In Marcoussis
With hindsight, what conclusions do you draw from the Jalibert-Ntamack association?
Laurent Labit:
At the end of the match, there was a bit of a bitter taste. We had worked a lot on this system in training and we did not manage to put it in place during the match. We knew it would be difficult. And nothing tells us that it would have been better with two real centers. But we had high expectations. And, during the match, we had, it's true, difficult to find the connection, the very fusion, that there was between them two during training. At times, they found themselves with balls that were not dynamic because of not quick enough outings on the rucks. But they also badly negotiated situations, made choices of game not in accordance with what we had prepared ...
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How do you explain it?
Already, we knew that the adversary would not want to give us the possibility of establishing this connection between Matthieu and Romain, that they would do everything to slow it down, to prevent us from speeding up our game. aware that this changes our organization, previously based on 10 and 15, with our centers more used on tasks in the middle of the field. It’s a whole thing. This organization, with 10 and 12 as playmakers and no longer 10 and 15, asks the players around to take on additional tasks so that Matthew and Romain are on their feet and available to organize our game. wingers to come and participate more in the center of the field. It's a different organization. But, despite the great talent of these two players, we knew thatyou wouldn't find the perfect copy the first time.
We owe it to ourselves to watch, we owe it to ourselves to allow time.
It is not in a match that we will say "it's great" or "we stop".
Laurent Labit
What were your expectations?
To have them as much as possible in the service of the game. On the legs, as they say.
We are not interested in seeing them head in the rucks, even if Romain knows that he has to be a little more there, and in a more efficient way, than against Argentina.
But you have to live it and relive it so that the offensive system is always connected and available.
Are you going to abandon this option?
No ! We owe it to ourselves to watch, we owe it to ourselves to allow time. It is not in a match that we will say "
it's great
" or "
we stop
". This is an option that we want to have depending on the opponent, or during the game if we want to speed up the game or better manage it with kicking play. She works very, very well in training. It will work better the next time we use it in a match ...
Why are you so keen on having this option?
It is a complementary tactical option that we must look at.
We have our sights set on the 2023 World Cup, where we will need players capable of occupying several positions, of adapting to several organizational systems.
This is an advantage in team building.
Romain was scored after the match, it's true.
Laurent Labit
Romain Ntamack does not seem to have experienced this failure very well, nor his exit from the 54th minute of the match…
Romain was marked, it's true.
He knows that we have not been able to put him in the best possible conditions.
But he also knows that we have great confidence in him.
We also discussed with Matthieu the choices he should have used to do better, to be better.
Responsibility is shared.
We should not focus on Romain, on the contrary.
Read alsoXV of France: towards a renewal of the Jalibert-Ntamack association against Georgia
Maybe he feels like he's been sacrificed in this system?
It is you who say that… No one is sacrificed!
We had discussed it with Romain upstream.
We are transparent with our players, we exchange a lot.
We have nothing to hide.
We know that Romain excels at the opening, that he has always been present and very good at this position.
If we put him in the center, it is not to sacrifice him but to be better and more efficient in our game. To have discussed it with him, it is not something that poses a problem for him.
Interview at a press conference
