TOP 14 – Ugo Mola: “All the data experts told us we had to beat Roman Ntamack in the final”

Now is not the time for trial, but the time for observation. Data is now an integral part of world rugby, and you would have to be very old to be able to go back to such technological advances that have led to the perfection of a very cerebral sport indeed. No doubt about it. Data specialists can now be found at all clubs, and the staff of the major nations in world rugby are excited about it. GPS and body fat index sensors, all these tools that arrived in rugby in the 2000s, have taken longer to be used in France.

In 2018, former coach (2012-2015) Philippe Saint-Andre confirmed: “We were one of the last to adapt to new technologies. Why? Because it represents additional costs. For a team of 32 players, you have to buy 32 GPS systems. If you want to use that GPS correctly , then you need a full staff” It is time to recover the data and use it. All this represents money and was not a priority for club presidents ten years ago. The Anglo-Saxons and New Zealanders have “so we have taken it a step further. It has now become standard practice.”

Arriving at the helm of the French XV in 2019, Fabien Galthiet has since used data extensively to build his selection and help the Blues progress. in Interview with Medi Olympique A few weeks ago, navigator Thomas Covell, a friend of the former half of the party, testified: “He has already started training his staff on physical preparation and especially data, which impressed me a lot. As a sailor, I use data a lot and in this regard, I had a lot of topics for conversation with him.”

Mola: “All the brokers say we have to get rid of him” (Ntamak)

during Back to school conference, Fabien Galtier chose numbers again to try to explain the early elimination of the French XV in the World Cup quarter-finals. This mathematical justification seems logical and concrete, but it bothered more than one person, starting with…Former international Richard Dorthon the set of CRC (Channel Rugby Club): “Everyone loves it, it’s perfect, but they avoid all the points that really matter: why did we lose? Why were there so many wounded? “He smokes everyone up with his statements and I don’t think that’s what respect for people who love rugby means.”

Should we be wary of these famous statements? On the occasion of the conference organized in Agen, specifically as part of the meetings with Michel Serres, director of the Toulouse Stadium Ugo MolaFormer Agen O USAP coach Christian Lanta discussed the topics of data and artificial intelligence in sports. Mola, who has won four titles with Toulouse since he was in charge of the athlete, stressed the interest in new technologies, noting that they are tools, not restrictions: “We have physical and medical data and performance indicators, but they are only decision-making aids. We must not forget the context in which we take them.”

Isn’t it dangerous for a coach to use data to exonerate himself when he fails?

In the Top 14 final, in particular, where the coach confirmed that all indicators advised him to coach Romain Ntamack, the eventual great champion on June 17 after an extraordinary outing in the defense of La Rochelle: “In the Top 14 final against La Rochelle, Ntamack put in a ten-minute counter-performance, and playing his 31st game of the season, all indications were that he should be taken off. But when he scored the match-winning try in the final, in the 78th minute, he reached absolute top speed for this season! So the numbers don’t explain everything… The Toulouse coach concluded as a warning: “These tools must remain in place of the tool. Isn’t it dangerous for the coach to use it to exonerate himself when he fails?”