MHR: 35 out of 38 players voted to speak to President Mohed Altrad during a crisis meeting

Lenni Nouchi et les joueurs du MHR se sont réunis dimanche. Midi Libre – SYLVIE CAMBON

Une réunion de crise a eu lieu ce dimanche 26 mai, dans les travées du MHR. Les joueurs ont voté en grande majorité pour prendre rendez-vous avec le président Mohed Altrad et échanger sur la situation actuelle.

For those who still doubted it, the MHR is indeed in crisis. Three weeks away from playing the most important match in its history, the Hérault club is going through a  situation more than anxiety-provoking. The staff/player relationship seems consumed. "The break is here", even confides someone close to the club this Monday.

According to our information, a crisis meeting took place this Sunday, May 26. The players talked to each other. Without making a real strong decision, the exchange still led to a vote. "Who wants to make an appointment with the president (Mohed Altrad) to talk about the sporting situation the club is going through ?", was the question in the survey. 35 out of 38 players answered “yes”. The idea is to report what the players experience on a daily basis under the yoke of the sporting director Bernard Laporte and it will be up to the president to judge the situation and make a possible decision.

The weakened staff

A context of tension which confirms the words of Lenni Nouchi after the defeat against Toulouse (22-29) ten days ago, the seventh in a row in all competitions. "We talked in the locker room, just the players. We decided to move forward together, not to let go of each other, to say it in each other's eyes, said the third line.

A week later, the group would therefore have decided to take matters more in hand, confirming the friction with the staff led by Patrice Collazo and Bernard Laporte. The latter inevitably emerge weakened by this meeting. "The staff will not spend the summer", adds the same source.

🔵⚪️ 𝑰𝑳 𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑬 ⚪️🔵

La jeunesse au service du collectif !
C'est officiel, Lenni Nouchi sera montpelliérain jusqu'en 2026 ! ✍️

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— Montpellier Rugby (@MHR_officiel) May 23, 2024

Bernard Laporte's statements on May 9 in our columns were not really digested by the locker room. Neither the hasty departure of Paolo Garbisi in mid-February, nor "the turn the club has taken for several weeks", assures a member of the athlete, implying the difficulties of some to accept the Laporte-Altrad association at the head of the club or the return of the pillar Mohamed Haouas, convicted of domestic violence a year ago.

The climate is therefore under tension at the MHR. Barring a catastrophe and a crazy comeback from Oyonnax in the last two matches of the Top 14, the Hérault club will play for its survival in the elite on Sunday June 16 next, date of "the’access match" against the losing finalist of Pro D2. But before that, Montpellier hosts Lyon this Saturday (5 p.m.) for the last home match of the season.