Stade Français Thump Clermont in Top 14 Clash
Stade Français outclassed Clermont in the closing match of the 20th round of Top 14 (64-20). With 9 tries to Clermont’s 3, the Parisians secured a bonus point and moved up to third place in the championship, level on points with second-placed Pau. This marks the third consecutive victory for Stade Français. Meanwhile, Clermont suffered their second defeat after losing at home to Montpellier.
“Baptiste Jauneau, conceding 64 points is a heavy defeat for Clermont tonight…”
“It’s always a pleasure to be reminded of that (smiles). It hurts… It stings, it’s tough, it’s a blow to the head. But it’s done, and now, we can’t turn back. We have to get back to work, rework. We might need to revisit certain fundamentals, especially mentally. I don’t have all the answers right now. But one thing is for sure, we must not give up, we must not lose hope, far from it. I hope this will serve us well and tighten us up in games like this. Many teams tighten up after big defeats, when they receive red cards, etc. So, this could also be a wake-up call for the final sprint.”
“Are you vexed?”
“Yes, we are quite vexed. I’m sorry, but it really pisses me off, it’s a pain in the ass to concede 64 points. Truly, it’s tough. But that’s how it is. We need to decide if we’ll stay in a negative spiral and never come out on top, or if we’ll use this to rise above and be stronger in the upcoming matches.”
“How do you explain it, especially the end of the match where you concede five tries?”
“I don’t know because I didn’t sense the group letting go. Unfortunately, that’s what happened a bit, so I’m not sure if it’s mental. Did we want to quickly catch up on the score and then leave gaps in defense, make small mistakes, one-on-ones? I can’t explain it, I don’t know.”
“Do you need to clarify things with the group again like after Castres?”
“I’m not sure but I think it will do us good. We shouldn’t get too down about it. There are still 6 matches left, it’s not a big deal, it’s the final sprint. We conceded 64 against a direct competitor, yes, it hurts but there are other matches ahead, against other competitors, against other strong teams. We know the Top 14 is tough but it’s all played out until the last day.”
Interview by Julien Richard
