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"We're coming home": RC Toulon inaugurates its Hall of Fame with the heroes of the 2010s

2023-04-18T14:44:10.578Z


REPORT - Eight players are officially inducted this Tuesday during a gala evening at the Zénith de Toulon. The occasion for joyful and moving reunions between legends.


Special envoy to Toulon

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They arrived in Toulon one after the other.

The first from Saturday to collect a huge ovation from the public of Mayol before the kick-off of the meeting against Perpignan.

The last Tuesday evening: His Majesty Jonny Wilkinson in person.

For joyful and moving reunions between legends.

Those who, from 2013 to 2015, submitted Europe.

Three consecutive Champions Cup.

Plus a shield from Brennus in 2014. A sparkling double for the farewell of the English opener, Toulonnais from 2009 to 2014. A Jonny so happy to find

"the passion and energy of this unique place"

that, Tuesday morning, he donned the tracksuit to give a little lesson to current RCT scorers.

For the past four days, a sweet scent of nostalgia has been floating around the Campus, the Var club's ultramodern training center.

Who pulled out all the stops to launch his Hall of Fame.

A unique tribute in French rugby.

The public voted to elect the first elected members of this Pantheon.

Two per generation that marked the history of the RCT.

Marcel Baillette and Marcel Bodrero, pioneers of the 1930s;

André Herrero and Christian Carrère, warriors of the sixties;

Éric Champ and Jérôme Gallion, winners in 1987 and 1992;

Jonny Wilkinson and Joe Van Niekerk, for the latest hits.

Eight players officially inducted this Tuesday during a gala evening at the Zénith de Toulon.

The legend is intact

Therefore, the opportunity was too good to pay tribute to this fabulous team that dominated the last decade.

To the four titles already mentioned, it is indeed necessary to add these four lost French championship finals (2012, 2013, 2016 and 2017).

What a raid it would have been without these failures… Contacted, all the heroes have without hesitation traveled the planet to find themselves on the lands of their exploit.

We thus meet the Australians Matt Giteau and Drew Mitchell, always as accomplices (

“We grew up a little, not them …”

, laughing Jonny Wilkinson), the New Zealanders Sonny Bill Williams and Carl Hayman, the South Africans Bryan Habana and Bakkies Botha, Argentinian Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe…

They remember this slice of life together under the orders of Bernard Laporte, also present, and Mourad Boudjellal, the president at the time.

On the menu of their discussions,

“the great moments of fun and the enormous shouting matches of Bernard after a defeat

, confides Delon Armitage to

Figaro

.

We are not talking about the matches but about what happened off the pitch or in the locker room.

We were still together at the time…”

The colossus Bakkies Botha no longer tries to scare, becomes a big teddy bear to ensure that he finds

“not teammates but brothers.

For life".

Everyone says so.

Toulon, the RCT, this adventure marked them forever.

Jonny Wilkinson does not hide his pleasure to find this place "

which he misses so much"

.

“We are coming back home.

Nothing has changed, it's still the same passion for rugby here”

, he underlines, showing all the supporters who came to cheer on their heroes.

It was crazy to come back to Mayol, to my house in fact, nine years later.

There are no words.

Toulon has the best supporters in the world because they are crazy

Joe Van Niekerk

“It's a magical experience to see all these great teammates again.

We have created so many links between us with these challenges, but also these moments of weakness, of questioning

, continues the English star.

And, when you succeed like you did, it's something special.

It was not always fun, there were very nice moments, but also very difficult moments.

When Bernard shouted, for example.

And Jonny tortured him with hearty laughter.

Joe Van Niekerk, he is still shaken by the emotion felt when, on Saturday, the stadium rose to cheer its legendary captain hitting his chest vigorously as in the finest hours.

“It was completely crazy to come back to Mayol, to my house in fact, nine years later.

There are no words.

Toulon has the best supporters in the world because they are crazy.

He too tastes the joy of this reunion.

“What I missed the most was laughing with them.

Since I stopped rugby, I often think about it.

Our jokes, our giggles… We meet again and nothing has changed.

The legend is intact.

Source: lefigaro

All sports articles on 2023-04-18

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