Finished reading Guy Noves’ autobiography ‘Head Held High’ this week
Picked out some interesting comments from the former Toulouse and France head coach...
Noves on Rupeni Caucaunibuca:
"At one moment no less than 17 people were mobilised by the club to look after him and his family. I told him to lose weight and he rediscovered, without playing at world level, a form which made him formidable on all fields in the Top 14"
On Gareth Thomas:
"A Welsh rugby legend after wearing the shirt with the three feathers on 100 times and captained the Red Devils on 50 times. He defended the Toulouse shirt with the same fervour and talent."
On Byron Kelleher and Luke McAllister:
"Before paying the bills of their excesses, they raised the team to the summits"
On Thierry Dusautoir:
"I have rarely seen so many qualities come together: loyalty, humility, permanement sacrifice, exemplarity on and off the field. Thierry embodied a player at the very top level"
His sacking as France coach:
"I learnt of my expulsion by Yannick Bru. He had received a phone call from Bordeaux telling him that Jacques Brunel had told the UBB players he was leaving because of a promotion to France"
His sacking as France coach:
"Bernard Laporte ended up calling me, explaining he couldn’t do anything else, invoking a supposed irritation from the FFR sponsors"
On Fabien Galthie:
"As a coach, he doesn’t make me dream. As always with a new France generation, it has it’s history to make"
On Christophe Urios
"He could have been France coach (after #RWC2019) but has a character and Bernard Laporte rarely likes strong characters"
On Bernard Laporte’s re-election as FFR president:
“For me, its rugby that lost, and will continue to lose [...] I would say that rugby’s soul was under the threat of extinction”
And to finish on rugby:
“More than just a sport, more than a job, rugby was an art of life that I will continue to practice until my final day”
Great read, from European rugby's most succesful club coach
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