it. He was totally right to leave. When he says he signed his CDI, we are all proud and happy for him.
“Raise a club in National 2”
Staying in N3 when we could have considered higher, isn’t that a lack of ambition?
JH : No, because I have always chosen projects to play the climb. My goal will always be to get a team from the Caen conurbation up to National 2. We almost did it with Mondeville. I always try to be ambitious and give my best on the pitch. Even if football comes second, I will give everything on a football field.
MH : We have to be ambitious at this level. It remains a relatively good level, even if it is no longer the CFA 2 of the time…
JH : … it will become so again (with the overhaul of the championships, editor’s note).
MH : If we don’t have ambition, we get silly… We’re both very competitive with Jules. We have always been in ambitious clubs. We both want to play in National 2. I think that if it comes, it will be with a club that we have managed to raise. Today, it’s complicated to only play football, even in National 2. You have to sign federal contracts, but many players are on the market without a contract…
How long have you known each other?
JH : Since Morgan left Malherbe. He joined me in Dives, when we went from DH to CFA 2. We bonded and we never left each other. He just followed me to every club I went to.
MH : Jules left for Mondeville, I joined him after six months. Afterwards, he went to the Avant Garde, I went to Alençon. I joined him at the AGC. Each time, it was he who made me come. Jules is a very good salesman (smile). But if I wasn’t very good, I don’t think he would have taken me!
Will you still be friends on Saturday night regardless of the result of the match?
MH : It depends how much you take (laughs)!
JH : Me, I’ll be more in lodger mode.
MH : I think we’ll still spend the evening together.
JH : I manage to stay focused while laughing on a pitch. Morgan is the same as me. We often hit bars on the ground.
Can you find yourself against each other on the field?
MH : He is far since he is a right central defender and I am a right side. It would take a counter-attack and that I leave with a little advance. He’ll catch me, that’s for sure. I don’t think there are faster defenders than him in Lower Normandy. Then we’ll see what I can do!
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