Rugby stars, influencers, crazy storyline and on

It felt like déjà vu. Two months after the XV de France’s victory right at the last second on a penalty by Thomas Ramos to snatch a win against England, a new “crunch” was won this Saturday night at the Stade Atlantique in Bordeaux. This time, no Antoine Dupont or Louis Bielle-Biarrey in the French team jersey, but MMA fighter Paul Dena and content creator Diego, also known as Djayson Karavane, behind this “Crunch Creator.” A simple concept: French and English content creators facing off in a 10-a-side rugby match divided into three periods of twenty minutes each.

And who better than the event organizer to turn into the star like Thomas Ramos and score the winning try (62-61).

Four French rugby legends alongside influencers

If both teams were mainly made up of streamers, each had the contribution of four former rugby players. For the French team, Sofiane Guitoune, Mathieu Bastareaud, François Trinh-Duc, and Aurélien Rougerie put on the cleats for the evening. On the English side, Delon Armitage, Alex Goode, Jonny Barrett, and Nick Abendanon supported the English team in this “Crunch Creator” event.

If the French were the first to score a try in this match, the English did not let themselves fall behind, counting a 20-point lead at the beginning of the third and final period. But the French team made a comeback, especially through Sofiane Guitoune, who scored a hat-trick during the evening.

The audience was entertained throughout the match as all traditional rugby rules were broken. Interviews with players on the field during the game were seen.

“Trinh-Duc told me in the end ‘it’s your event, it’s your penalty,’ I had never kicked before,” Diego confessed in a moving final speech. “Thanks to you, I lived the best day of my life (…) This event is not mine, it’s yours. Long live rugby!”, concluded the influencer, with tears in his eyes.

Original article published on RMC Sport