On the eve of an important meeting for the RCT in the race for the top 6, this Tuesday in Montpellier (9 p.m.), captain Baptiste Serin regretted the pace imposed by the calendars, while his team chained three games in seven days.
RCT-Toulouse Saturday (44-10). Then Montpellier-RCT Tuesday (9 p.m.) and Clermont-RCT Saturday (9:05 p.m.). In one week, Toulon will have chained three high-level matches in the Top 14, matches that could continue to leave traces on already tired bodies. A frantic pace that worries the captain of RC Toulon, Baptiste Serin (26), concerned for the health of the players in the championship.
“What worries me the most is the health of the players, whether for Montpellier or for us, regretted the scrum half, this Monday at a press conference. I had my father on the phone right there. hour which told me: “Be careful, it is a rhythm of footballers that you have, but a rhythm of footballers with the contacts in more. We do not pay attention to us, to our health, quite simply.”
“There are going to be staffing problems”
The end of the season promises to be intense for the qualifying places in the final stages, while Toulon’s fifth position is still far from being confirmed. But the RCT must, like the rest of the teams, string together meetings after the rescheduling caused by the pandemic, and deal with a calendar that has become hellish.
“Playing every three days, it puts the health of the players at odds. Everyone was committed that nobody plays during the week, result, we play during the week, continues the international tricolor. There are going to be staffing problems or rotations that will potentially allow our direct competitors to have more affordable matches. We cannot ask all clubs to be fully in every game, even during the week, and after complaining about the quality. I would have preferred that the championship be spread out a little more, so that the teams would have had the free choice of doing turn over or not, and the players would have had more recovery. “
After the defeat of La Rochelle on Saturday in Montpellier (32-22), the opening half Jules Plisson had already pointed out the succession of matches, and its impact on organizations. Guest of the Grandes Gueules du Sport, the director of rugby in Montpellier Philippe Saint-André had also expressed his anger.
—
