Interview at press conference at Stade Chaban-Delmas
Were you afraid of losing this match?
Christophe Urios: I was not afraid, but a little anyway (laughs). I talked about it a lot this week, I found that we made a match like our week. We got into the game slowly, we moved slowly, they made us offloads… I even had the impression that the match was mentally eluding us. It is the complete opposite of what we want to do. There, I do not hide from you that the players were waiting for me at halftime to find the keys. Then, little by little, we came back to the match, we started to impose ourselves on worn balls. We were very effective since we scored at crucial moments. The very positive points is that even when you don't control the match, you don't panic and you hang on. This is where the state of mind makes me happy. When we found our aggressiveness thanks to the bench, it was better and we ended the match well. Over the entire match, Lyon made a better match than us.
Happy not to have cashed a test on beautiful built actions?
Me, the beautiful actions built, I don't care a bit (smile). They made forward and we defended well. It was a recovery match, we knew that everything would not be perfect. Inevitably, there was waste, and they were the ones who did the most. I said yesterday that it is the one with the least amount of waste that will win the match. And that's what happened ! We found speed, going on the end. It is the victory of courage and state of mind. These are the kinds of games that will make us grow.
Is coaching really essential in your eyes?
It's part of the team's strengths. We rotate a lot between matches, we change between 8 and 10 players. It means that everyone is involved in the project. The bench's contribution is decisive, particularly in terms of aggressiveness. The only negative point is the injuries of Cyril (Cazeaux) and Titi (Thierry Paiva), which are big injuries in my opinion.
"Over the whole match, Lyon made a better match than us"
What is Cazeaux's problem?
We will wait for the exams. It seems that the ligaments between the tibia and the fibula are affected. But beware, I'm not a doctor, we'll see. I think these are two good injuries, whereas we had not had them before. Alexandre Roumat had the flu last night, he called me. I told him "Take the box of Doliprane, sleep and there you go" (laughs). And this morning it was wrong. It was a big blow for us, we had worked a lot around Alexander on the sidelines. But even without him, we had a good touch. This shows the character of our team. We could have cracked, but we held on well.
Tamanivalu returns in force when he has been less seen lately ...
We saw him a little today (smile). He is one of those players who knew how to come in and bring their aggressiveness. He is a high level player. When he saw that we were in trouble on the one against one, he knew how to bring his healthy aggressiveness. He put us back in the direction of travel. He scores, he scores on the second, he takes two aerial balloons with a lot of authority ... It's a great comeback.
"The supporters were a bit like us, they made the roller coaster"
You felt the support of 33,100 supporters ...
Yes, especially at the end. They were a bit like us, they did the roller coaster (laughs). They were scared, they asked themselves: "But what's going on?" But it's incredible. It is great support. Something is going on in Bordeaux ... There is first place, and people find themselves in this team. It is a nice team, not necessarily in the wrong sense of the word, but nice in the sense in what it gives. The public finds itself in the emotion it gives them and in the character. Then, afterwards, on the form of the proposed game. We didn't manage to ignite as we wanted. We got stuck against the wind and our asses were between two chairs: should we attack, should we not attack ... I think people had a good time today hui.
When did you think of the offensive bonus?
It comes to my mind very quickly, as soon as we put the third try. That's what I said to Max (Lucu). When you take an offensive bonus, in general, you easily dominate the match. There, 10 minutes from the end, damn ... If someone had told me that we were going to take the offensive bonus at halftime, I would have taken it for a madman!
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Here you are with 52 points…
(He cuts) We're getting closer to the 70s (big smile). There are a little less, more than 18. So it's going on, no need to plan on the comet. I remember what happened in Castres. It stayed in there (he points to his head). I remember the press conference when we win here, there were four matches left and we had the royal road. And we were able to take a bridge in the face. Let us be humble, let us continue not to change and to work. We will do the accounts at the end.
Radradra and Cordero made differences on two tests. Are they just doing their job?
That's what we ask them, but if you asked me, I won't be able to do it (laughs). We know very well that we have a high-quality three-quarter line. We have players who are incredible, with Semi, Santi ', but you can also talk about little Geoffrey Cros, and Romain Buros. We have players who can make a difference at any time. We have flashes even when we don't dominate the game. It is the sign of high level teams. You don't have to dominate to win a game. It is reassuring for us. They also rely on a collective force.
"I was just hoping that I hadn't set the cursor too high for the recovery."
Psychologically, was it essential to launch this block with a victory?
Obviously it was crucial. It was necessary to mark the territory. We will go to Clermont with the same state of mind. We have no right to choose, we cannot give up. We will have more difficult moments, or not for that matter. We are ready, even if with injuries, we will be disabled. Between injuries, those selected for the Tournament ... They are important players, but that's how it is. The group must tighten even more.
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Is it a great satisfaction to have been able to recover this first place?
I talked about it during the week. When you are a leader, you are happy to be a leader. Pride had to speak today. However, this week, I found that the staff was more ready than the guys. Finally, it was reversed at the end of the week. Going to get this test at the end of the match for the bonus is reassuring. We still have to stay the course.
Were you afraid that your message would not be heard this week?
I was not afraid of that. I was just hoping that I hadn't set the cursor too high for the resume. I found that the players could not afford to do it, not that they did not want to. There were three options. The first is that the Toulouse match marked us, which is possible. The second is that we feared Lyon, which is strong and a great team. The third is that we had forced a little on physical intensity and that we were dampening things. We will get back to work on Monday, and off we go!
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