A breath of fresh air blew this weekend at Paris la Défense Arena. We are talking about Sunday evening, for the Top 14 match between Racing 92 and Stade Français (53-20), in the room which also hosted the meeting of a presidential candidate in the campaign the day before. These hopes to build the world after the Hauts-de-Seine club are called Nolann Le Garrec, 19, and Max Spring, 21. Both of them burst the screen during the demonstration of Ciel et Blanc in this derby dominated from the head and shoulders.
“Nolann, we know him, he can bring us all his talent”, agreed the manager of Racing 92 Laurent Travers, not quick to highlight the individualities in his collective. At only 19 (he will be 20 on May 14), the Breton scrum-half has already made a name for himself. Arrived from Vannes (Morbihan) as a teenager to join the Racing training center, Nolann Le Garrec experienced a meteoric rise which allowed him to play at the end of last season with Ciel et Blanc, despite competition from experienced Maxime Machenaud and Teddy Iribaren at his post.
He confirmed at the start of the season, notably with high-level matches against Clermont or Toulouse. Quoted by Fabien Galthié, promised a bright future and seen by many as the ideal replacement for Antoine Dupont in blue, the young Breton mad about rugby and almost obsessive worker sees his progress halted by a dislocation of the shoulder followed by an operation in November. Five months later, he is again on his feet to the point of finding the France team under 20 in March and his club just after.
A decisive entry
This Sunday, his entry into the game at the break in place of Machenaud coincided with the domination of Racing, the score going from 15-13 at half-time to 53-20 in the end. From the start, Nolann Le Garrec energized the game of the Ile-de-France residents, sent a laser pass to Teddy Thomas for his small side test, and investigated the points at the foot like a metronome. His return to form is one of the very good news of this end of the season for Racing 92 which will chain the cut matches, in the European Cup and in the Top 14, to try to finally win a title which has eluded it for six years.
The other good news is the more than successful interim of Max Spring at the back. This three-quarter pocket like Le Garrec (1.73 m against 1.75 m for the Breton) launched Racing perfectly thanks to a sharp recovery at the start of the match, bringing the first try of the pillar Cedate Gomes Sa. Skillful in the air, inspired in attack, this lively player seized his chance with the injuries of other three-quarters, in particular the Australian Kurtley Beale. Born to a Basque mother and a New Zealand rugby player father, Max Spring, who turned 21 on March 15, arrived at Racing in 2019 and notably shone with the sevens rugby team.
For a high-stakes Top 14 match, with all the added pressure of a derby, Max Spring did not tremble in a position that was nevertheless exposed. “I didn’t necessarily feel any pressure,” he explains with a broad smile. I’m surrounded by experienced guys who tell me to play my game. I’m comfortable! »
A plus for Racing to have these two pocket but explosive templates available again, whose season has been disrupted by injuries. “Of course it’s a good thing, approves Yoann Tanga, third row also in great shape. They are two very talented young people, Spring has passion, Le Garrec the same. They can bring us a lot at the end of the season”.