Devastated, Galthie calls out to O’Keefe

It is the distinguished Fabien Galthie, still frustrated by the sad conclusion to the 2023 World Cup, who faced the press on Wednesday as part of the National Football Association, just over three weeks after the disastrous quarter-final loss to Future South. World Champions Africa (28-29). Eager to rebuild a strong squad for the upcoming tournaments, the Blues coach could not hide the disappointment and pain he still feels today.

” First there is the time of mourning“, shouted Fabian Galthie, quoted by RMC Sport. It was a huge disappointment. Four years of hard work, successful work, like it or not. Four years of continuous progress. The only goal was to become world champion. The disappointment would have been the same if we had lost by one point in the semi-final or final. But we wanted to live another week together. The difference is huge. We wanted to experience these moments. »

He added to his personal assessment: “ It is first and foremost a wound and pain. When you play for the French national team and in the World Cup, you have to be ready to win but also to experience what I went through. There’s only one team that actually does well: the world champions. We will have a scar for life that is part of our journey. We have all done some sort of reflection, first personally and then collectively, on what we have been through. »

World Rugby Request

The shadow of New Zealand referee Ben O’Keefe, who had a major influence on the outcome of the Blues’ unfortunate quarter, clearly loomed over this press conference. ” I watched the quarter-final match on the train between Austerlitz and Cahors. It’s a five-and-a-half hour train ride. I saw it for the first time there. I receive a lot of data and analysis from my employees. I’ve sent clips from World Rugby and Ben O’keeffe on areas I think are importantrecognizes the fifteenth commander of France. We needed to get answers about the decisions made during the match. I rewatched the match over a dozen times. I have six or seven cameras and a lot of data. I found a lot of information. »

” I’ve worked with a lot of game analystsHe confirms once again, refusing to hide behind arbitration alone. One point… One point is nothing, but one point is everything. When you get into the end zone 11 times…that was double the goal we set for ourselves. The last gesture, on the facts of the match, was not enough. We are the only team to get a lot of highlights. This brings us to a potential score of 37 points, and we only scored 28 points. This means that tactically, we didn’t make many offensive mistakes. On a tactical level, I would use the same strategy if I had to do it again. Regarding training, it was planned that we would do the training early. We delayed training for certain positions, and it seemed to us that this was the right time… and we were dying at some point. Despite the facts of the match and the match scenario, our goal was to win until the last match no matter what. »