Like other iconic Top 14 players, Yoann Maestri (65 caps) hung up his boots at the end of last season. He returns to the reasons for this choice and the memories of his career, after varying fortunes in Toulon, Toulouse, Paris and in the France team.
How have you felt since your decision to quit rugby?
I am very happy with my choice. In September, I think there will be a little twinge in the heart seeing the friends return to the field but I am not sure, because I am happy with what I have been able to know during my sporting life. Now I look ahead.
Was there a click?
It happened little by little, over time and training. Rugby is more and more demanding. The average age of the teams is decreasing. In recent years, young people have been arriving with phenomenal energy. There are also plenty of good things for French rugby, with the Jiffs (players from the French formation, Editor’s note). Young players seize their chance. As the years go by, you feel a little less chills so you have to know how to listen to yourself and not overdo the season. Play for the right reasons and keep the passion alive. Sometimes it’s better to leave. 35 is the average age. Some leave a little earlier, others go a little further. And then there is also the body and the head…
Was physical fatigue the determining factor?
I think it’s mostly mental fatigue, the desire to have something else in life. Switch to another equally breathtaking life and take on new challenges.
You ended your career at Stade Français, the only club where you did not win a title. What do you remember from your four years there?
A complex adventure with a lot of changes. It was mixed. We had great moments with snatch victories, but too few. Sportingly, it was complicated. Paradoxically, I enjoyed my life here in Paris. I will also remember certain meetings with players who have been at the club for years and who mean that the future can be more positive than what we have done in the past.
What went wrong?
I do not know. But if I did, I would keep it for myself and those concerned. I don’t like to talk too much about it. If we had won, I wouldn’t make a mountain of it either, because it’s a matter of very little. There is a club that laughs at the end of the year and thirteen that cry. We were much too far from the final battle. When you’re this far, there are several things wrong.
Internally, were there any words between you after the home defeat against Brive (17-33) during the 26th day of Top 14?
(sigh) No, it was the end of a lackluster season. The most important thing is to look ahead and change certain behaviors, otherwise the facts will happen again. There are so many things that go fast in this sport. It takes commitment and a strong desire to believe in it.
Back to your personal journey. You played from 2012 to 2018 in the France team, often being an indisputable starter. What memories do you keep with the Blues?
It was complicated in terms of results but strong in terms of the energy we put into it. It remains wonderful memories because you represent your country. Unfortunately, at the level of the 6 Nations Tournament or our tours abroad, we did not fight for the first places. Despite the changes of players and staff, the results remained the same.
Did you disagree with this turnover?
No. Rugby is made of human adventures. The staff made their choices. If he was there, he deserved it. Nobody was making sure we couldn’t get there. There weren’t the expected results, so there was turnover.
In comparison, what is your view of the current team?
The guys seem to be very well prepared. They are focused on their role on the pitch. Despite the lack of common experience, there is great confidence in this team. I was struck by the result of the British Barbarians, especially French, who put fifty to the English at Twickenham (21-52, June 19) with a week of preparation and a few aperitifs! But also by the ten victories that follow one another, including the last two in Japan with players who participate a little in training and then arrive with great mental preparation. They do not doubt their performance. It has to be practiced hard. The team is stunning in terms of presence and consistency. There is a huge pool.
Is there a player who marks you more than the others?
(He thinks) Gregory Alldritt. He is important in La Rochelle and in the France team. His energy on the pitch is phenomenal. He catches shots in defense and shows a large volume of play. He hurts defensively and he manages to play standing up, after him. I find it very complete and mentally hard. He does not weaken. Its energy tires opponents.
Not too many regrets not having played with this XV of France?
Honestly, no. I have no regrets. My life is not just about rugby. Sometimes you go all out and it doesn’t work. And there are times when you arrive a bit by chance, and everything smiles on you. I know a lot of players I played with when they were a little younger. They deserve it. I know what it’s like to have much more negative results, so I also imagine what it must be like to win those games. We must note the quality of the work of these players and their preparation. What they are doing is not easy, but it is very beautiful.
A Pro D2 shield with Toulon in 2008, a European Cup and two Brennus with Toulouse in 2010, 2011 and 2012. What do you remember from your seasons at Rugby Club Toulon and Stade Toulousain?
There was strong competition, whether in Toulon or Toulouse. I wanted to give myself 200% to seek common goals, not to let go, to dominate our opponents. I was very lucky to have experienced that. These moments make the men we have become a little later. Moments of great solidarity, commitment, and defeats while remaining united. I am grateful to have experienced them.
So you are proud of your career.
Pride is a lot of ego and you can do without it. In life, there are always difficult times. We can be choosy, but the moments we experienced are magnificent and are promising for the future. We must have the humility to say that we are lucky to have lived through all this.
Was there a more significant title for you?
No, because each title was superb. It crowned a long, hard, but very beautiful season.
A word on Guy Novès, your coach in Toulouse from 2009 to 2015 and in the French team from 2016 to 2017?
He was our mentor. Someone very demanding, very difficult, but also very close to his players. He showed us the way to the very top level. He has a fierce desire to win. He’s an incredible competitor.
You were recently courted by the South African franchise of the Stormers. Why did the exchanges not go further?
Stormers manager John Dobson contacted me to do a year there. But today, South African provinces have seasons similar to those in Europe. Training resumes in July or August, and the season ends in June. I told him that I did not feel capable of committing myself 200%.
Was there any hesitation?
No, just a thought.
Tell us about your retraining after your professional career.
I will be away from rugby for a while but it will remain the sport that has brought me a lot in life. I stay in Paris where I have an artistic direction, creation and communication agency with my brother, who has nothing to do with rugby, at least for now. It excites me and my life will be full. Why not come back in a few years to coach a youth team and see what it’s like to interact with young players. I imagine it must be exciting. It will be in a second time. There, I want to cut completely with rugby. It’s just a moment of life. We stop our careers at 35, we remain young men. If you make a world out of this life, you never recover.
What will you remember from this great adventure at the highest level?
(He thinks for a long time) I have never been very good at talking about my emotions related to my sport. I will keep a magnificent image of it from start to finish, from my years as a youngster with childhood friends, then my moments in Toulon. There, players like Soane Toevalu, Philip Fitzgerald or José Suta accompanied me when I was a very young rugby player, among all the stars of the time in Toulon, trained by Tana Umaga. Afterwards, there were the years in Toulouse, the France team, and the French stadium. It is a large painting which is personal to me. I have always given my all. Even if it is pejorative, my rugby was not really around the ball, but above all on the collective commitment so that fifteen men take over fifteen others on the ground. To be able to meet again an hour, a week, or ten years later, having the great emotions of shared fights.
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