MHB – Limoges: “We managed to keep our calm”, “It’s a shame that we fight among ourselves and not with the opponent”… the reactions

Les hommes d'Erick Mathé ont bien manoeuvré l'équipe de Limoges, samedi soir. Midi Libre – JEAN-MICHEL MART

After the serious victory of the MHB against Limoges (32-26), satisfaction was in order on the side of Montpellier who knew how to keep their nerves in the first half, Saturday September 21st during the third day of Starligue.

Montpellier

Erick Mathé, coach of Montpellier: “I think there was also a bit of nervousness in the first half on our part. Sometimes, reactions on our part to decisions that didn't please. We got a bit lost in that, with a good start from Limoges. Then, in the second, yes, we raised our defensive tone.

We also had Charles who made the saves from the start of the second. That's what put us on the right track. Like perhaps the start of the match against Saint-Raphaël, when we defend and there are stops and we continue on the wide open space, we are a little hard to control in this sequence.

Read also: Starligue: MHB sent a message to the competition by crushing Limoges, before going to Nantes

We managed to keep our composure in the first half. We were getting a little too annoyed, perhaps, and especially with ourselves. I think we really raised our voices in the second half.

The heated moment in the 40th minute between the two benches? I'm not against this kind of moment, if it doesn't take us out of the game. I think it's more anecdotal, it's maybe sometimes a surge of testosterone, but hey, it's okay. The main thing is to focus on the game. I think we did it well. This start to the second half carried us well into the rest of the match."

Valentin Porte, captain of the MHB :“We had targeted this match because Limoges is a team that is gaining strength year after year. I think they were confident after their qualification for the European Cup, their very good match against Paris. So, we were wary of them, which perhaps explains the nervousness and the fact that there was a small step missing at the beginning. And as the match progressed, from the 15th, 20th, we were able to regain the upper hand defensively. We made them doubt and we gained strength. So, I'll remember that.

Starligue: the ranking and results of the third day

Serenity as the match progressed. But I agree with Cyric. This team's little guilty pleasure is their tendency to focus on the whistles rather than focusing on us. I think we would gain more by focusing on ourselves, by questioning ourselves rather than immediately turning to the referee."

Limoges

Alberto Entrerrios, Limoges coach:“Yes, I think we made a good start to the match, we were pretty good in the first half. Even if we feel a little that the dynamic is a little down and that Montpellier is starting to gain momentum. I think we weren't brilliant in our attack, but we were efficient in the first half.

And then, the second half… there wasn't much of a story. We started badly, Montpellier defended very very strongly, we couldn't find solutions in attack, it changed a little with the ball losses. We try to rotate, but it doesn't give much results. Montpellier was better. Their defensive aggressiveness took us out of the game a bit.

Our team is simply not at the level of Montpellier. When things don't go as expected, there are still some nervousnesses. It's normal, there is always room for this kind of thing. I think we didn't know how to have this rebellion against the opposing team. It's a shame that we fight among ourselves and not with the opponent. Today we should have increased our level of aggressiveness in defense and not argued among ourselves.”