Copying the French mistake spells trouble - Saint-Andre
FORMER France and Toulon head coach Philippe Saint-Andre reckons English rugby will sleep-walk into a disaster zone if plans for an 11-month season ever see the light of day.
Premiership Rugby have aroused deep suspicion amongst England’s playing elite by tabling proposals that could see top stars pressed into action from September to July.
That is nothing new in France, however, where the Top 14 season begins in mid-August and runs until early June, with draining Test tours following an intense domestic finale. Since reaching the 2011 World Cup final, France have slumped in the World Rugby rankings while winning just 13 of 30 Six Nations matches, finishing fourth or below five times.
Saint-Andre, who resigned as France’s head coach following a dismal 2015 World Cup, speaks from bitter experience in warning that extending England’s season spells trouble. He told The Rugby
Paper: “The big failure of French rugby came when our top guys started playing friendlies in July, just a month after coming back from overseas tours.
“Extending our season was the worst thing ever for France because players could not work on their skills, their speed and people actually forgot what rugby was all about.
“It’s a contact sport, players need to prepare, but I had guys like Wesley Fofana, right, and Yoann Maestri who played 120 games each over three years and turned into grandfathers on the pitch.
“They had no proper rest, no preparation and were emotionally wrecked.
“It would be a huge mistake for the English clubs to play from September to June, with internationals on top. They talk about midseason breaks and managing players, but you never switch off and it’s important for players to know they have proper off season.”
Saint-Andre added: “The key for a player being successful is to have a big break to refresh mentally and physically and prepare himself for the new season. In New Zealand they realise this and top players there play only 25 games or so, which is very sensible.
“In France we have no proper preparation, either at club or international level, and that has been a big part of France’s bad results over the last six years. Players are not robots and I hope the English do not make the same mistake with an 11-month season.”
Leicester chief executive Simon Cohen has joined Saint-Andre in condemning plans for an extended season, breaking ranks
with a Pre- miership edict – seen by
The Rugby Paper – demanding that clubs should refrain from making any critical comments.
Cohen said: “A new season structure creates some opportunities, but it also creates significant difficulties for performance departments that have to manage players’ seasons for another four weeks while preparing for preseason at the same time.
“It may be possible to manage players over a longer period, although I’m yet to be convinced, but how you manage your staff is difficult to imagine.
“Emotionally, and psychologically, they need a period when they are not judged Saturday to Saturday.”