2024-09-12 13:29:13
DBack on the pitch with Union Bordeaux-Bègles last weekend against Stade Français (46-26), French international Sipili Falatea (27 years old, 14 caps) has emerged from a long tunnel of eight months of absence due to a ruptured cruciate ligament in his knee. The right pillar should be a starter in Lyon this Saturday (9:05 p.m.). Naturally so discreet, he is giving himself a real breath of fresh air after this painful period on a sporting level, which he had to deal with alongside serious personal problems that he has never spoken about.
Eight months after your injury, you played again with UBB against Stade Français. How did you experience this return?
I experienced it with a lot of excitement. I wanted to do everything well, get back to the level I had before the injury, bring everything I couldn’t give to the team last season. It was a great joy to step back onto the pitch, especially in a packed Chaban-Delmas stadium. And when I feel good on the pitch, it does my family good. I want to bring this happiness to my loved ones through sport. We were very happy when we met up after the match.
“At one point, I became too withdrawn. When I came home, I didn’t want to be seen as weak.”
The last few months have also been very difficult on a personal level…
Yes, when my wife gave birth last year, things didn’t go well, she suffered serious complications. Since my daughter was born, we have been in and out of the hospital a lot. The little one is doing very well.
Sipili Falatea on the pitch at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille after the France XV match against Uruguay during the 2023 World Cup.
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
Do you think that the fact that you were injured at that time was not trivial?
No, of course. I started seeing a shrink around that time. I realized that at one point, I had become too withdrawn. When I came home, I didn’t want to come across as weak. I had to comfort my wife. It wasn’t easy all the time.
In these moments, does rugby become secondary?
Yes, but it’s still very important to help me. When I join the UBB, it allows me to let off steam, to remove this weight that I carry every day. So coming back to the field last weekend did me a lot of good in that sense. Because when I come home, I have to be in shape to take everything.
Why do you agree to talk about it?
I’m not the type to pay attention to what people say about me. There are a lot of people I don’t necessarily confide in. Sometimes, some people are judgmental… I wouldn’t say harsh, but they ask questions that bother me a little. The most important thing for me is to take care of my family as best I can, while giving my all to rugby. So if I had to deal with that on top of that… It’s the world of rugby, there’s a lot of talk. But when it comes from people you respect, it’s different.
On the sporting front, how have you experienced these last eight months of convalescence?
It took a long time. We had to work on the mental aspect, learn to be patient so as not to make any mistakes. At the end of last season, the coaches asked me if I could come back for the final stages. The question really came up before the semi-final. I answered that I could help if needed. Injured or not, with the desire, on this kind of event, the “yes” is easy, without necessarily taking into account certain parameters with the risk of wasting months of work. But we remained cautious. The medical staff knew how to calm my excitement to come back quickly.
Sipili Falatea at training at Ceva Campus de Bègles. Laurent Theillet / SOUTH WEST
How did you experience these final stages?
As a simple spectator, like everyone else. I was fully behind the team. But I had worked a lot on accepting this injury on a psychological level, in case the team went to the final. It hurt but it was okay.
We feel that during this long convalescence, the psychological aspect was the most important…
It was very hard. At the time of the injury, I was on a good run, I felt very good, the coaches had confidence in me. I had to work quickly on the mental aspect with a shrink and a mental trainer. We took stock of everything I was leaving behind and everything I was going to gain in this situation. It was difficult because at certain times during the season, there were needs in my position. But I couldn’t do anything, I felt a little guilty. I then learned to put things into perspective.
“Working on the mental side with someone taught me that you can get positive things out of every situation.”
This injury came at a time when you were coming back strong, after having eaten away your frustration during the World Cup. Was it all the harder to live with?
Yes, I came back frustrated from the World Cup. I arrived a little late in the preparation because of a knee injury in the Top 14 semi-final against La Rochelle (June 2023). Obviously, the places had already been allocated. I worked a lot on my mental strength at that time too. If I had focused all my attention on the negative side, the competition would have been long. I preferred to take the positive side, to be able to work hard for the return to the club. When I returned to UBB, we were supposed to have a vacation and Yannick (Bru) called me to tell me that the club needed me. I said yes straight away. The work I had done during the World Cup allowed me to get back on track in the Top 14. And everything stopped quickly.
Sipili Falatea on November 25, 2023 during the match UBB – Perpignan. Laurent Theillet / South West
Have you always been naturally optimistic or was it working with a shrink that helped you?
It didn’t happen to me often to take the positive side of things, even if in my natural side, I never complain. Working on the mental side with someone taught me that you can take positive things out of every situation. That’s something new for me. It showed me that we often need an outside perspective. This work was quite long but it is bearing fruit today.
How do you feel physically?
It still takes a little while for me to get back to my level. When you come back from a torn cruciate ligament, you’re never at your best. But when I came on against Stade Français, 100% or not, I gave it my all. Asking yourself too many questions, wondering if you’re ready or not, is what risks bringing everything back to the injury.
The French team remains in the back of your mind?
Yes, always. But the priority at the moment is still the club. That’s what will allow me to return to the French team, that’s where I have to send a message: “I’m back, I’m ready, I’m not here just for the walk” (laughs). When you’ve already worn this jersey, you definitely want to wear it again.
Sipili Falatea during the France – Uruguay match at the 2023 World Cup. Laurent Theillet / SOUTH WEST
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