He may be terribly suffering because of his back, Cédric Enard is nonetheless a satisfied manager. A happy man especially. He, the child of Vouillé and the Poitevin Volley-Ball stadium, champion of France 1999 under the orders of Eric Ngapeth, returned this season to his club of heart. To make him beat very hard after this second victory against Chaumont (3-0), won in a Lawson-Body in Mented, and a qualification in the final. The first for thirteen years.
How did you live this historic evening for the Alterna Stadium Poitevin?
“With the organization, notably the arrival of Earvin (NgaPeth), it came out of the event a little. And during the match, even when we were jostled, I found that we had the ability to stay in it, without worrying, without panicking. It allowed me not to stress too much. The third set was a little tighter and one might wonder how we were going to manage it. And finally, it was. In terms of emotions, it was much more tense against Tourcoing, for example. Be careful, I am not saying that it was easier to play against Chaumont but I am happy with our team because we win and, once again, we showed character and temperament on the ground. »»
How did this group become if serene, when this was not the case a few weeks ago?
“We have always rested on two pillars: working in an honest and healthy way. There is no one of dishonest and unhealthy here. The group has often questioned itself, Dan (Lewis) has also done it a lot. Maybe his players don’t know it, but I know it. At the start of the season with Earvin (Ngapeth), many people said that we were going to be world champions and when he left, we went from the status of future champions to that of shabby. But every day in training, the guys gave. Dan was there, picking them up because he saw that it was hard. The results were complicated, Vucicevic had trouble integrating but they continued to work, to be honest with each other. In the end, they created a character around that. On this, Nik (Mujanovic) has arrived. He gave the offensive going, he rebalanced the game and this allowed our passer (Brett Walsh) to recover the place a little. And with the character that we forged before, that largely explains the way we play now. »»
With all that this team has gone through this season, without this healthy atmosphere that you describe, this group could have exploded on the way …
“We had discussions during the season but they are normal and classic in a high -level team to rebalance things. There is no everyone for themselves. Everyone works very hard. We’re going to the final and the whole club goes. We work for each other, be it players, staff, other employees but also volunteers and partners. The club is put forward and it is my greatest pride of the moment. »»
We feel that Dan Lewis has evolved during the season …
“He has a lot of humility. He too is very healthy. I told him things as a manager but I also experienced things as a coach in my career and he said to me: ” Stop apologizing and tell me, I need you. “He agreed to chat with his players, take into account their feedback. And it gives a final. He is a very big gentleman. »»
Is there pride to review this room vibrate as at the biggest hours of the club?
“I have the immense chance and the happiness of having had my eyes that shone and sparkled like the little kid I was in 1999 in Lawson-Body. I felt like I relive the same thing a bit. We know that next weekend, we will be back to live a final here. And we will have to respect the event but we must first savor. »»
The presence of Earvin NgaPeth is also a strong symbol …
“When I was exchanging with him by phone, he said to me:” Obviously, I will be there. ” He’s addicted and he didn’t want to miss it. When we arrived discreetly, we put ourselves behind a small skylight to look at the room, we felt the heat free. I said to him, “Remember the discussions we had in the French team a few years ago, what we could do in Lawson-Body … Are we there or not? ” “
Does this final validate the new project you carry?
“It validates a lot of things. But a project is not reaching a final. It’s clear for me and you have to stay very humble compared to the results. We are in the final, it’s great but that doesn’t mean that we’re more right than the others. It validates a job, I think, quite well done. There have been beautiful values highlighted and it must come to help us validate what we want to go and how we want to go. Everyone puts a huge heart in it. This final must give us more strength. There, we are HS, we are dead but when we see this filled room, it is really worth it. »»
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