One name kept coming back outside the gates of Jean-Dauger: Zinédine Zidane. Gone, for one evening, were the powerful charges of Manu Tuilagi, the dummy passes of Joris Segonds or the surges of Sireli Maqala, regulars at the ground. The rumours were true. France’s head coach would not be playing. His walk out of the tunnel was still anything but discreet. The flashes kept firing and the luckiest fans managed to grab an autograph or a photo.
The idea is simple: the “legends” against the Basque legends. On one side, former football and handball stars, joined by a few influencers. On the other, local figures, rugby players and pelota players, plus a few guests from elsewhere. Around the 1998 Ballon d’Or winner, the line-up boasted some (very) big names: world champions Laurent Blanc, Fabien Barthez and Bixente Lizarazu, former internationals Dimitri Payet and Bafétimbi Gomis, legend Jean-Pierre Papin, handball players Jérôme Fernandez and Thierry Omeyer. On the rugby side, Richard Dourthe, Camille Lopez, Dimitri Yachvili, Jérôme Thion, Imanol Harinordoquy, David Roumieu and influencer Djayson Karavane. Sébastien Chabal, for his part, ended up wearing the footballers’ shirt.
Zidane given a standing ovation
Behind the show lies a cause. The Match des Légendes is organised by Pascal Olmeta, the famous former goalkeeper, who chairs “Un sourire, un espoir pour la vie”. The charity helps sick children and their families, and the funds raised will finance trips and sporting or cultural adventures.
The crowd had turned out in force, Zidane shirts on their backs, but not only that. “I’ll only have eyes for Zizou. I’ve got goosebumps! Our Zidane, in Bayonne, at home, right in front of me, I can’t quite believe it,” Willy, who had come with his two children, told us. When France’s head coach went back to the bench, a huge ovation followed him. Fair enough.
From the start, he got to enjoy Dimitri Payet’s technique, which has lost none of its class, Ludovic Giuly’s bursts down the wing, Olmeta’s risk-taking and, above all, the solid defending of a certain… Sébastien Chabal. “Caveman” was the crowd’s favourite on the applause-o-meter. In the 16th minute, the footballers left nothing to chance (3-0). Until the goal from former full-back Nans Ducuing, who scored a second a few minutes later. The rugby players did not give up, despite some clear technical flaws. Better still: ten minutes before half-time, Imanol Harinordoquy pushed the ball over the line and beat former Saint-Étienne goalkeeper Jérémie Janot. Then Damien Traille, the Biarritz man, after a string of missed shots, put the rugby players ahead, to general astonishment. Stung, but still smiling, the footballers took back control.
“It was really great to see all these stars get stuck in! Some of them still have a few tricks left,” said one Marseille fan. Next to us, some very young football fans got caught up in the action and grumbled as the legends conceded another goal to the man of the evening, Nans Ducuing.
The score kept ticking over, the rugby players did not give up, the footballers missed sitters, but the crowd stayed fully behind it all. Beyond the results and individual performances, what mattered most lay elsewhere: supporting a worthy cause and sharing a unique moment in Bayonne. Mission accomplished.
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