Champions Cup: Stade Français sends its youth to the fire of Leinster

Almost eliminated from the Champions Cup, with only one small point gleaned in two matches, Stade Français is condemned to the feat, this Saturday (6:30 p.m.) in Dublin against the formidable province of Leinster and its (very) numerous Irish internationals. A new defeat would lead to the elimination of the pink soldiers and the failure of a continental ambition announced at the start of the season.

It seems that the new manager, Laurent Labit, and his staff, no longer have any illusions. Faced with more than great adversity, they decided to rotate the squad. “A rotation to spare the workforce. With the sequence of matches, you have to be careful about breakage,” explained one of the assistant coaches Morgan Parra at a press conference.

Result, a team deprived of most of its executives (Briatte, Macalou, Ward, Marchant, Barré…) and a strong injection of young players. The back Léo Monin (21 years old), the center Noah Néné (19 years old) or the third row Andy Timo (19 years old, world champion U 20, replacing this Saturday and announced as the successor of… Macalou), are thus launched for the first time into the deep end.

A risky but accepted choice. “There is no better place to play rugby. And, when we are competitive, we like to confront what is best. This is the case for Leinster. Playing Aviva is not for everyone. We therefore insist on the notion of pleasure. For the players, it's an opportunity, for the young people, a magnificent experience. We have to let go, try, play our luck to the fullest. Afterwards, it's certain, if we are not organized, not in place, like against Clermont, the bill can be heavy..., recognizes Morgan Parra. But, for newbies, there must be zero stress. It is, I repeat, a chance to attack in Dublin. We expect young people to be carefree. It’s up to the elders to supervise them as best as possible.” The All Black Brad Webber, the Englishman Zack Henry, the Samoan Giovanni Habel-Küffner and Kylian Hamdaoui will be in charge.

Message received if we are to believe the words of Léo Monin at a press conference. “I’m happy to be able to play there. We don't play in such a setting every year. It's going to be a good experience, hopes the young number 15. It's a gift to start this match, to confront the best in Europe. It allows you to learn, and I'm still in the learning phase. So it’s just more. It will allow me to see something else, to discover a rugby different from the Top 14.

“It’s an investment for the future,” confirms Laurent Labit, interviewed by Midi Olympique. Whatever the players can take from this encounter, they must take. It will make them grow.” Or undermine them morally if, by chance, the confrontation turns into slaughter with a decisive defeat at stake. “It will be tough, but I am sure we will all do our best,” replies South African second row Juan John Van der Mescht.

“We know it's going to be complicated to win at the Aviva, but we expect them to play hard so as not to have regrets,” adds Morgan Parra. I'm not saying that we're going to play everything to qualify but, at least, to find some certainty after what didn't work against Clermont. We came close twice in the Champions Cup, against Sale and Leicester. It's annoying. This time, we hope to exist and be competitive. To see where we are compared to what is almost the best in Europe.”

Léo Monin, bravado, refuses to be satisfied with this minimum objective. And don't exclude anything. “As long as qualification remains mathematically possible, nothing is lost. We can continue to progress.” We can only hope that the Irish do not dampen the enthusiasm of their youth too brutally...