Ben Lam, the new UBB winger.

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Daniel Vaquero / SIPA / 2009211648

  • UBB travels to Bristol this Friday (8:45 p.m.) to challenge the Bears in the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup.

  • There will be a match in the match to follow between Ben Lam, the new Union winger, and Semi Radradra who left Gironde for the English team in the offseason.

  • 20 Minutes

    returns the differences and similarities between these two extraordinary players.

It was 1:55 p.m. when last Saturday the 1,000 supporters of the Chaban-Delmas stadium thought they had seen Semi Radradra on the Bordeaux meadow with the UBB jersey.

A man had just crossed the whole field, beating four Edinburgh defenders.

Problem, if the Fijian phenomenon did cross a lawn last weekend, it was in Bristol in England when his new team won in the quarterfinals of the Challenge Cup.

So who was this man?

Ben Lam.

This name surely does not (yet) mean much to the general public.

However, in the middle, the New Zealander has already carved out a good reputation: that of being a real serial scorer (111 tries in 199 career matches, rugby sevens and XV included).

And guess who he'll have in front of him this Friday (8:45 p.m.) for the Challenge Cup semi-final between the UBB and the Bristol Bears?

His father, Pat Lam, who is none other than the English coach but above all, a certain Fijian well known in Gironde.

So can Ben Lam be the Union's new Semi Radradra?

🔥 🔥 🔥



The legs of fire and a superb sharp run from Ben Lam, the new signing of the @ UBBrugby 😍



Will he be the key to the game against the @BristolBears in the semi-final of the #ChallengeCupRugby?

🔑 pic.twitter.com/HrgPzwviDW

- Challenge Cup France (@ChallengeCup_FR) September 21, 2020

Not the same place, not the same style ...

As a good president, Laurent Marti immediately wanted to cut short any comparison among our colleagues in the 

South West:

“Semi Radradra, I only know one.

Ben [Lam] will bring something else!

"

First major difference: the two men do not play at the same position.

The first is center, the second is a winger.

The Fijian, very agile ball in hand, is a creator.

The New Zealander is a pure finisher: "He brings a lot of power, he is very strong in his zone, he scores tries and it is very difficult for the opponent to defend on him because he is strong" , describes Christophe Urios, manager of Union Bordeaux-Bègles.

🏉 While preparing a topic on Ben Lam, we had to look at the boy's statistics.

It's maddening (2011-2020):


👉 In clubs (Auckland, Wellington and Bordeaux): 57 tries in 115 games.


👉 In selection (All Blacks Sevens): 54 tries in 84 games #UBB #Bordeaux #rugby

- Clement Carpentier (@clementcarpet) September 24, 2020

In terms of comparison, and all things considered, Ben Lam is more like a Jonah Lomu.

When he is launched, he is practically unstoppable with his measurements out of the ordinary for a winger (1.94 m for 105 kg).

His place on the pitch also means that he will necessarily touch fewer balls than Semi Radradra, even if at UBB the wingers can intervene regularly in the center of the field like the Argentinian, Santiago Cordero.

But the same role!

If Laurent Marti and Christophe Urios set their sights on Lam several months ago to succeed Radradra, it is above all to replace one X factor with another.

We are talking about those players capable of turning a match on their own.

Both of a reserved nature outside the field, they also have the common point of having gone through rugby 7. That where we learn in particular to devour spaces and develop an individual technique of a very high level.

And as New Zealanders or Fijians, they also had a few predispositions.

Ben Lam in the All Black jersey with the 7-a-side rugby team. - Marty Melville / AFP

Like Semi Radradra, who was often decisive last season in important matches, Ben Lam was very present from his first meeting against Edinburgh.

Now, he will have to confirm from week to week and start with Friday against his predecessor.

Of course he did not forget the Fijian phenomenon in one game but there are already some promises.

And like Jandre Marais, the second row of UBB, many Bordeaux supporters must be saying this to themselves at the moment: “Imagine when in a few matches he will be used to playing with centers and Matthieu [Jalibert].

I am very excited to see him in ten games ”.

U.S. too.

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