No monumental breakthrough this time, nor a pass from another world, and yet, picking together the praise that has flourished towards him since Saturday, we say to ourselves that an extraterrestrial has indeed crossed the rugby planet. The speed of light in the beautiful saucer of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, placed in the north district of London.
Stade Toulouse won a sixth European championship title by defeating Leinster after extra time (22-31), and its captain, although confined to a mainly defensive role, turned heads. Antoine Dupont electrified many looks, coming from everywhere.
You just need to read the Telegraph Rugby post, on the English daily's social networks, to appreciate the emphasis: "You will tell your children and grandchildren that you had the privilege of seeing in the flesh the little general of Toulouse (…) Antoine Dupont revolutionizes his sport like Cruyff or Federer before him", in reference to the Dutch football legend and the Swiss tennis maestro. Just that.
Welsh international Liam Williams posted a simple message on social media: "Antoine Dupont is the best in the world”. A little further north, in Scotland, it is Jim Hamilton, the former international of XV du Chardon, who says on rugby Pass TV: "Antoine Dupont is the best player in the history of rugby".
So what did the captain of the French XV do during the last World Cup to capture the imagination so much? Pretty much everything, other than what meets the eye. Real poison in defense, he upset the Irish game and he saved two tries which seemed ready-made by scratching two balls less than five meters from his line. He set the pace when the muscles were burning, he found saving touches, including a barely believable "50-22", and he could have offered a try thanks to an acrobatic gesture in the 2nd minute if one of his crampons had not encroached on the touchline. “I adapted, that’s what you have to do when you can’t gain the advantage line,” he replied simply in the press room after the match.
The right word, always, like the tone. The extraordinary is reserved for the green rectangle. Named best player in this final and best player of the competition in 2024, after being crowned best player in the world in 2021, the scrum half accumulates honors at 27 and today seems to hover well above all his rivals. The British daily The Guardian confirms: “Antoine Dupont has eclipsed Jamison Gibson-Park, particularly on his defensive attributes which were less expected.”
With him, each match is an adventure, the opportunity to witness actions that we did not think possible. Whether there is play or not. Even his opponents are won over. Hence its aura, outside France too. And as he has chosen to break new ground, venturing into rugby sevens to aim for Olympic gold at the Paris Games next summer, we say to ourselves that the world of sport has not finished be amazed. And this goes well beyond the small circle of rugby insiders.
- An intense standoff. More than 100 minutes with overtime. A phenomenal fight on defense. For immense happiness. But also concern for some European champions affected in London.
- The most worrying case seems to be that of hooker Julien Marchand. Coming into play in the 55th minute, the French international had to leave the pitch in the 90th. He 'felt his ankle crack', revealed Ugo Mola. Center Pita Ahki, who left his partners in the 22nd minute, suffers from hamstrings.
- Emmanuel Meafou, released for concussion protocol, complained of several blows to the head, thigh and calf. 'In the end, he didn’t even know anymore. We therefore suspect a concussion,' admitted the Toulouse manager. Joshua Brennan also left the battlefield on concussion protocol.
- Finally, sanctioned with a red card, Australian second-row Richie Arnold will certainly be suspended by the EPCR disciplinary committee. It remains to be seen how long his sanction will last.
