Laurent Tillie
On Sunday France edged Turkey 3:1 but after securing two sets – and so also first place in the group – Laurent Tillie decided to use his second lines so that the remainder of the game was marked by some ups and downs. “Actually I wanted to make some substitutions already in the late stages of the second set but I realized that it was better to let the team play a bit longer under pressure. After we got our qualification to the 1/4 finals, I wanted our second lines to enjoy the opportunity to show what they are capable of. It is never that easy to join the game at that stage but they got things done in the end”.
Taking pros and cons from the prelims, Tillie adds: “The mental strength of these players has really impressed me. As they were playing Poland, they could keep cool even though the ambiance was very difficult to stand, with almost 11,000 fans all cheering on the home side. Our block has been working really well and our setter has orchestrated the team regularly switching from Rouzier to Ngapeth, so that our offense was well-balanced. Of course, our main strength remains our play in defence but we have been serving well too. Still we can improve our reception but what really amazes me that is the right team spirit and cohesion are to be felt in the group”.
On Monday Tillie plans to let his guys recover, especially mentally, from the tough schedule of the past few days and on Tuesday the team will be preparing for the 1/4 finals. “We still do not know which team we are going to play but frankly speaking, we simply do not care. We are totally overwhelmed with joy for making the 1/4 finals, so that everything else does not really matter”.
To read similar news from this competition click on European Championship 2013.
