In a particular context and in a spirit of revenge against the Baby Blacks, the Bleuets will have the will to show what French rugby has best, in the semi-final of the U20 World Cup.
The French under-20 team, which will meet New Zealand in the semi-finals of the U20 World Cup in South Africa on Sunday, is trying to focus on its rugby and its revenge against the Baby Blacks. Despite the case involving Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou, two former Bleuets indicted for aggravated rape in Argentina.
Beaten by a single point by the same team in the group stage (26-27), the Bleuets are out for revenge before this semi-final. “We lost in the last action, we saw ourselves eliminated so yes, there is a feeling of revenge, but we are also approaching it like a semi-final”said Captain Hugo Reus. “We are confident and we know that if we play as we know how to, there should be no problem.”adds the fly-half.
A shock that will take place in a very particular context. The two players of the French XV involved in a sexual assault case were still members of this team a few months ago, winning the U20 World Cup with many players present in South Africa.
“Sébastien (Calvet, the manager of the Bleuets, editor’s note) spoke to us about it the morning of the match against Wales (Tuesday, editor’s note), but we remained focused on our match; we are in our World Cup, we only think about that”assured the Pau fly-half Axel Desperes, Hugo Auradou’s teammate at the Section, to the press on Thursday.
“To show that there are also young French people who behave very well”
The communication of the young players of the French team has been blocked for a few days. None of them came to speak to the press after the bonus victory against Wales which ensured qualification for the semi-final (29-11). Sébastien Calvet even interposed himself in front of his captain Hugo Reus when a question was asked about how he and his teammates were managing these events: “Hugo will not answer this question, he must remain focused on the semi-final, like the rest of the team” explained the Bleuets manager.
On Tuesday evening, the man who is aiming for a second world title in a row at the head of this team had nevertheless admitted a different context: “We’re not going to lie to ourselves, it was a disruptive element and that’s why we asked the players to be resilient.”.
Also read: XV of France: on the verge of tears, Fabien Galthié discusses the Auradou-Jegou affair
“We would have preferred that they only talk about the match today and we know very well that the discussions focused on something else, added the Bleuets coach. The staff therefore hit hard in the messages that we wanted to get across to our young people (…) They are warned that they must be vigilant, that they are adults who must be responsible for their actions.” Before recalling: “For the moment (Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou) are presumed innocent. If the facts were to prove true, my first thought is for the victim.”
A message of responsibility, accompanied by the need to show another image of the French Team and of this sport. “Our role today is to bring joy and show that there are also young French people who behave very well,” he hoped. For rugby’s sake, let’s hope they succeed.
