RCT: Ma'a Nonu, the eternal legend

What were you doing the year you turned 43 (for those who aren't yet 43, trust your parents)? As a great athlete, we imagine your knees were seriously starting to whistle, and you had hung up your crampons a long time ago, hadn't you? And while the bravest among you may have managed, with immense willpower, to replace them with running shoes, we presume that the majority opted for a barbecue skewer and a pair of Obuts offered to you for your 35th or 40th birthday?

So, imagine that Ma'a Nonu, 17 days after blowing out his ^43rd candle, is preparing to spend 80 minutes (probably a little less) in the middle of a very hostile Top 14 pitch. Because, number 12 behind him, the New Zealand legend still does not seem to have decided to treat himself to a much-deserved rest.

"When you see the form he arrived in... He was already ready. From there, there's nothing to say," Gabin Villière said admiringly, knowing how brutal rugby can be on the body. "The truth comes from the field, not from his 43 years, his height or his weight. And Ma'a has already proven it on the field, and will do so again this weekend."

Because, this evening, and for the third time since his return to Toulon at the end of February, Pierre Mignoni will line up the icon of the country with the long white cloud.

Leicester Fainga'anuku, 17 years and 4 months his junior

Except that, unlike in Castres or Clermont, where he started from the bench, the legendary All Black will this time be in the starting line-up, lining up alongside Leicester Fainga'anuku… 17 years and four months his senior.

A strange symbol when you know that one is without a doubt the best center in the history of this sport, and that he won two world championship titles with the All Blacks, and that the other will return to New Zealand at the end of the season, precisely to try to assume this heavy legacy. Enough to command the respect of his teammates, including Facundo Isa. "Ma'a, I played with him a few years ago [in 2017-2018, then in 2020-2021] but I think he continues to surprise us all. With his attitude, his desire to want to continue playing, to win. And to always go further..." With this fierce will to overthrow opponents with the ball in hand, to dominate collisions and quite simply to instill his winning culture, as long as his body allows it.

As if 23 years of professional rugby (his first recorded professional match dates back to 2002) had not altered his passion for this sport, which is so demanding, by one centimeter.

"Ma'a, I assure you that he's a driving force for the group," Pierre Mignoni continued. "He impacts others, it's incredible. Not with words, but with deeds, and with action. He's extremely generous, he gives a lot. And as for the field, he's getting back to a certain level... And I feel that he's starting to get hungry, that he's itching to get back to it."

Although he knows that his best years are inevitably behind him, Ma'a Nonu will nevertheless once again want to share his know-how, his experience, and his black magic with Toulon. For what could be one of his very last appearances in a jersey? Nothing is less certain because, although he will leave Toulon after this unexpected stint, the New Zealand giant does not yet seem decided to replace his cleats with a pair of slippers, preferring for the time being to continue writing his extraordinary legend.