Vyacheslav Shalunov: “We will spoil the mood of all leaders, including Krasny Yar”

Metallurg’s mentor analyzed the BET Russian Rugby Cup quarter-final game against Krasny Yar.

– Our goals for this match were simple – we came here to reach the semi-finals of the PARI Russian Cup. For what? Because of the emotions, the aggressiveness of the young players. We didn’t bring eight players from the main team to Krasnoyarsk after the defeat in Novokuznetsk. Due to youth, enthusiasm and aggressiveness, we tried to achieve the result we needed. In the first half, the team coped with this task. We had to play harder in defense, hang on to the balls. We made a mistake, missed an attempt because of too aggressive defensive play, the opponent entered our zone and took a free kick with confidence. The first half was played on a solid “four”.

In the second half, our midfielders “floated”. When we got hooked on the game, the interplay of the three-quarter line started to reveal itself, the midfielders believed in themselves and started being creative. Unfortunately, that didn’t work for us. Within moments we were wrong, failed to capture Dylan Smith, who ran away and skidded. There was a difference in the bill, which we could no longer compensate. In almost every game at the end you score a try before the final whistle, you always have the advantage at the end. We have to understand what happens in the middle of the game. Then there will be more.

– We have the feeling that there has been a stratification in Russian rugby?

– Today, we have four teams that stand out. They are leaders due to the organization of the material base, the number of players and everything else. They are balanced clubs that have no problems. There are five clubs that are fairly equal and have big ambitions. I think these teams will do their best to get into the top four. As recent matches show, anything is possible in rugby. We are no exception, we also go to the top. I think we will ruin the lives of all leaders, including Krasny Yar.