| The future residents of the senior national rugby sevens team are among these players |
Malagasy Rugby takes very seriously the preparation of players who will defend the Malagasy colors at the 13th edition of the African Games. This pan-African meeting will be held in Accra, capital of Ghana, from March 8 to 23. Of forty-three players at the start, more than half fell after the detection test, and only fifteen players were retained, after their performance and behavior were scrutinized.
After yesterday morning’s training, the vice-president of Malagasy Rugby, Bien Aimé Solofoson, accompanied by the secretary general of the Federation, Herivelo Andriamanga, designated, one by one, the fifteen players selected to follow the adventure. Like Lahatra Ramamonjisoa, Hery Nantenaina Rakotomanalina and other names, all of whom have international experiences. Disappointment was seen on the faces of the five dismissed players, but that did not prevent them from wishing good luck to those who will continue on the road.
Mboazafy Noé Rakotoarivelo, coach of the national team, very direct, addressed the five players to give them some advice: “You worked hard and made efforts during these days of regrouping. Don’t be discouraged, because this is not the end. Work hard and keep working because you all have great potential. If you are released today, it is because there is still work to do on the technical aspect and, above all, in terms of behavior. »
Mboazafy Noé Rakotoarivelo also did not forget to send recommendations to those selected: “You continue the adventure, but do not rest on your laurels because, from next week, other names will fall. The African Games are of capital importance, in particular, for Malagasy Rugby, because it is the honor of Madagascar that you will defend. So give the best in you,” he concludes.
Intensive training
The players follow training four times a week, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, following the program imposed by the national technical direction. Led by two coaches, Mboazafy Noé Rakotoarivelo known as master Razily and Hajasoa Maminarivo Andriamaro, the future residents of the Malagasy national team really wet their jerseys to reach maximum shape, following the VMA test (maximum aerobic speed) with or without a ball and the RM (repetition maximum).
Lahatra Ramamonjisoa reacted by specifying: “If I am selected, it is thanks to my experience and, perhaps, my behavior, a model for others. There is also the policy of succession by combining young people with those who are not so young. » Hery Nantenaina Rakotomanalina, for his part, recalled that he has joined “the national sevens rugby team since 2011, and my international experience really weighed on me today (yesterday). For the future, we will see,” he concludes.
Donné Raherinjatovo