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Positional switch breathes new life into Mathieu Bastareaud after rocky MLR start

Mathieu Basteraud (Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images)

Mathieu Bastareaud’s high-profile move to Major League Rugby got off to an inauspicious start, but things may be taking a turn for the former French captain.

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Rugby United New York were dismantled by league debutants New England Free Jacks in the opening round of the MLR and the glaring omission of their big-name signing for the majority of the game caught the eye of many. Bastareaud was invisible at inside centre and looked off the pace. However, after a positional switch into the forward pack, Bastareud is starting to hush whispers that he may become the first big-name bust signing in MLR history.

Despite losing to league leaders San Diego on Sunday, who were without Ma’a Nonu due to a late injury, Bastareaud showed glimpses of his old destructive self.

The bruising ball carrier has found a home as the anchor of New York’s scrum. Bastareaud is being deployed far more in the midfield than on the peripheries and is creating havoc for opponents at the breakdown defensively. New York is leading the league in breakdown steals, in no small part due to Bastareaud’s presence. He remains immovable when clamping down on unsuspecting ball carriers.

The move to the forwards has immediately improved Bastareaud’s defensive performance. In Week 3 he was named as the eight-man on the MLR XV of the week on the back of 18 tackles in a victory over Rugby Atlanta along with 15 carries for 109 metres. He followed that up by posting a 100% tackle rate the next week.

Where Bastareaud fits as an attacking option at this stage of his career remains to be seen. With his deceptive elusiveness dwindling, New York is increasingly running Bastareaud as a battering ram. It has been effective, but his trademark offloading game is far more devastating when offered one-on-one opportunities in space.

New York is still trying to find creative ways to utilize Bastareaud. One such tactical decision has been to hold Bastareaud in the backfield on exiting kicks as a hard carrying option beside Ben Foden on the counter-attack.

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Bastareaud’s move to the United States hasn’t been as seamless as other international counterparts.

Nonu remains timeless and has a case to be the MVP of the league thus far, while Tendai Mtawarira helped knock off two-time defending champion Seattle Seawolves on his debut. Former All-Blacks Frank Halai and Rene Ranger have injected life into their respective teams at the outside centre position.

Still, the disappointment of Bastareaud’s opening match feels like a distant memory. He has become a crucial part of New York’s early success and the coaching staff has shown a willingness to be innovative in maximizing Bastareaud’s impact on the pitch. If they hope to be a contender in the playoffs then New York must continue to tap into whatever the French star has left in the tank.

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Watch: Eddie Jones to discuss England future with RFU.

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Bull Shark 3 hours ago
Rassie Erasmus' Boks selection policy is becoming bizarre

To be fair, the only thing that drives engagement on this site is over the top critiques of Southern Hemisphere teams.


Or articles about people on podcasts criticizing southern hemisphere teams.


Articles regarding the Northern Hemisphere tend to be more positive than critical. I guess to also rile up kiwis and Saffers who seem to be the majority of followers in the comments section. There seems to be a whole department dedicated to Ireland’s world ranking news.


Despite being dialled into the Northern edition - I know sweet fokall about what’s going on in France.


And even less than fokall about what’s cutting in Japan - which has a fast growing, increasingly premium League competition emerging.


And let’s not talk about the pacific. Do they even play rugby Down there.


Oh and the Americas. I’ve read more articles about a young, stargazing Welshman’s foray into NFL than I have anything related to either the north and south continents of the Americas.


I will give credit that the women’s game is getting decent airtime. But for the rest and the above; it’s just pathetic coming from a World Rugby website.


Just consider the innovation emerging in Japan with the pedigree of coaches over there.


There’s so much good we could be reading.


Instead it’s unimaginative “critical for the sake of feigning controversial”. Which is lazy, because in order to pull that off all you need to be really good at is:


1. Being a doos;

2. Having an opinion.


No prior experience needed.


Which is not journalism. That’s like all or most of us in the comments section. People like Finn (who I believe is a RP contributor).


Anyway. Hopefully it will get better. The game is growing and the interest in the game is growing. Maybe it will attract more qualified journalists over time.

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