Thirty years since it had happened! By reaching 16es the final of the Coupe de France, the Jeunesse sportive saint-pierroise (JSPP) is only the second overseas club to enter this stage of the competition. It is also the only club in Réunion to have achieved such a course so far.
The little thumb of this 103e edition, playing in Regional 1 – the equivalent of the sixth division – defies, Saturday January 18, Epinal, located two steps higher, in National 2, to hope to be the first ultramarine formation to climb in 8e final.
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Reunion flagship club
The amateur club had already created the sensation by eliminating the professionals of Niort (L2) in the previous round. A victory in the continuity of the good results of the moment. It must be said that the JSSP is in Reunion, all things considered, what PSG is in Ligue 1: a real steamroller.
In early December 2019, those known as "The Storks" won their fifth consecutive local championship. The 21e of their history. One of the most successful clubs on the island.
The only club in Reunion to have never been relegated, it can also boast of having trained players such as Dimitri Payet, current midfielder for Olympique de Marseille, and Guillaume Hoarau, former center of Paris -Saint Germain.
Or Florent Sinama Pongolle, winner of the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005, who took part in the start of this adventure in the Coupe de France by scoring a hat-trick in the regional qualifications.
Some big names at the end of their careers, who came to take advantage of a golden early retirement, also wore the black and white jersey for a short freelance. Jean-Pierre Papin, Roger Milla, Djibril Cisse among others.
A historic epic
We have to go back to the 1988-1989 season to find a trace of such a performance for an overseas club: the ASC Le Geldar (R1), based in Kourou, had become the first overseas representative to contest a 16e of the final of the Coupe de France, round from which the matches were played in a round-trip format (model which will be abandoned the following season).
At the time, the Geldar was not spared from the draw. The Guyanese inherited FC Nantes, which included Antoine Kombouaré, Marcel Dessailly or a certain Didier Deschanps in its ranks.
The long-awaited miracle had not happened. Amateur players lost 3-0 at Stade Bois Chaudat in Kourou. Then took the water at Beaujoire in the second leg, the Canaries winning 8 goals to 0. The dream was over.
extensions
For the Saint-Pierroise players to continue, they had to make some sacrifices. While at the end of last year, they could have hoped for a well-deserved rest at the end of their championship, the Coupe de France forced them to postpone their vacation and return to the path of training.
An unusual preparation that continued in the Paris region in an equally unusual climate. Far from the 30 degrees that hit the Indian Ocean island at this time of year.
Arrived in mainland France on December 31, a few days before the match against Niort, the players and the staff celebrated New Year's Eve far from their loved ones. A heartbreak for some. But, as Captain Jean-Michel Fontaine pointed out, "It doesn't happen every day, so you have to take advantage of this moment and live the adventure to the full."
"Playing at the Vélodrome or the Parc des Princes is a dream"
In the space of two months, the Saint-Pierre team will have chained three trips between Reunion and the mainland. Twenty-two hours round trip flight. What increase the fatigue of the players but not start their good mood. "The Coupe de France allows us to experience this kind of adventure. We come from far away but when we come here to play, we are really happy ”, tempers Jean-Michel Fontaine.
As provided for in the competition regulations, it is the responsibility of the overseas club to travel to the grounds of the metropolitan club regardless of the order of the draw. A "Injustice" in the eyes of Samuel Péreau, the president of the Martinique football league, who, in January 2019, in a letter addressed to the French Federation after the elimination of the Aiglon du Lamentin, complained of the difference of treatment between overseas and metropolitan clubs.
If the controversy is not new, it still divides as much. Jean-Michel Fontaine, he is divided between the wish to receive flagship clubs of Ligue 1 – "It is a shame for the Reunion Islanders that we cannot bring back the very beautiful teams from the French Championship to Reunion" – and the desire to one day tread the lawn of a legendary stadium: “Playing at the Vélodrome de Marseille or the Parc des Princes in Paris would be a dream. "
Before, why not, to face OM or PSG, the team coached by Christian Daffreville will have to climb a new mountain on Sunday. In the Vosges, this time.
Robin Magnier
