When the team composition which will face the Springboks on Sunday (9 p.m.) in the quarter-finals of the World Cup was announced, Antoine Dupont was present alongside coach Fabien Galthié. The French captain will hold his place in the fray against the Boks. And he confirmed that he will play on Sunday with a helmet, as during training this week, after his operation for a maxillo-zygomatic fracture on September 22.
“It was a wish of the surgeon who proposed this to me, more than proposed in fact,” explained the Toulouse number 9 with a smile. I don’t have any discomfort with it so I went to put it on. In any case, I think that in these types of matches, there is always pain, whether physical or mental, these international matches are very trying. Even more so when there is something at stake.”
The Blues captain added that he feels “very good. At the time, I didn’t know the severity of my injury. I took the time to come back, find hope again. My recovery went well. I was able to take the necessary steps, I had several weeks: I am at full capacity in my game, in my physical or technical means for Sunday.
Concerning his convalescence and his express return to competition, the captain of the Blues says: “On the evening of September 21, it was complicated, I was lucky that this injury happened quite early. I had a week of rest to regenerate, to regain sensations and do a week full of training with the group, it was important for me to validate all the stages.
As this big meeting approaches, the first playoff match for the Blues, Antoine Dupont also clarified that he “did not receive any pressure from the staff, no decision was forced, we respected the deadlines, the steps were progressive. The most important thing was my feeling, so that I didn’t play with a brake.” And to specify: “If I had not been able to play, I would have been replaced in the best possible way, whether by Baptiste (Couilloud) or Maxime (Lucu). If I play, it’s because I feel good and the medical has validated my place on the match sheet.”