Toulon - Money, Money, Money

Whoever coined the phrase ‘Money can’t buy you happiness’ obviously didn’t have Mourad Boudjellal, Toulon’s multi millionaire owner in mind. His Toulon team is perched at the summit of the Top 14 French table after winning 9 of their opening 10 matches.  A points difference of 148 and 5 bonus point victories means that they are setting the pace early on in the season. Couple this with 2 from2 in the Heineken Cup and you begin to see that the team from the Provence-Alpes-Cote-D’Azur means business.

His desire to sign ‘great players’  often came at a great cost and rumours in France claimed Tana Umaga and George Gregan cost Boudjellal 700,000 Euros of his own money. A self made millionaire from a comic strip business, Boudjellal’s desire was always to build a ‘big club’. It must be argued that his early years mirrored that of Saracens of old whose desire to sign high profile players didn’t always mean victories on the pitch. Since then he has built a team which has class oozing through it from 1 to 22.

It has not been all plain sailing for Boudjellal’s men who under achieved last season finishing 3^rd in the table. They then went on to lose the Amlin Challenge Cup Final to Biarritz and the Top 14 final to Toulouse. Many people would claim that their mere presence in the two finals could constitute a success but it is argued that owners like Boudjellals who invest millions of their own money into a sports team expect instant results. 

With a bottomless pot of money and the desire for instant results there is often a revolving door regarding player recruitment. Players who don’t make the grade are discarded and new players brought in. On a recent trip to the Peak District and in relation to football my friends discussed the importance of allowing players to ‘bed in’ and get used to the requirements of a different football style/system.  The same could be said for Toulon. Not only do players need to adapt to a new team and new players but they also need to adapt to their new surroundings. A very temperate climate where it can be sunny from as early as February is very different to travelling to Sale in the middle of December on a cold, wet Friday night.

Peter Bills wrote an interesting article in the Independent claiming that the desirable location of Toulon in the South of France alongside exuberant wages would cause players to ‘mentally drop a notch or two in commitment’. Looking at the likes of Jonny Wilkinson, Carl Hayman, Matt Giteau and many more it’s hard to believe such a comment about people who are consummate professionals of the modern era. For me, last season’s recruitment of Gavin Henson was Toulon’s lowest point and emphasised their desperation for success. He contributed nothing to the team on or off the pitch and left yet another club in controversial circumstances.

It is since then that Toulon has really begun to grow into a European force. Despite 21 players leaving, they have kept the core of the squad and allowed them to gel together.  Alongside this they have recruited well in the off season and added to an already richly talented squad. The likes of Gethin Jenkins, Frederic Michalak and Danie Rossouw will add vast international experience and Delon and Guy Armitage alongside Maxime Mermoz demonstrates a desire to build for the future. Add to this a relatively new coaching structure headed up by Bernard Laporte and you begin to see that all the ingredients are in place.

This season has been Toulon’s best. Jonny Wilkinson continues to find his best form and with a Lions call so close, can we rule him out of the tour? Steffon Armitage continues to show that England finally has an out and out 7 which can go toe to toe with the best in the world and with the likes of Simon Shaw, Andrew Sheridan and Bakkies Botha turning back the years they seem almost unstoppable.

Obviously the real test will be against Europe’s elite teams like Leinster but after beating some of France’s top teams you must argue they are on the right track. Coincide this with the loss of very few players for the Autumn Internationals and next year’s 6 Nations and you begin so make an easy prediction who will be sitting top of the pile come the end of the season.