FORMER Poverty Bay and Ngatapa first five-eighth Ian Logan has joined the coaching ranks, albeit as a player-coach with his French rugby club Bourges.
“It’s my second season with the club and they have asked me to take charge of the backs,” said Logan, who has spent the past two years in France with his partner Cally Mullany.
“The level of rugby in our division is below club standard in Poverty Bay. The players try to give the ball air but they lack the basic fundamentals of throwing good passes and putting players into space.
“The rugby can be very dirty. I have had my eyes gouged and been head-butted on more than one occasion.
“We are a small club but have a lot of foreign players as the club wants to get up through the divisions.
“Cally and I will be staying for another season, after which we will have a think about taking a contract with another French club in the higher grades or maybe moving closer to home.”
Bourges is a town of over 70,000 inhabitants with a wider catchment area of over 100,000 people.
The town is two hours’ drive south of Paris, in the centre of France.
“Even with that many people, we are the only rugby club in the city.
“There are numerous football, handball and basketball clubs. The women’s basketball team have been European champions on many occasions and are totally professional.
Logan said “helping out with the kids” in the junior grades was an eye-opener.
“For the kids it’s more about catching with friends than playing rugby,” he said.
“We have made many great friends since we have been here, people who are always willing to give help when we need it.
“After two days in France I went straight into work doing metal rolls and linings.
“It was a struggle for the first three months as I couldn’t figure out what the heck they were saying . . . it’s not true that most French speak English.
“We took lessons twice a week, plus speaking it all day at work has worked a treat. Now I have problems trying to think of words in English.”
Logan and Mullany, a New Zealand polocrosse representative, also spent time in Edinburgh “catching up” with former Bay and Ngatapa team-mate Campbell Te Rito and his wife.
“We also spent two weeks on the French Riveria, visiting St Tropez, Cannes and Monaco, where we were invited to enter the Monte Carlo casino, even though we had jandals on.
“We also visited a town by the name of Menton, where William Webb Ellis is buried, and also Italy.
“Other highlights included skiing on numerous occasions, watching the All Blacks beat the French in Marseille last year, watching the Heineken Cup final at Stade de France and visiting London and Paris.
“The downsides include going to work on Monday mornings, as we play on Sundays, and travelling up to seven hours one way by bus to play games (fortunately next year we play seven teams from Paris).”
Another “downside” to life in France was the absence of pies, boil up, and fish and chips.
Logan said the French supporters did not think they would beat the All Blacks during the Rugby World Cup.
“But in their hearts they would like to see another upset . . . let’s hope not.
“The French we have spoken to and read about think and hope the All Blacks will win the world cup.
“They think we deserve to win and, after their own team, the All Blacks are adored in France.
“We have seen a lot of people wearing All Black jerseys, T-shirts and the like in France, more than we have seen French colours.
“The same can’t be said of the English, whom they call ‘le roast beef’.
“We have had and still are having the experience of a lifetime, doing things that we only dreamed of and would have only seen in pictures.
“Although being so far from family and friends is a downside, we know Gisborne isn’t going away and we are looking forward to catching up with everyone when we come back.”
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