2023-10-19 09:51:00
Arriving in Toulouse on Wednesday evening, after having stayed a few days in Paris to enjoy some of his friends from the selection, he was the guest of the ViaMidol show before giving us this interview. Still extremely marked by the elimination in the quarter-finals, he returns to this World Cup which made him change dimension.
Three days after the lost quarter-final (interview conducted Wednesday evening, Editor’s note)How do you feel ?
I said after the match that I was sad and disgusted. It’s always the same. I am sad and disgusted. It’s still hard to realize that it’s over… To end like that is… (He pauses) I would have liked so much for us to continue the adventure, for the competition not to stop there.
Have you seen the match since Sunday evening?
No, I haven’t seen him again. I’m not capable of it yet. I’m going to wait a bit before watching this match again.
Are you afraid it will hurt too much?
Yes. Honestly, it’s difficult…
What’s the hardest thing today?
The day after the match, we left the hotel. Everyone left and, in the following days, the players took turns returning home. Between preparation and the World Cup, we had been together for three or four months, living together every day. And there it ends. Like that, for a small point. It’s really very hard to take and digest.
What struck you the most after this defeat?
There were strong moments on a human level. But, the first thing that comes to mind is the silence in the locker room after the match. It was complete silence. It was such a hard moment to live through. You could hear the flies flying. It was terrible.
A dream had just come crashing down for all of you, that of becoming world champions…
Yes, absolutely. It was a dream for all the players in our group and I have the impression that it was also a dream for all the French people.
You stayed in Paris until Wednesday afternoon. Did you feel the need to still take advantage of some of your teammates?
Yes, I stayed with Romain (Restricted) and wine (Anthony), with whom I am very close and with whom I spent this entire World Cup. With Gael (fucking) also, who already lived in Paris. I took advantage of these two or three days with them because, ultimately, we won’t see each other again for a while. Then, I will no longer see Romain and Uini in the French team (they both announced their international retirements, Editor’s note). They will leave a big void in the group behind them. I matured a lot thanks to them.
Did you talk about the match between you or did you mainly want to clear your mind?
We obviously talked about it… We looked for explanations and, when you’re as disgusted as we are right now, you try to blame people. Then, you question a lot of things. You rewatch the entire film and you have a lot of regrets, about many events in the match… You also tell yourself that you should have tried to do other things, or to do them differently. Anyway, when we lose, we always replay the match together.
Many of you were very frustrated with Ben O’Keeffe’s refereeing after the final whistle. Is this still the case, a few days later?
I have taken a little more perspective on this but a lot of things still stick in my mind. I am convinced that certain decisions should have been favorable to us but were not whistled. I didn’t understand why several forwards had not been sanctioned. So, mentally, it was sometimes difficult to pull myself together. On this point, it was very hard after the match. It’s still hard today. This will certainly pass once the World Cup is over. But there are semi-finals and we really hoped to be there.
Will you be watching them this weekend, as well as the finale next week?
No, I’m not going to watch them and I’m going to cut it for the World Cup. If I sit down in front of these matches, I will tell myself that it should have been for us.
Do you have any regrets about the way the French XV approached this quarter-final?
No, it comes down to one point… There you go, it was surely a very beautiful match to see, to experience too. But, I come back to it, there were still decisions… (He stops) I have a hard time with it because it’s still difficult to talk about it. In this kind of context, we necessarily want to look for culprits.
And what is your collective share of responsibility in this setback?
We should have handled certain situations better, that’s obvious. But, with ifs, we always remake the world…
However, you seemed dominant until the 55th minute…
Yes. In any case, on the pitch, I felt that we had a big match, that we played well, that we scored some constructed tries. But the most frustrating thing was to constantly let them come back into the game with somewhat poor attempts. We made mistakes and the South Africans knew how to make the most of them, scoring each time.
Is this the big downside of this meeting?
Yes, because we were never able to achieve a big points gap, as we should have done. With our mistakes, we allowed them to stay in the match, and it finally shifted at a point where we started to drop in intensity.
On a personal level, however, you were radiant. Did you have one of the best matches of your career?
I don’t know. I hope I have many more matches like this, or better yet, with a better result. In any case, I didn’t put any pressure on myself and it worked.
You’re not the type to put a lot into it…
It’s true, I’m more of the laid-back type before matches. And then, with what I had said about the Springboks the day before at the press conference (“They say everywhere that they dominate everyone in front, so I can’t wait for Sunday”, Editor’s note), I knew deep within me that I had to take responsibility for my words on the pitch. Yes, I’m happy with what I did on a personal level. But what counts at the end is the collective. And unfortunately I remember the defeat.
Peato Mauvaka against the Boks in the quarter-final of this World Cup.
You actually had strong words the day before…
Yes, we knew we had to take on the physical challenge. We had already faced them during the last autumn tour in Marseille. They put a lot of emphasis on their famous “physicality” (sic) to dominate everyone, they talked about it everywhere… But we were ready. We had worked for more than three months to respond to a match of this caliber, with such intensity. Once on the ground, you tell yourself that they are humans, like us. In the end, it was either them or us…
You were replaced by Pierre Bourgarit in the 64th minute. Given your exceptional performance so far, did you accept it easily?
All the players want to stay on the pitch. This was obviously my case. But it’s not me who decides. It’s the staff’s choice and, if they feel it’s the right time, it’s because they consider it the best solution. I can’t say anything more but, for such a match against South Africa, I could have played for another two or three hours.
Will this competition remain, despite the final failure, special for you?
Of course. I still took part in a World Cup in France. I participated in the one in Japan in 2019, but without having a single minute of playing time because I was injured before the match I was supposed to play. There, the fact of having played all the matches of the competition, and also all those of preparation during the summer, it was enormous. They trusted me. Like in Toulouse, when I feel that the staff give me a lot of trust and affection on a human level, I manage to let go on the pitch.
Your World Cup completely changed in the 11th minute of the opening match, against New Zealand, when you replaced your Toulouse teammate Julien Marchand, who was out injured…
When Julien was injured, I understood that he might be absent for a while and I wanted to prove that the staff didn’t have to worry, that they could count on me. It is above all a collective sport and I wanted to do my best for the team. Initially, this competition was for Julien. You can never fully prepare yourself to step into the role of the incumbent overnight, but I was ready to take on the role.
Do you feel like you have changed dimensions in recent weeks?
In the eyes of the general public, yes, it is certain. I now know that people no longer see me in the same way as before this World Cup. Or even before the preparation match against Fiji.
Why do you mention this match against Fiji in Nantes?
Because before this meeting, people were even starting to question my position as number two in the hierarchy. We wondered if it would be Pierre (Bourgit) or me during the World Cup. This put me in a bit of difficulty personally. But I was able to show in this match that people could trust me. From there, things changed. I felt this confidence from the staff, and I had a lot of fun on the pitch.
Where do you get this strength of character?
In my story and in everything I have experienced. When I enter a field, I play for a particular person (he refers to his father, who died suddenly in December 2018, Editor’s note) and I forget the fatigue.
Your mother, who came to watch the opening match against the All Blacks, ultimately stayed by your side and attended all the matches… Yes, it gave me another reason to give my all on the pitch.
Are you already able to plan ahead with the French XV, the next Tournament or even the 2027 World Cup?
For now, it’s quite hard to imagine what happens next. It’s too early. Now I have returned to Toulouse and I will think about the club first. We will then see what will happen.
What do you want for the next few weeks?
Ugo (Mola) called me this morning (Wednesday, Editor’s note) to tell me that I was going to have a little vacation. But I could play again tomorrow without any problem if I had to. I’m young, I still have juice in my legs (smile).
Has your motivation to win other club titles in the coming months increased tenfold after this immense disappointment?
I hope to win some, yes. But I still haven’t played a single match with Toulouse this season, so we’re going to take it step by step.
Your dad would have been very proud of you, in any case…
I hope so. I know he’s looking at me from up there.
1697712040
#Rugby #World #Cup #culprits.. #Peato #Mauvaka #speaks #quarterfinal #defeat