Patrick Arlettaz the USAP coach, as soon as his team won Mont-de-Marsan (41-16) in the access match allowing him to be the first Top 14 team to remain in his competition against the unfortunate finalist of Pro D2, conveyed a message.
A meaningful statement. With the meaning of the formula that is known to him, the main coach of the USAP, Patrick Arlettaz, sent a message to the decision-makers and the living forces of the Pyrénées-Orientales department, in a press conference after match. With the right arguments and tone.
His players and his staff had just been publicly congratulated for their work and their selflessness in the fight to stay in the Top 14, after the access match won against Mont-de-Marsan (41-16), the technician put his finger on the obsolete infrastructures in which his team evolves. And which cannot be eternal if the USAP aspires not to yo-yo between the Pro D2 and the Top 14 because of the lack of facilities worthy of the name. Now that the sporting aspect is anchored a little more in a sustainable project. Begining with “There are two or three lessons to be learned tonight (this Sunday, editor’s note)” : “You should never stop on your achievements, and so now that we have experienced this access final, we must do everything to never experience it again. I believe that there is a message for our institutions We all know our budget (€17m, editor’s note), we don’t have much leeway. In terms of players, self-sacrifice, love for the club, self-sacrifice, we can’t do much more When we see the Aimé-Giral stadium full at the reception of Bordeaux (Sunday June 5, victory 22-15, editor’s note), we cannot do much more. On the other hand, we cannot continue to train in a one-star campsite, to see a changing room that dates back to 1998, to have the Espoirs who are in a training center that is almost classified as an unsanitary building, it’s not going to be able to continue. The players shouldn’t do everything, the public should do everything, the president should do what he can, and we should go down to Pro D2 because we weren’t helped for facilities. I’m not asking to buy stars, to increase the budget. I don’t dream, I’m not a dreamer. But you have to help us a little. I have been silent until now because always the one who must pass in front is the sportsman. It’s the public too because it takes part of the athlete, of our strength. He’s the president. And when everyone passes in front of it but on Monday we still ask the players for effort because if, be careful, you set foot in this place you will sink into the floor etc… what’s up! There is a responsibility for everyone. We have to help on this. Because we deserve it. Sincerely. We accept to be the poor but after a while that’s enough! At some point, we won’t be able to pull on the rope as we have been doing for five or six years.”
Before announcing that “the staff will evolve a little, we will target the recruitment of two or three players, we need to have more ambition, we will start a cycle in the continuity of what we have done. We will not be able to not do it if you don’t have help.”