When a shield goes travelling, do not be surprised: it moves fast. Even — and especially — in La Baule, at Le 106, the sports hotel-café run by Emmanuel and his son Raphaël. The chronicle of a fine day out.
“Round here, it is a bit like Brittany”
“Round here, it is a bit like Brittany,” laughs the vice-president of the Rugby Club de Vannes members’ association, who runs hospitality venues in La Baule, in Loire-Atlantique. That lunchtime, the seaside resort took on the air of the Gulf of Morbihan.
26 kilos of wood and metal
Midday. An unlikely crew climbs out of a German SUV: a short, powerful figure, Dave Cherry, the Scotland international hooker, and Thomas Geffré, all of two metres on his own. The two men bring out the trophy of the season, the Pro D2 shield — 26 kilos of wood and metal — under the astonished gaze of holidaymakers and Vannes supporters, Pro D2 champions and back in the Top 14.
Stars in their eyes
The moment is as impromptu as it is joyful: the children have stars in their eyes, the parents pile up selfies and autographs. Toulouse is “we turn up, we win and we leave”. Vannes is “we win, we turn up and we stay”. Well played.
[presto_player id=320139]
Not ending up like Montauban
All that remains is to get it back to Vannes in one piece… and not have it pinched on the way. Last year, US Montauban learned the hard way that a shield needs watching: the trophy went missing at an agricultural fair. So there is only one instruction for the journey home: keep an eye on those 26 kilos.
Comments