Whoever is in command of the Cape City tourism advertising marketing campaign has missed a trick in not getting Hugo Reus on board with their promotion of the Mom Metropolis, as he is aware of the place in addition to any native at this stage.
4 occasions he has flown south from France within the final 13 months, his involvement on the 2023 and 2024 World Rugby U20 Championship sandwiching the journeys he made in December and April with La Rochelle within the Champions Cup.
“I’m right here greater than I’m in my dad and mom’ home,” he quipped, pulling up a excessive stool within the foyer of the French resort. “I like Cape City, like Desk Mountain, the Waterfront. After we are right here we are able to’t have a lot free time, however I like the town.”
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Reus was solely 14 when France gained their first U20 World Championship in 2018, however the workforce the 20-year-old is now captaining is only one win away from clinching a fourth title in a row, a sequence that had a 2020-2022 lay-off because the pandemic cancelled three editions of the event.
He lit up their play final 12 months in South Africa, toying with Eire within the ultimate in Athlone, and has completed so once more this 12 months to information his workforce to this Friday’s ultimate versus England at Cape City Stadium. His efforts have been the epitome of enjoyable rugby in current weeks.
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World Rugby U20 Championship
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There was some pleasant, jaw-dropping dealing with. Try his assists for France’s first attempt versus Spain and their second final Sunday towards New Zealand. The primary was a chic no-look, out-the-back cross off his proper hand, the second a fragile leap within the air to keep away from the touchline and fling the ball inside off his left hand earlier than touchdown out of play.
There have additionally been quite a few candy cross-kicks and the spotlight of his 52-point contribution was the weird first-half conversion right into a gale which he purposely kicked huge to the left in order that it could curl round and brilliantly drop between the uprights. Very good.
“I’m very pleased with what we did throughout all of the competitors,” mentioned the maestro, trying again on a run the place an agonising 26-27, last-kick loss to New Zealand within the pool levels in Stellenbosch was avenged with a 55-31, seven-try spanking of the Child Blacks final weekend.
“We don’t have an excessive amount of time with the group so in the course of the competitors after a recreation, after coaching, we now have increasingly precision so it’s higher after a recreation, after coaching, it’s very, excellent and I’m very pleased with our achievement and what we did within the final recreation.
“The group is sweet. All of the group have good mates, all of the individuals are buddies. It’s necessary for our play. If you wish to play good video games it’s essential to have a superb group, a powerful relationship between the gamers, so it’s essential the connection between us may be very robust and we see that on the pitch.
“The crosskick was open over the last recreation and the crosskick will probably be open once more within the ultimate, so I hope we now have the chance to place some tries, to play our recreation and play within the area with the crosskick, with tempo. We simply wish to take the area which the defence offers us if the crosskick is an effective choice it’s there.”
Reus and several other of his France U20 colleagues are already grownup rugby veterans following busy workloads within the 2023/24 High 14. Everyone knows that this league’s model of play is closely invested in physicality, in suffocating the life out of the opposition. Age-grade stage, although, is way much less bruising and it’s secure to say that the out-half has been having fun with his ultimate fling within the grade.
“Completely different kind of rugby,” he smiled. “The U20 World Cup, the play is fast and the time with out stopping is extra necessary in U20 than within the High 14. Within the High 14, the gamers are stronger, greater, and the impacts are extra necessary however the play on the U20 is fast, faster than within the High 14 so it’s totally different. It’s not the identical rugby. We love such a rugby and we attempt to put some pace on our recreation. The extra pace the higher.”
Magnifique transformation en coin de Hugo Reus qui ajoute les deux factors supplémentaires !
7-3 pour les Bleuets après 8 minutes ?? #FRAvWAL pic.twitter.com/LFgj5llOCi
— RugbyPass FR ?? (@RugbyPass_FR) July 9, 2024
With their XV named for the ultimate, Reus goes into the showpiece as one in all 4 gamers who could have began all 5 video games in a marketing campaign the place they’ve had a number of polished gems on view. “There are such a lot of gamers who’re excellent. We now have Mathis Castro (Ferreira), Joe Quere-Karaba.
“We now have Barnabe Massa, we now have Leo Carbonneau, Mathis Ferte, we now have so many gamers who’re excellent who play within the High 14, play so many occasions within the High 14. We now have a really, excellent workforce and a few gamers usually are not right here like Zaccharie Affane, Marko Gazzotti, Leon Darricarrere, Theo Attissogbe who’s with the massive workforce [Fabien Galthie’s Test squad) so we have a very, very good team and it’s good.
“The difference is the clubs, the clubs want to play the young people. I think Mathis, Barnabe played 30 games this season so it’s better when we have experience and that gives us so much experience with so many of our players. When I play with Gregory (Alldritt), Uini Atonio, I learn as quickly as I can at U20, so it is better when we have more experience and the Top 14 is very good to learn.”
The fascination is that France came into this World Championship having stank up the Six Nations, losing all three of the home games and beaten 31-45 by the title-clinching England in Pau 18 weeks ago. Reus was on the team for that March disappointment, but numerous others weren’t.
“The politics of the U20 French national team is to use so many players during the Six Nations. They used I think 50 players during the Six Nations. At Pau we had only three days to prepare for that game so the English player had maybe three weeks.
“It’s hard to play a game with only three days to prepare so at the World Cup it’s a group which has more preparation. We have maybe four, five weeks to prepare for this competition so we know all the players and the staff and it’s better for us to play, it’s easier to play because we know each other so we have more preparation and that is more important.”
Nouvel essai pour les Bleuets grâce à Charly Gambini qui a bien été servi par Hugo Reus ??? pic.twitter.com/Z2FnbYUTuy
— RugbyPass FR ?? (@RugbyPass_FR) July 14, 2024
Last year’s glory in South Africa was life-changing for Reus. “Yeah, the title was a big achievement in my life. The media, the staff, the supporter, it’s different after. It’s different because now I know the feeling when we win a World Cup, so I just want to do it again. I think it’s a national pressure. I just want to feel this emotion again when we win, so we need to win.”
His home village of Lisle will be glued to the action. “No, they [my parents] can’t come for the ultimate however final 12 months they have been right here. This 12 months they will’t come nevertheless it’s not an issue. They are going to watch the sport in my little village in Liles and all of the village will watch the ultimate. We have to win for my village.”
After we spoke, Reus was uncertain of his pre-season begin date at La Rochelle, however he gained’t take lengthy off as he desires to be a part of the dialog when Ronan O’Gara selects his workforce for the 2024/25 High 14 opener at house to Toulon on September 8.
“The backs coach Remi Tales and Ronan O’Gara despatched me a message to say it [the semi-final] was a superb recreation of the collective they usually mentioned good luck for the ultimate. I’ll go to the USA with my girlfriend (afterwards), and after simply loosen up with my dad and mom at my home, simply loosen up earlier than the pre-season with La Rochelle.
“I don’t know actually the precise (begin) date. I hope I’ve two or three weeks to relaxation. I don’t know. I wish to be there for the primary recreation, so I don’t know. I should ask Ronan O’Gara what number of weeks I’ll have.”
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