Charles Guyard, edited by Laura Laplaud / Photo credits: DAMIEN MEYER / AFP
For their entry into the competition, Tonga will face Ireland this Saturday evening at the La Beaujoire stadium in Nantes. A match to follow live and in full on Europe 1 from 9 p.m. In the City of the Dukes, the Irish have already arrived in very large numbers and are making themselves heard as they should.
The Rugby World Cup is played in stadiums, but also in the city like in Nantes which is hosting its first match this Saturday evening: Ireland against Tonga. In the City of the Dukes, the Irish have already arrived in large numbers and are making themselves heard in the streets of the city.
A green tide
A veritable green tide has begun to sweep over Nantes and is expected to submerge the city until Sunday. “There are only Greens and Greens” says a supporter. Green on all the jerseys and on all the pub tables, as quickly filled as emptied. Good news for Peter, owner of Birdy’s, himself Irish, who has everything planned to quench his compatriots’ thirst. “We have a lot of orders in advance, we took maybe 200 barrels of beer in advance,” he says.
Stocks twice as large, he says, as for St. Patrick’s Day, but that is necessary for the approximately 20,000 supporters of the XV du Trèfle expected for the match this Saturday evening.
Traders delighted with the crowds
In town, it’s not just the bars that are rubbing their hands. Other merchants are also benefiting from this excitement, as inevitably at the Comptoir Irlandais where the flagship product of the moment is the rugby polo shirt. “There are more Ss than XXLs, they are not necessarily rugby players but there is the build that goes with it,” smiles the seller Bryan.
To transport all these Irish people, eight flights were added between Dublin and Nantes on Friday and this Saturday.