Ollivon expectant ahead of Marseille meeting with Namibia

Many of the players have played at the Stade Velodrome for their clubs, among them Charles Ollivon whose Toulon employers have overcome both Leinster and Munster at the venue in Champions Cup semi-finals this last ten years.

Thu, 21 Sep, 2023 - 06:34

Brendan O'Brien

The omnipotent Antoine Dupont looks down on the swarm of commuters that sweep daily from the platforms of Marseille’s Saint-Charles station and out into the city beyond. Rugby advertisements litter the metro and thoroughfares.

Six of the Rugby World Cup’s 48 games are being played at the ground normally known as the Stade Velodrome but the billboards will soon be advertising perfumes and potato chips again and Marseille will revert to the norm.

The locals will tell you that the atmosphere for the games already played here has been a pleasant distraction but nothing to compare to the fervour of matchday when their beloved Olympique Marseille play and the fans take over the Avenue du Prado.

Paris is home to ‘Les Bleus’ but the national team has a long history of taking its show on the road. Go back to the 1990s alone and they were pitching up at stops as varied as Nantes, Tarbes, Lourdes, Auch, Bordeaux, Aurillac, Besançon, Le Havre and Strasbourg.

Their first visit to Marseille was in 2000 when Fabien Galthié was part of the team. The current head coach reminisced about that day and the win over South Africa earlier this week and about the Mediterranean port’s “mythical” soccer stadium.

The place has been done up since, the new build delivering a stunning venue with steep stands and a swooping roof that, as Munster and Leinster fans can attest to, seals the noise and the heat generated from within.

France have played in the ground 13 times now, winning eleven. The last was a close-run thing against the Springboks last November, a result claimed despite the dismissal of Dupont for a dangerous tackle on Cheslin Kolbe.

Work on the Stade de France will see the French return here next spring when they host Ireland in the opening round of the Six Nations, so tonight’s duties against Namibia will continue foundations that last beyond the lifespan of this World Cup.

Many of the players have played here for their clubs as well, among them Charles Ollivon whose Toulon employers have overcome both Leinster and Munster at the venue in Heineken Champions Cup semi-finals this last ten years.

“Everyone feels it, everyone knows the ambience of the place. We saw it in the match with South Africa last year. I remember the [Thomas Ramos] penalty at the end. I had shivers. There was so much noise and you couldn’t hear people speak.

“Sometimes the stadium trembles,” said the 30-year-old forward at the pre-match press conference.

“It is a great venue for us players and for the fans, whether it is for football or for rugby, so it is great to be back here.”

This is France’s last game for 15 days given they won’t complete their pool duties against Italy in Lyon until October 6th and the need to build some momentum after their struggle against Uruguay is obvious in the strength of the side named by Galthié.

Namibia have conceded 123 points to Italy and New Zealand. They will be beaten with considerably less difficulty than the South Americans last week but, with the result a foregone conclusion, there is extra focus on the performance.

“We want to respond to the impression we left against Uruguay,” said second-row Thibaud Flament. “We're determined to show a better image. We want to put in an accomplished, clean performance that matches what we know we can do."

Grégory Alldritt is absent with a minor injury but Cyril Baille and Jonathan Danty come in for their first runs of the tournament. Both are figures of enormous importance to home hopes of a first World Cup title so this is an evening of some import.

Still, it’s hard not to see it as a holding operation, for France and for the tournament as a whole, after the dizzying opening night defeat of New Zealand in Saint-Denis. Whatever of those inside the camp, others are craning their necks towards the knockouts.

“We're focused on this week's match,” said Thibault. “We don't want to make the mistake of focusing on a match that could come later. But we always keep an eye on teams we might face, with a particular focus on South Africa and Ireland.”

France: T Ramos; D Penaud, G Fickou, J Danty, L Bielle-Biarrey ; M Jalibert, A Dupont ; C Baille, P Mauvaka, U Atonio; C Woki, F Thibault; F Cros, C Ollivon, A Jelonch.

Namibia: A van der Bergh; G Mouton, J Deysel, D Burger, JC Greyling; C Loubser, J Theron; D Sethie, L van der Westhuizen, J Coetzee; M Tjeriko, A Ludick; M Katijeko, H Retief, P Gaoseb.

Referee: M Carley (England).