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Top 14 2020/21 club-by-club season preview: Bayonne

(Photo by Gaizka Iroz/AFP via Getty Images)

After a strong start, a first season back in the Top 14 for Bayonne was derailed by mumps before Covid-19 stopped everything. It will be just as tough in the top flight in their second season

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Key signing

Gaetan Germain: An injury-troubled couple of seasons have seen Germain’s legendarily unmissable howitzer boot track a little left in recent times. On his day, though, he can still ping them over from a long way out. A useful addition to Yannick Bru’s squad.

Key departure

Tongan lock/back row Edwin Maka should have a few years in him yet but after a season on the Basque coast, his future is currently uncertain. He was one of 19 departures from Bayonne this summer – and he wasn’t the only one with nowhere to go.

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England forward Courtney Lawes guests on All Access, the RugbyPass interview series hosted by Jim Hamilton

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      England forward Courtney Lawes guests on All Access, the RugbyPass interview series hosted by Jim Hamilton

      They say

      “We would like to finish mid-table in the Top 14. We were a bit of a surprise last year. Now, we are a known quantity… we have to be ambitious but not pretentious.”

      Club president Philippe Taybe – France Bleu

      We say

      It was an outbreak of a different sort that stalled Bayonne’s campaign last season after a strong start in which they beat Racing 92 at La Defense Arena on opening day and won five of their opening seven games.

      Between mid-October and mid-January, however, they only won one game in all competitions as the squad was hit hard by mumps. Despite the ill-health strain on the squad, they did enough to finish ninth in their first season back in the Top 14 after two years in the Pro D2.

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      How not to build a squad

      What is even more remarkable is that Bayonne – Pro D2 champions in 2018/19 courtesy of a nerveless penalty from Martin Bustos Moyano with what turned out to be his last touch of a ball for the club – built a team for the Top 14 in about three weeks out of what was left in the transfer market.

      It was no way to prepare for a return to the French top flight and it was to Bayonne and head coach Yannick Bru’s credit that they made such a pretty decent fist of it.

      Calm recruitment

      This time around, recruitment was done and dusted calmly and quietly before coronavirus cut short the 2019/20 season. Only Izaia Perese, who ended a two-year flirtation with rugby league in Australia to sign for the Basque side, was not formally announced before the end of May.

      Rebuilding the scrum, following the retirements of Census Johnston and Aretz Iguiniz, has been the priority. Ulugia, Nixon, Huge Pyle, Alexandre Manukula and Asier Usarraga make up the bulk of the recruitment numbers.

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      Expect to see Perese get plenty of action in midfield, and watch for excitement from the wing in the form of All Blacks sevens star Joe Ravouvou. Despite the promise, however, don’t be too surprised to see Bayonne – now very much of a known quantity in the Top 14 once again – battling for survival at season’s end.

      Arrivals

      Sam Nixon, John Ulugia, Hugh Pyle, Gaetan Germain, Joe Ravouvou, Alexandre Manukula (loan), Asier Usarraga, Izaia Perese

      Departures

      Census Johnston, Aretz Iguiniz, Pieter Jan van Lill, Adam Jaulhac, Edwin Maka, Antoine Battut, Benjamin Collet, Armandt Koster, Emmanuel Saubusse, Julien Tisseron, Setariki Tuicuvu

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      It was a cold evening when I realized I had lost everything. My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at my empty crypto wallet. Three hundred thousand dollars’ worth of Bitcoin—gone. I had fallen victim to an elaborate scam, a promise of high returns that had turned into my worst nightmare.I had always been cautious with my investments, but these scammers were professionals. They posed as a legitimate crypto investment firm, complete with a polished website, convincing testimonials, and even fake regulatory approvals. Their scheme was perfect—until it wasn’t. After weeks of trying to recover my funds on my own, filing complaints, and chasing shadows, I almost gave up. That’s when I stumbled upon Galaxy Ethical Tech, a company renowned for its expertise in ethical tech solutions and cryptocurrency fraud recovery. Skeptical yet desperate, I reached out to Galaxy Ethical Tech through their official website. Within hours, I received a response from their lead investigator, Daniel Carter. His calm yet confident tone gave me a renewed sense of hope. We’ve handled cases like yours before,” he assured me. “If the scammers haven’t moved your Bitcoin through an extensive network of tumblers, there’s a good chance we can track it. I handed over all the details—wallet addresses, transaction IDs, emails, and even chat logs with the scammers. Within 48 hours, their team of blockchain analysts got to work.Galaxy Ethical Tech used advanced blockchain forensics to trace the movement of my stolen Bitcoin. Every transaction left a digital footprint, and with their AI-driven tracking tools, they followed the money trail. It turned out that the scammers had transferred my Bitcoin through a series of crypto mixers, attempting to break the chain of traceability. However, Galaxy Ethical Tech had access to specialized de-anonymization algorithms and partnerships with global cybersecurity agencies. One breakthrough came when they identified a suspicious transaction leading to a centralized exchange. Using legal channels and law enforcement partnerships, they froze the scammer’s wallet before they could cash out.After two intense weeks, I received an email from Galaxy Ethical Tech: We’ve recovered your lost Bitcoin. Expect the full amount in your wallet within 24 hours. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I checked my wallet obsessively until, finally, my 300,000 BTC was back.You don’t know what this means to me,” I said, my voice shaking.He chuckled. “Just another day at Galaxy Ethical Tech. Stay safe, and always verify before you trust. Losing my Bitcoin was a nightmare, but it taught me valuable lessons: Never trust unsolicited investment opportunities. Always verify the legitimacy of crypto platforms. Use secure wallets and enable two-factor authentication. If scammed, act fast and contact professionals like Galaxy Ethical Tech.Thanks to their ethical approach and cutting-edge technology, I got a second chance. If you ever find yourself in a crypto scam, don’t lose hope—there are still heroes in the digital world.

      contact them via Email: galaxyethicaltech@mail.com Whatsapp: +15072712442 Telegram: Galaxy_ethical_tech

      0 Go to comments
      m
      mark john 5 hours ago
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      It was a cold evening when I realized I had lost everything. My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at my empty crypto wallet. Three hundred thousand dollars’ worth of Bitcoin—gone. I had fallen victim to an elaborate scam, a promise of high returns that had turned into my worst nightmare.I had always been cautious with my investments, but these scammers were professionals. They posed as a legitimate crypto investment firm, complete with a polished website, convincing testimonials, and even fake regulatory approvals. Their scheme was perfect—until it wasn’t. After weeks of trying to recover my funds on my own, filing complaints, and chasing shadows, I almost gave up. That’s when I stumbled upon Galaxy Ethical Tech, a company renowned for its expertise in ethical tech solutions and cryptocurrency fraud recovery. Skeptical yet desperate, I reached out to Galaxy Ethical Tech through their official website. Within hours, I received a response from their lead investigator, Daniel Carter. His calm yet confident tone gave me a renewed sense of hope. We’ve handled cases like yours before,” he assured me. “If the scammers haven’t moved your Bitcoin through an extensive network of tumblers, there’s a good chance we can track it. I handed over all the details—wallet addresses, transaction IDs, emails, and even chat logs with the scammers. Within 48 hours, their team of blockchain analysts got to work.Galaxy Ethical Tech used advanced blockchain forensics to trace the movement of my stolen Bitcoin. Every transaction left a digital footprint, and with their AI-driven tracking tools, they followed the money trail. It turned out that the scammers had transferred my Bitcoin through a series of crypto mixers, attempting to break the chain of traceability. However, Galaxy Ethical Tech had access to specialized de-anonymization algorithms and partnerships with global cybersecurity agencies. One breakthrough came when they identified a suspicious transaction leading to a centralized exchange. Using legal channels and law enforcement partnerships, they froze the scammer’s wallet before they could cash out.After two intense weeks, I received an email from Galaxy Ethical Tech: We’ve recovered your lost Bitcoin. Expect the full amount in your wallet within 24 hours. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I checked my wallet obsessively until, finally, my 300,000 BTC was back.You don’t know what this means to me,” I said, my voice shaking.He chuckled. “Just another day at Galaxy Ethical Tech. Stay safe, and always verify before you trust. Losing my Bitcoin was a nightmare, but it taught me valuable lessons: Never trust unsolicited investment opportunities. Always verify the legitimacy of crypto platforms. Use secure wallets and enable two-factor authentication. If scammed, act fast and contact professionals like Galaxy Ethical Tech.Thanks to their ethical approach and cutting-edge technology, I got a second chance. If you ever find yourself in a crypto scam, don’t lose hope—there are still heroes in the digital world.

      contact them via Email: galaxyethicaltech@mail.com Whatsapp: +15072712442 Telegram: Galaxy_ethical_tech

      4 Go to comments
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