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Jeremy Davidson punching above his weight in France's Pro D2
LEINSTER FORWARDS COACH Jono Gibbes is set to take over the same role at Top 14 giants Clermont Auvergne next season, but it could easily have been an Irishman in his place.
Ex-international Jeremy Davidson has been making a name for himself in France’s second-tier Pro D2 since 2011 and came very close to being the man in charge of Clermont’s forwards when current head coach Vern Cotter leaves at the end of the season.
Davidson’s playing career was ended prematurely in 2003 by a knee injury, meaning he moved into coaching with Dungannon RFC. After four years in the AIL, former club Castres took the Belfast native on to work with their forwards. However, the lure of Ulster proved hard to resist and Davidson returned to the provincial set-up as assistant coach in 2009.
Two years later, itchy feet struck again and Davidson decided it was time to look for a head coaching gig. That opportunity arose at Pro D2 minnows Aurillac in the sparsely-populated Cantal department of south-central France. The sheer excellence of the work Davidson has done in the two and a bit seasons since meant in was no surprise to see him linked to the Clermont job.
The former Lions second row told TheScore.ie of his disappointment at missing out.
“I got interviewed for the Clermont job and it went really well. At the end of the day, they contacted me afterwards and just said ‘Jono Gibbes has won three Heineken Cups with Leinster.’ So they went for his profile rather than mine.
“I was obviously disappointed, but confidence comes from being close to that job. Hopefully if I can keep plugging away and getting good results with Aurillac, I’ll get my opportunity to get back up to the Top 14. I’ve coached at Castres before, and I feel that I’m ready to move up to that level again.”
©INPHO/James Crombie.
It seems entirely probable that Davidson will keep the good results flowing. In his first season in charge, Aurillac finished a respectable 13th out of 16 teams, but it was last season when the marvels began. With a budget that was the third lowest in the division, Davidson guided his side to the promotion play-offs, just two games away from getting into the Top 14.
“Last year was my second year here and we got to the semi-finals. Having the 14th-highest budget in the league, that’s pretty much miraculous. We had a budget of €2.6 million that year and then you’ve got Brive with over €10 million, Oyonnax on €8 or €10 million, Lyon had a budget of €15 million, La Rochelle on €12 million. We’re really putting the banger up against the Ferrari, it’s rewarding.”
Aurillac’s fantastic season saw Davidson and his right hand man Thierry Peuchlestrade awarded the honour of ‘best coaching team in the Pro D2′ at this week’s Nuit du Rugby ceremony, organised by the Ligue National de Rugby. It is a prestigious award but Davidson refused to allow the focus be on him.
“The important thing is that the club keeps progressing. We’re building all the time because we have to have a young squad. It helps us build towards the future. Last year we went to the semi-finals and really over-achieved. Other teams would struggle after that but we’ve recruited well, had a good pre-season and we’re building.”
Indeed, there appears to be no hangover from last season’s heady achievements, with Aurillac sitting fourth in the Pro D2 coming into this weekend. That’s despite still having the third-lowest budget in the league at around €3.65 million. So what are the secrets to success in the Cantal department?
“We bring through a lot of young players. 17 of our guys have come through the academy system. Basically, the academy players play with us full time because there’s not a massive amount of players here on pro contracts.
“Another way we do it is bringing up our team spirit a lot. A lot of our recruitment is based on rugby ability obviously, but it’s also based on the type of guy that we’re bringing into the club. Whether they’re going to embrace the culture, adapt well and bring something to the club.”
Davidson was the players’ player of the tour during the 1997 Lions victory in South Africa. ©INPHO/Billy Stickland.
As a former second row forward, it might be expected that Davidson favours a style of play orientated towards the set piece and ball carrying in the forwards. However, the truth is that Aurillac play an enterprising and intelligent brand of attacking rugby, something they have had to do in order to thrive.
“I’ve changed my outlook on how to play the game since I came here. In this environment, generally money means bigger men in the Pro D2. So you’ve got bigger, more powerful men against you in the forwards particularly.
“So I knew that we weren’t going to out muscle other teams, we had to do something different and a bit more special. I would say yes, it’s the case that we have decided to play running rugby and try to beat big teams through organisation and attacking. It has worked, it’s fitted in quite well with the environment in Aurillac.”
Last season, one-time Munster hooker Denis Fogarty was a key element in the Aurillac team but he has since moved on to Agen. In his place, representing Ireland, are former Ulster man Nigel Brady, ex-Munster lock Brian Hayes, and Ulster wide men Conor Gaston and Charlie Simpson. Davidson says the new boys have settled in well.
“Very, very well. The people we’ve brought in are good people. That’s very important for us. We have a very cosmopolitan squad. We’ve got South Africans, Australians, New Zealanders, Fijians, Tongans, Samoans, Irish; we’ve got quite a mix. So the balance between the homegrown, with 17 academy players, and foreigners is a good one.”
Life in France is going well for Davidson and while his immediate ambition is to break into the Top 14 and “get my hands on a big club,” there will always be the feeling that the 39-year-old would enjoy being called on to coach one of the Irish provinces.
“I would, I’d love to. I suppose it’s important in any coaching career to get as much experience behind you before you get yourself to that level. I’m quite happy here now, gaining experience and pushing on. We’ll see, maybe one day the opportunity will arise.”
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