Rugby World Cup 2023 – Immersion with the Springboks in their home in Toulon
Advised by Habana and Botha, but also by players who recently passed through the RCT box (Kolbe, Vermeulen, Etzebeth), the World champions experienced two idyllic weeks between La Seyne-sur-Mer and Toulon. To the delight of the locals who adopted them.
“CThis is the first time, it seems to me, that we are experiencing the World Cup in a specific city. Before coming here, we had the choice of going to Marseille or Aix-en-Provence. But it was too far away, and the facilities did not suit us in terms of training and accommodation. Then, you know, the South Africans have a link with Toulon, in particular thanks to the players who played here. We feel good in this place.” Jacques Nienaber didn’t really have the heart to leave his new place of life when he discovered the west and Bordeaux.
The wit of the late Eric Melville, the most Toulonnais of South Africans, is no longer there to extol the merits of his home base, although far from his motherland. His descendants from the 2010s, in turn, took over from the third line. For Etzebeth, Toulon was similar to Cape Town. It was in the scrubland, in the Var hinterland, that Botha fell in love with the Var, particularly during fruitful hunting trips.
“It looks like a summer camp”
A stone’s throw from the turquoise blue sea, local residents have long thought that the beautiful setting of the “Grand Hôtel des Sablettes Plage” was going to be bunkered for the event. Que nenni, as they say in the old dialect. South Africans gave, far more than citizens expected. With a towel around his waist, De Allende returned to the press conference a little late after a swim in the Mediterranean, followed by a multitude of selfies and autographs with local kids. He was completely excused by the audience. Jacques Nienaber, in private, insisted a lot on the importance of sharing. “You are the representatives of our nation on the field, but also off it.”
To blend in “in the community” and return “the love given by people”Siya Kolisi, through Jérémie Fickou, the big brother of the international center, immediately went to the La Seyne-sur-Mer – Aubenas meeting to discover the local culture. “The residents welcomed our group with open arms. We come from below, and we must also blend in with them by carrying out collective activities.” Beach rugby games were organized with schoolchildren, a wheelchair rugby session was shared in addition with the mainland team. But it is the constant participation in the local economy that was most appreciated and highlighted by the traders. “It looks like a summer camp”admits an employee of the establishment, surprised by the tranquility of his customers “extraordinary”. To make the tribe complete, most players have their family members settled in nearby hotels. The method has proven itself in Japan, where the Boks staff had already accepted that the companions and children would be an integral part of the World Cup adventure. In turn, this strategy enabled a good late season for hotel establishments, which were also crowded by the massive arrival of supporters.
The Boks embrace the local way of life
The week before the success against Scotland, the World champions organized a Braai, a popular type of South African barbecue to celebrate big events with family and friends, to kick off their World Cup. To judge the opposing forces during France – New Zealand, the Kolisi gang added another gathering in the hotel garden, in open-air cinema mode, with unlimited popcorn, candy and ice cream. As you can see, South Africans are not the type to hide when enjoying moments of rest.
In broad daylight, attitudes do not change. With bicycles provided, it is not uncommon to see Faf de Klerk, Marvin Orie and other members of the group strolling along the coast. Facing the journalists, the second line returned to these moments of life, much more important than they seem. “The pressure on our shoulders is great, but sometimes it’s good to get away from rugby. Some people enjoy golf, some like the sea, and those with a sweet tooth enjoy the city’s ice cream parlours. (laughs). The World Cup is the pinnacle, we want to give pride to our country. We’re going to do our best on the pitch, but we also need those extras.”
They also do not hesitate to shake up their habits: Rooibos, a red tea that was an integral part of their education, has been replaced by cappuccinos prepared with care in the cafes of the coast. In the traditional trio of starchy foods, vegetables, proteins (around half a chicken per day accompanied by biltong supplements), some, whose names we will not mention so that they avoid trouble with dietician Zeenat Simjee, have scoured the different pizzerias of La Seyne-sur-Mer. There is nothing wrong with strengthening group life.
An open training session in front of 8,000 fans
A few days before the meeting against Romania, the reigning World champions even allowed themselves a night out in a well-known evening spot on the coast. Before serious things, and the shock against Ireland, Nienaber’s troop experienced the art of living in the Var. Nevertheless, seriousness remains omnipresent on the RCT Campus side. No training session was open to the press for more than a quarter of an hour. A drone, used to see the players’ placements, is also used to detect a possible curious person.
We had to wait until Thursday, the last day spent in the city by Moodie’s teammates, for the veil to be lifted on the field part. With music and dancing, Siya Kolisi and her team put on their crampons in front of 8,000 people, including 3,500 children, in Mayol. For a little over an hour, they rehearsed the ranges – scrum, touch, game launches – to the cheers of the public. Kolbe and Vermeulen received particular support from the applause meter.
The discreet return of Eben Etzebeth
From the height of his double meter, he is not supposed to go unnoticed. And yet… Came to walk on the “traces of his elder Bakkies Botha”, says Mourad Boudjellal at the time of his arrival, the second row did not leave a lasting memory in the Rade (2019-2022), due in particular to astonishing bad luck in terms of injuries. Obviously, the journalists following the Boks and the RCT had a host of questions to ask the native of Cape Town, who has been more or less silent since his departure to the Sharks, where he was able to accompany his father in his last moments of life . Finally, unlike Cheslin Kolbe and Duane Vermeulen, who praised the merits of the local environment and their Var adventure, Etzebeth was not invited to any press point.
We knew the person concerned was not a fan of the exercise. However, another incongruity marked his return. The RCT, a fan of digital content under the leadership of François Pesenti, highlighted once, in an arrival video for training, the return of the 2019 world champion to his homeland. On the other hand, we no longer count the stagings with the other veterans of the house. On the applause meter, during training open to the public, in Mayol, last Thursday, the former member of the Stormers was supplanted by Kolbe, Vermeulen and even… Kolisi, who is nevertheless preparing to wear the colors of Racing 92! This is called flying under the radar.
To thank the various rugby fans, the staff members offered the crowd numerous t-shirts. Enough to find a little more green and gold when they return next Monday, September 25. Three days later, the Boks will compete one last time in Mayol to complete a Var adventure rich in life experiences and new supporters.
They will then leave the place. For the quarter-finals, they will have to go to the capital to hope to win a second coronation. According to our indiscretions, Argentina and Wales are interested in the possibility of taking over from the Boks. It is not certain, however, that the chosen nation will supplant the World champions in the hearts of the locals.
