Could Racing 92 miss the final stages?

The Ile-de-France residents swept this season and knocked out the top six. And they could, for the first time since their return to the first division, miss the finals.

by
Arnaud Coudry

published On 03/03/2023 at 22:11

The kind of slap that leaves a trail. On the final day of the Top 14, Racing 92, completely absent, was crushed in Lyon Who surprised him with two luxurious attempts from New Zealand full-back Toby Arnold (35) and Fijian winger Khosua Toisova (38). In the end, 45-11, the addition was salty to Gerland. As a direct result, Hauts-de-Seine dropped to seventh in the standingswhich was surpassed by the surprisingly touted Bayonne and Union Bordeaux-Bègles.

Ile-de-France director Laurent Travers did not use the language of wood. “Nothing to say… When you get 45 points, there’s only one thing to do, say nothing and assume. We have to be better on the field and during the week.”, to cut. whileThere are only seven days left to playRacingman doesn’t have time to gamble. Coming to the ring from Toulouse stadiumIt will be capital, even if it is deprived of its internationality. At the level of accounting, but also to restore confidence. “Let us not expect anything of others, let us do what it takes to get back at him, Altosequan technician continues. Others have the right to be good, but it is up to us to be better. Our destiny is still in our hands, and we don’t depend on anyone. Everyone should realize that.»

Leinster has spoiled everything

A regular in recent seasons, the Ile-de-France native, capable of very impressive shots but also notable underperformance, is navigating even more turbulent waters this season. after Bad start to the season, they were able to regain color by recording five successive hits. But the Champions Cup was there, and The defeat suffered in Nanterre against the formidable Leinster (10-42) Damage and break beautiful momentum. Since then, Laurent Travers’ players have not had two consecutive successes, winning only three of their last 11 matches (Harlequins, La Rochelle, Brive and a draw in Castres), in all competitions.

How do we explain such a lesser blow so well? One reason can be found in all the extra sporting excitement that reigns around Ile-de-France. Some key elements left Ile-de-France last summer in particular Teddy ThomasGeorges-Henri Colomb, Yoann Tanga (all left for Stade Rochelais), but also Swiss Australian Army Knife Kurtley Beale, who returned to the Waratahs. Not all new recruits were satisfactory (Wookie, Wade, Toifoaka, Grace…). The brutal announcement of the end of Feremi Vakatawa’s career, at the beginning of September, marked the whole club. And the next replenishment of personnel may also have been disrupted: the departure of Laurent Travers as club president, the arrival of England’s Stuart Lancaster and Frédéric Michalak, about the face Thibaut Gero, Head of the Physical Equipment Department.

Also read – Racing 92: Recruiting with mixed results for a transition year?

Some argue that the 2022-2023 season is a transitional season for reconstruction. Who is there to miss the final stages? This will be the first since the return to Serie A in 2009-2010 of Racing, which was crowned in 2016. No other club, during this period, has been able to achieve such regularity in play-off time. at the beginning of the season, Third grade Wenceslas Lauret Tell us: Sometimes we must avoid lying to ourselves and face reality. If you want something, you have to give yourself the means. That’s how we’ll get there.”

And the former international player with 27 hammer picks: “I think there is an urgent need to win the title. President Jacqui Lorenzetti allocates a lot of resources to allow us to develop in good conditions. We must respect everything he does. By winning a title. So far it seems complicated…