Let’s hope O’Gara has not trained the young speedster too well
Teddy Thomas failed to cross the whitewash for the first time in his fledgling Test career, on Saturday, as France ground out a welcome win over a much-improved Scotland. The Racing Métro winger scored a hat-trick on his French debut and followed it up with a dot-down against Australia.
Thomas was then dropped for the remaining November [2014] international for playing hooky instead of training. In an interview, today, with Rugbyrama, the 21-year-old addresses that incident and gives props to O’Gara for improving his game.
Thomas says, ‘During pre-season, Laurent Labit [Racing backs coach] asked me my goals. I said, “Get into match-day squads, improve my game and hopefully make some starting fifteens.” Labit told me I had the potential to go right into the starting line-up. He place his trust in me.
‘He, like Laurent Travers and Ronan O’Gara [defence coach], helped me grow and got me to believe in myself. If I’m here [in the French squad], it is because of them.’
On the subject of the missed video review session, Thomas says, ‘I had a problem at home, which is true. I can understand that some people do not believe me. But it happened and I have suffered the consequences. I was punished. Now, it is pointless to talk about it [all the way] until the World Cup.’
Thomas was disappointed to miss out on the Argentina Test, in November, but is confident the French management team believe his tale. As for the media, Thomas declared [in French], ‘Après j’ai trouvé que les médias en avaient fait un paquet pour rien.’
Basically, us lot were making a mountain out of a molehill.
