Special envoy to Marseilles
In a press conference this Friday at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille where the Champions Cup final between Stade Rochelais and Leinster will be played on Saturday (5:45 p.m.), the Irish captain did not hide his ambitions. “This final is the pinnacle for us. It’s an incredible competition, we talk about it at the start of the year. Being a captain is really special. I didn’t think about it that much but you can feel it inside. Adding my name to the list of great players who have done it is really special… It’s important for us to win this fifth star, to equal Toulouse. We want to be recognized as one of the best teams in Europe. We are with four stars but we are frustrated: last year, we could have faced Toulouse (they were eliminated by… Stade Rochelais in the semi-finals) in the final for this fifth star. It would be an incredible step for the club,” said Jonathan Sexton.
In competition in his debut with Ronan O’Gara, the current manager of the maritime club, the opener assured not to have exchanged with his illustrious predecessor. “Not really, no… We wrote to each other, we wanted to have a coffee but it was too complicated. He did a fantastic job with this team: reaching three consecutive finals (Top 14 and twice the Champions Cup, editor’s note) is something incredible. It’s a team that should not be overlooked, we saw it last year (32-23 defeat in the semi-finals at Deflandre, editor’s note). But hey, I’m just a player, he’s a coach…”
