"They arrived with their long hair, their 17 years. They were young and very shy", recalls to AFP Victor Moreaux, their former teammate at Castres Olympique, whom the two executives of the XV of France will find on Saturday under a another jersey, that of Toulouse, on the occasion of the 22nd day of the Top 14.

"Antho (Jelonch), he was a praying mantis," laughs the second row, now at Racing 92. "He didn't look like anything in the upper body, but he always had big legs. And Toto ( Dupont) hasn't changed. He's a natural, a little bull."

Thierry Bourdet was in charge of Castres hopes at the time, in 2014. He too remembers boys, trained in Auch, still "physically frail, like any player who integrates a professional structure".

Dupont and Jelonch were on the other hand for him "above the lot" from a rugby point of view.

The scrum half was already making the opposing defenses dizzy and the third line was not refusing the fight.

"I had rarely seen at that age a boy with such defensive qualities".

This potential had been detected by several Top 14 teams. One of the Castres coaches, Serge Milhas, a former Auch player who knew the families of the two youngsters, convinced them to join the CO, a club in line with their values.

Anthony Jelonch during a Top 14 match with Castres on October 8, 2016 in Montpellier PASCAL GUYOT AFP

"They are very attached to their land, to their family," Bourdet told AFP.

"Castres suited them well, somewhat in the same vein as Auch. It was a good springboard, it allowed them to hatch quietly".

"Toto the serious"

"We were not mistaken in destination", confirmed Dupont last December in a video with Jelonch produced by the agency "Bros. Stories", which manages the communication of the scrum half of the Blues.

"At 17-18, when you have to take the leap or not, the career choice is decisive in order not to crash," he developed.

"You had clubs that made you dream. We could have gone there, but we might not have played, we would not have hatched".

Not yet of age, "Toto" needed a waiver to play his first pro match in the fall of 2014 in the European Cup against the great Leinster.

The Gers third line took a little longer to break through, but he never left the Castres first team once he was invited.

These "opportunities" allowed them to gain "confidence in themselves", says Moreaux.

“Perhaps by joining Stade Toulousain earlier, they would not have been launched so early. Everything went well for them”.

Antoine Dupont and Anthony Jelonch during the victory of the XV of France against New Zealand, November 21, 2021 at the Stade de France FRANCK FIFE AFP

After sharing their room at boarding school in Auch, the two friends lived together during their years in Castres.

"Everyone was welcome, they were very welcoming, with good products from the Gers", says their former team-mate.

"In the roommate, it was Toto the serious and Antho the mop. He was always more lively," he adds.

"Despite his small stature, Toto handled the seriousness of it all."

The last two captains of the Blues, who left Castres in 2017 and 2021, return there on Saturday with a completely different status and under the colors of the Toulouse sworn enemy.

"They left on good terms, it's part of a logical continuation in their progression," said Bourdet.

"It's a source of pride to have had them with us. Players like that, we don't have them all the time. We say to ourselves that we had two jewels".

© 2022 AFP