A recurring evil.
One day yes, one day no.
Or rather an exciting half-time then another completely failed.
On Sunday, Racing 92 completely collapsed against Union Bordeaux-Bègles (14-37), after having dominated the first half.
“
Following the little reminder spanking that we took last week, it is important that we show a better image,
recognizes the Ile-de-France manager Laurent Travers.
In the second half, we gave up physically and mentally ...
"
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Racing totally amorphous, unrecognizable, absent.
Missing in action.
“
We accept the criticisms, they are there.
But we also know that we were praised when we won in Toulon
(20-27, mid-October, Editor's note)
.
You have to put things into perspective in one direction as in the other,
”continues the technician from Altoséquanais.
Except that these drops in tension, these huge dead ends are recurring this season.
And Laurent Travers sees further: “
It's not just this season.
You have to look at it every year.
But it can happen at any club.
"
The slap was hard to digest.
Hell of a hangover.
“
Of course, it's not the best week we've spent.
It was harder to get on the right track,
"confirms third row Baptiste Chouzenoux."
We were a bit tough at the start of the week,
continues Maxime Machenaud.
We struggled to take this big disappointment.
The scrum half does not hide his face on the problems of his team, he even explains that these voltage swings also happen in training.
When you're in a storm, you have to row in the same direction.
If it is necessary to reduce the sail area, we will reduce it so that the mast does not break
Laurent Travers
“
We are very inconstant. We have air holes. Mentally, sometimes we are weak. You have to work on it in training. It also happens in training to do exceptional things and others that are not like us. We try to progress mentally, physically and technically. We sometimes sin on these points through the same match,
”he notes. Laurent Travers, for his part, tries to find explanations: “
It is important that we have our entire workforce, that we can work in continuity. We do not yet have this stability to be able to work well, but we are working on it.
"
The Sky and White, who worry more than reassure, nevertheless close ranks. The only way, according to them, to get out of it. “
We must not panic, but stand up. When you're in a storm, you have to row in the same direction. If we need to reduce the sail area, we will reduce it so that the mast does not break. We will all get out of it together,
”image Laurent Travers. Baptiste Chouzenoux is a little more alarmist. "
Obviously, that worries us," he
concedes.
If we want to perform throughout the season and play in the finals, that doesn't have to happen to us anymore. This is the case every other match. It's impossible to qualify by being in a sawtooth for a whole season ...
"
Two words keep coming back: mind and state of mind.
Two things that Parisians lack.
“
In terms of the state of mind, we have to stay as a team, that we unite.
There, we collapsed.
It's a mental job
, ”confirms Chouzenoux.
Machenaud for his part believes that "
confidence, it will be sought
": "
I am not sure that we were confident after the victory against Toulouse
(27-18, end of October, at the Arena, Editor's note)
.
I did not feel complacency after this match.
"
If you go to Castres without character, it is not even worth moving ...
Maxime Machenaud
And on Saturday, a tough trip to Castres looms, synonymous with physical challenge and extreme commitment. “
Even if it's complicated, we have to do what it takes to straighten our head. It's all the more complicated to do it when you set foot in Castres. I know the house well and I know that they will do everything to put us in difficulty,
”warns Laurent Travers, French champion with the CO in 2013.
Before switching to the Champions Cup (trip to the English of Northampton, reception of the Welsh Ospreys), the Racingmen - some of whom could be spared before the European games - know what awaits them in the Tarn.
"
If you go to Castres without character, it is not even worthwhile to move ... There will be less play than at the Arena.
It will be a real test to see if we have learned from our mistakes,
”warns Maxime Machenaud.
Baptiste Chouzenoux is just as clear: "
We will know if we are united or if we are going to escape ...
"
