The discovery of pastis was not easy for Matt Giteau, the former opening half of RC Toulon.
Matt Giteau spent six seasons at RC Toulon. With three European championship titles (2013, 2014, 2015) and a Top 14 title at stake. The former Australian international also had time to discover local customs, helped by his teammates, first and foremost Frederic Michalak. Only a few days after his arrival in France, the native of Sydney was thus left to discover pastis by the care of the former Toulousain.
“Fred served me this drink. He told me, you’ll see, it’s good. After 3 drinks, I was dead. It was horrible. I do not like it. I’ve never had it again,” told Matt Giteau during a live broadcast on the Rugby Club Toulonnais Twitch channel. And pastis isn’t the only French drink the former Wallaby struggles with. Evidenced by his comments on wine. “In France, I find wine weird, especially when it’s too red. For me, it’s disgusting”he indeed chained.
Retired since this winter but removed from the field since the summer of 2021 the end of his adventure in the United States, where he played for a season in Los Angeles, winner of Major League Rugby, Matt Giteau does not only have bad memories. from Toulon. Quite the contrary. “I owe the RCT and French rugby so much because I rediscovered my love for the game there. I won so many titles in Toulon, two of my three children were born there… It also allowed me to reach 100 caps with Australia because I was part of a wonderful team”he recently confided in the columns of the Midi-Olympique.