Less than a year after his conviction in a corruption case, the former president of the FFR, Bernard Laporte, signed a strong comeback in French rugby, by being appointed on Sunday director of rugby for Montpellier, currently the red lantern of the Top 14 after six defeats in seven days. Immediately appointed, Laporte unveiled a new staff for the MHR.
In his suitcases, he arrives in Hérault with Patrice Collazo, freshly arrived from Brive, as general manager replacing the Englishman Richard Cockerill, who only lasted a few months at the head of the Hérault team. Jean-Baptiste Elissalde also leaves the club. Collazo will be surrounded by Vincent Etcheto, who will take care of the three-quarters, as well as the duo Christian Labit and Antoine Battut, in charge of the forwards.
The appointment of Collazo did not only make people happy: international fly-half Louis Carbonel is in fact at odds with the man who was manager of RC Toulon between 2018 and 2021. At the time, a revolt from the players had asked the president Var Bernard Lemaître the departure of the technician. And Louis Carbonel, who was one of these players, had to leave the RCT, pushed out by his training club, suspected of being one of the leaders of this revolt. The reunion, at the start of the week, between the double U20 world champion fly half (under contract until June 2025) and the former Stade Rochelais mentor was not easy.
According to the sports daily L’team this Thursday, Carbonel was “at the bottom of the bucket” when he learned of Collazo’s arrival at MHR. Toulon supporters immediately launched a petition to bring the “kid” back to the fold. The sports daily claims that Carbonel and Collazo would have spoken, the new manager of Montpellier believing that the number 10 (5 selections with the XV of France) was not one of the leaders of the revolt, but rather a follower. The exchange would have gone well.
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Bernard Laporte and Vincent Etcheto, new three-quarter coach of the MHR, also spoke with the player, asking him to give up. It now remains to be seen whether the old differences between the two men can be dissipated… Several clubs have inquired about enlisting the Hérault number 10, in particular, according to Le Midi Libre, Toulouse which must cope with the injury-related absence of Romain Ntamack and the return of Melvyn Jaminet to Toulon. The RCT is also deprived of the opener position with the back injury of Welshman Dan Biggar and the end of the World Cup joker contract of Australian Noah Lolesio.