‘Fire and water’ drive Castres to brink of glory

Tomorrow night’s Top 14 final sees Toulon aiming for a double after their win over Clermont in the Heineken Cup final a fortnight ago. Standing in their way are Castres, the underdogs.

For Castres’ coaching duo of Laurent Labit and Laurent Travers, a win would be their crowning achievement before leaving to join Jonny Sexton and Ronan O’Gara at Racing Metro next season.

The two Laurents have done a phenomenal job to get Castres to this stage at all. That they have done so is greatly encouraging for Sexton and O’Gara, who will work with them next season in Paris.

Labit and Travers have brought steady improvement to their Castres side each season over the last four years. The duo started working together in 2004 at Montauban. Their impact was immediate and they took the club from the Pro D2 into the Heineken Cup in five seasons. That success was rewarded with a move to Castres in 2009.

Before the two Laurents arrived, Castres had finished 12th in the Top 14, just above the relegation zone. In their first season, the duo helped the club to a fifth-place finish.

In each of the three seasons since, Castres have made the play-offs and now have the chance to win their first Bouclier de Brennus since 1993. Labit and Travers deserve the lion’s share of congratulations for their intelligent coaching.

Labit (45) was a full-back with Castres and part of that title-winning team in 1993. Subsequently, his coaching expertise covers the back line. Travers (44) played hooker, winning the Heineken Cup with Brive in 1997, and takes charge of the forwards. They are technically excellent coaches and prefer open interaction with their players.

Labit says: “That’s the base of our management, we talk a lot with the players.”

The working relationship between the pair is “a little like fire and water”, but in a complementary way. Labit says that he and Travers will continue to work together for the foreseeable future: “We prefer to work as two, rather than have a manager above us.”