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Pourquoi Antoine Dupont portait-il le numéro 25 à Vancouver

Antoine Dupont #25 (France) avant son entrée en jeu contre les États-Unis lors de la première journée des HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series - Vancouver au BC Place le 23 février 2024 à Vancouver, en Colombie-Britannique. La France a gagné 24-12. (Photo par Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images)

Lorsque Antoine Dupont pénètre sur la pelouse du BC Place à Vancouver avec le reste de l’équipe de France 7, le numéro 25 qu’il présente dans le dos interpelle. Même chose lorsqu’il entre en jeu contre les Etats-Unis à un peu plus de trois minutes de la fin du premier match de poule.

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Deux interprétations ont animé les débats et la première semblait logique. Le meilleur joueur du monde à XV, comptant 52 sélections internationales, aurait tout simplement inversé les deux chiffres pour personnaliser son maillot, comme le permet la tradition du Sevens.

Or, c’est la deuxième explication qui est l’officielle, comme l’a confirmé auprès de RugbyPass le staff de France 7.

Un hommage à sa famille

Rupert Cox, commentateur du tournoi sur RugbyPassTV avait avancé une explication beaucoup plus personnelle et profonde pour le natif de Lannemezan (Hautes-Pyrénées).

En réalité, le « 2 » renvoie au mois de naissance de sa maman et son frère (février), tandis que le « 5 » renvoie au mois de naissance de son père (mai). Ainsi, par ce numéro « 25 »Antoine Dupont a souhaité rendre un hommage subtil et fort à sa famille.

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Commentaires

1 Comment
C
Christine 513 days ago

Merci, je m’interrogeais sur le 25… tout en étant ravie, vu que c’est mon numéro fétiche et que je suis fan d’Antoine Dupont 🤩🤩🤩

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Jfp123 46 minutes ago
Why New Zealand learned more from their July series than France

It will be great if Jalibert improves in defence, but unless and until he improves substantially, I think he should be out of the running for the national team. If you look at the French A side, attack is not usually so much of a problem - they scored 200 points in the last 6 nations without MJ on the pitch. Defence however can be an issue, Penaud isn’t the greatest in that area for a start. So a 10 who is solid in defence is badly needed. And given his poor defence record, MJ would be bound to be targeted by shrewd coaches like Rassi and Razor, so he needs to be able to withstand that.

Also, given sufficient improvement in defence, there are still factors which tell against MJ. I think the 7/1 bench has been a very successful experiment, and for that you need flexible backs who can play in more than one position in case of injury. Then there’s how well the 10 plays with France’s best 9, Dupont. And even if you think MJ is better when there’s no Dupont or 7/1 split, stability in a test team is important, so it’s better not to go chopping and changing the 10 needlessly. There’s also the question of temperament - MJ doesn’t shine at his brightest when it really matters, eg WC quarters and Top14 finals, and look at his test record over the past 2 years.

I see Ntamack as by far the best option at 10. Rugby is a team game, and apart from his excellent defence, there’s his partnership with Dupont, his versatility, and all the other skills that go to making a great team player and a great 10. He’s excellent under the high ball, an area where France tend to have a weakness, and has fine strategic and team management skills, great handling skills and so on.

While having star quality is important, it’s not the be all and end all, as illustrated by UBB this season. Imo, though undoubtedly very good, they underperformed. With best wings, best 9, as Dupont barely played in the Top14, with Jalibert and leading centres and 15, plus a strengthened forward pack, they couldn’t match ST in points scored, despite the latter’s huge injury list which left some positions seriously weakened, at least on paper.

For next season, I hope ST are back to their scintillating best with injuries healed, that LBB is back to rude health for UBB, that the exciting promise of La Rochelle’s and Toulon’s new recruits bears fruit, Bayonne continue to defy their budget and we have a cracking, highly competitive Top14 and Les Bleus triumphant in the autumn internationals and six nations!

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