The last two semi-finals lost against Leinster remained “across” the throats of Toulouse, admits international third row Anthony Jelonch in an interview with AFP, who wants to “ward off fate” in the Champions Cup before starting against Cardiff on Saturday.
Stade Toulousain has a rich European past. Do we smell a particular scent this week? Anthony Jelonch: It’s true that everyone here has this love for the European Cup. We feel that everyone is motivated to get this competition off to a good start, in our stadium, in front of our supporters. This is going to be a highlight of December. I hope we will have a good result, with a spectacle.
What are your personal memories of the European Cup? It was still called the Heineken Cup when I was young. I was going to see Stade Toulousain. I also remember going to see Biarritz at Anoeta (Saint-Sébastien stadium). It’s always been a competition that I enjoyed and it’s great to be able to play it today. I played in a semi-final (with Toulouse in 2022) and I would like to go further. Playing in a European Cup final would be a childhood dream and winning it would be even bigger.
Who are the favorites according to you? La Rochelle has three finals in three years and two titles (2022 and 2023). I believe they have only lost one European Cup match in the last three years: the final against Toulouse at Twickenham (2021). He is one of the big favorites with Leinster, who also have this love for the European Cup. They will want to perform well after their disappointments over the last two years against La Rochelle. We lost twice in a row against Leinster (in the semi-final) and we had a bit of trouble. We will do everything to ward off fate.
Where do you rank Cardiff compared to your next three group opponents (Harlequins, Ulster and Bath)? This European Cup is a sprint. You have to win every match and there are no small teams. From what we saw on the video, Cardiff play a lot of ball, with an effective playing time of 40 minutes on average. We like to play well too, so it should be a very enjoyable match. We will have to erase these little shortcomings that we have had lately in the championship, especially in defense.
How do you explain these shortcomings? Our opponents have three or four actions in the match and they score three tries. It is not possible. We have fifteen actions in the brand zone and we can’t make it happen. It’s quite frustrating, but I’m sure it will get resolved little by little. This European Cup will do us good. It’s always nice to change competitions, it creates emulation in the group.
Is there a post-World Cup decompression among the internationals? We must not hide behind that. We are professionals and we all want to do well. Whether in the Top 14 or the European Cup, we have great matches to play, very high-level matches and that’s what we want. You need a little patience. We have only resumed for three matches, not three months. Even if everyone wants us to be at a very high level straight away, we are human. And I think it’s still good, it’s just small details. I’m not worried at all.
How is your knee?I am now almost nine months from (cruciate ligament) surgery, within the normal time frame. I feel that I am gradually finding more gas, more anticipation on the pitch. I feel even better than before my injury, so that bodes well for the future.
