“The players remained zen” salutes Joe El Abd, coach of Oyonnax, qualified for the Pro D2 final

Joe El Abd (coach of Oyonnax, qualified for the Pro D2 final after his victory over Vannes) : “We knew it was going to be hard, Vannes is having a great season. I salute the players who remained zen, they came back even when it was difficult, like in the first period. The leaders stayed in the game plan. We knew how to win, we’re going to spend another week together, we’re going to make the most of it. We will stay true to what we have done since the start of the season. »

Tommy Raynaud (pillar and captain of Oyonnax) : “We played against a team that had released a big game in Nevers. It’s a team that has bases that we didn’t have, because we didn’t play last week. We knew it was going to be hard, because in the past, we always stumbled on the course of the semi-finals. It’s a big step for us. At the end, we may have lacked freshness. We suffered a bit but we knew it was going to pay off, we stayed in our system, we made fewer mistakes.

We read that Vannes could create the feat, we wanted to prove the predictions wrong. We remained zen. This is what makes the difference between a great team and the others. At the break, we said things to each other, calmly. We didn’t panic. I think it’s the first time I’ve played for so long in the final phase, it’s proof that the staff managed the squad well, we had few injuries this season. We had certainties, in particular our conquest which was good all year and we were rewarded. »