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Willis heureux à Toulouse, l'Angleterre résignée

Jack Willis a déjà soulevé deux trophées avec Toulouse en un an et demi (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images).

Jack Willis et le Stade Toulousain, c’est l’histoire d’un mariage inattendu qui fonctionne au-delà de tous les espoirs. Et qui, aujourd’hui, rend le retour du joueur en Angleterre bien improbable, au grand dam des supporteurs du XV de la Rose.

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Le flanker vient d’ajouter le trophée de la Champions Cup, décroché samedi contre le Leinster (31-22 après prolongations), à côté de celui du Top 14, gagné l’an dernier.

Face aux Dublinois, le joueur de 27 ans a livré une prestation défensive de très haut vol, terminant meilleur plaqueur d’un match à l’intensité comparable à celle d’un test match. Avec 29 plaquages et une activité d’un bout à l’autre des 100 minutes de jeu, Willis a livré une prestation XXL.

Mais cela ne suffit pas à le placer dans les radars de Steve Borthwick. Le sélectionneur anglais peut retenir uniquement des joueurs qui jouent en Gallagher Premiership, le championnat anglais. Ce qui laissé Willis bloqué à 14 petites sélections depuis 2020.

Son passage à Toulouse devait constituer une solution à court terme, à la suite du dépôt de bilan des Wasps. Mais la lune de miel, entretenue par les trophées accumulés, avec le club le plus titré d’Europe a infléchi sa réflexion.

Il y a beaucoup de paramètres à prendre en compte pour un changement (de club) », estime Willis.

« Quitter les Wasps, ç’a été fort en émotions. Essayer de signer dans un autre club anglais, c’est compliqué. Personne ne se rend compte à quel point c’est compliqué. »

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« Je m’en suis bien sorti en rejoignant un club formidable, avec qui j’ai l’eu l’occasion de gagner le Top 14 et la Champions Cup. »

« Ce que je ressens, en ce moment, c’est une énorme gratitude. Le groupe m’a accueilli à bras ouvert et avec beaucoup de respect. C’est tout ce j’ai en tête.

« Je viens de remporter la Champions Cup. Si vous m’aviez dit ça il y a deux ans, je vous aurais traité de fou ! »

Arrivé dans la Ville rose fin 2022, il a rapidement mis tout le monde d’accord sur le terrain, et le Stade Toulousain l’a prolongé dès avril 2023. Avec un contrat de trois ans, dont les deux dernières années en option.

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Une manière pour Willis de se laisser une porte de sortir si jamais la règle d’éligibilité des joueurs anglais jouant à l’étranger évoluait. En effet, jusqu’à la Coupe du Monde 2023, un Anglais jouant hors de son championnat domestique pouvait être retenu avec l’équipe nationale. Ce qui a permis à Willis de disputer le Tournoi des Six Nations 2023 et la Coupe du Monde la même année.

Les conditions d’éligibilité ont effectivement été durcies au lendemain du Mondial, et Willis ne peut plus être sélectionné avec le XV de la Rose. Si l’annonce de l’activation de son option n’a pas encore été faite, nul doute, des deux côtés de la Manche du dénouement. Le colosse (1,90 m, 112 kg) va rester « rouge et noir » quelque temps supplémentaire.

« Il y a eu beaucoup de moments difficiles avec les Wasps, et je ne jouais pas autant que je l’aurais voulu. Donc être accueilli à Toulouse, imaginez à quel point je suis reconnaissant.

« Ma famille a été bien accueillie ici et il y a beaucoup de bons gars. Je suis très reconnaissant de faire partie de ce groupe et de pouvoir essayer d’y apporter ma pierre. »

Élément clé du succès en finale européenne, Jack Willis est revenu sur l’autre homme fort du match, Antoine Dupont, désigné Joueur du match et Joueur européen de l’année.

« Il a réussi quatre turnovers ! Il sait tout faire ! Quel joueur. Il a tout fait », salue-t-il.

« De ce que j’ai vu jusque-là, il est sans doute le meilleur joueur de tous les temps. Grâce à lui, j’ai gagné deux trophées. »

En attendant peut-être d’autres : il reste le Top 14 à aller chercher cette saison, et plein d’autres trophées d’ici 2026, l’année de fin de contrat de Willis. A ce moment-là, si les règles d’éligibilité n’ont pas (encore) changé, il décidera peut-être de regagner l’Angleterre pour se donner une chance de disputer la Coupe du Monde 2027.

D’ici là, c’est le Stade Toulousain qui bénéficiera du joueur.

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