La Rochelle head coach Ronan O’Gara has highlighted the importance of protecting young back-row Oscar Jegou after the recent dismissal of a rape case against him and Pau second-row Hugo Auradou.
Jegou and Auradou, who are both 21 years of age, were accused of the aggravated rape of a woman after making their Test debuts against Argentina in Mendoza in July.
The forward duo were arrested within days of the incident and subsequently charged. They met a 39-year-old woman in a Mendoza nightclub before she accused them of a vicious sexual assault in a hotel room.
However, the players repeatedly protested their innocence and insisted they had consensual sex with the woman following a night of drinking.
On Tuesday, the judge in Mendoza dismissed the case against Jegou and Auradou following the advice of the prosecution who asked that the charges be dropped due to inconsistencies in the woman’s story regarding the incident.
O’Gara spoke about the matter for the first time on Thursday and revealed the relief felt at La Rochelle due to the case’s dismissal.
‘He worked in the shadows on the case’
“The club has done a huge job. Our president (Vincent Merling) has really been struggling these last six months, he was very affected, he didn’t really sleep, he worked in the shadows on the case, he did a lot of good things,” he told reporters.
“He wasn’t able to talk too much but he worked really well.”
The former Ireland fly-half spoke of how the case’s outcome would affect Jegou, who is one of the youngest players in La Rochelle’s squad.
“It’s the strongest possible ‘result’,” he said. “There’s the dismissal, yes, but also the fact that Oscar has been cleared (the plaintiff’s lawyer has nevertheless appealed).
“It’s good for Oscar’s conscience that he can sleep soundly, that he no longer has any little stories, any ‘maybe, maybe’ (doubts), that it’s over.
“Have I felt a form of liberation in Oscar since the dismissal? Does he show it? No. He is a professional. When he was on the field, he was always focused on rugby.
“There has been no change in his behaviour since Tuesday. That means he was confident in recent months. The most important thing was to get him out of Argentina, to bring him back with us, to his family. He was relieved after that.”
O’Gara highlighted the difficulties of dealing with such a matter and said Jegou’s well-being is high on his priority list as the player’s coach.
“I imagine it’s very, very difficult to live with. I’m his coach, I’m very proud of him, but it’s not easy,” he added. “I’m going to remain hyper vigilant with regard to him because he’s a child, he’s very young, he needs to be protected, to learn and to be educated like the others.
“We have a huge responsibility: to pay attention to his mental state. Maybe in six months, he will think and be in a depressed state. We don’t know. We are talking about young players with emotions, who are fragile. They are not robots. It can happen to any member of the staff and any player.
“We all have a responsibility. I have always said that a discussion can solve half of a problem. It is important, for young players especially, to talk. Maybe not to the coach, but between players.
“The support is based on a strategy of the whole club. Things organised off the field remain private. But there was a plan so that he is really focused on rugby. Education is the most important thing. He is educated, informed about every action or decision. On the fact that everything has a consequence.”
O’Gara also spoke about the trial of three former Grenoble players, who are currently facing charges of gang raping a student in 2017.
“I read it on my mobile (before the press conference),” he said. “This has never happened in our sport. It’s unbelievable. I’m shocked. We can’t underestimate the importance of education, we all have a role. The most important thing is the young girl (the victim) and her family.
‘This is the real world’
“Everyone is destroyed by this. It’s a lesson. It could have happened to Oscar too. In Argentina, he came close to spending maybe 10 years in prison. This is not possible, all this. It’s too important for me – as an adult, as a coach, as a parent – to educate our players. This is the real world.”
O’Gara believes a radical change in approach to the celebratory nature of the game is important moving forward.
“Society and the world have changed, we need to adapt. After the victory in Bath (last Friday, in the Champions Cup), it was Coca Cola,” he said.
“And, maybe, a small beer. In the past, it was always beer. I have no problem with that. It’s good. A bottle of beer looks like a bottle of Coke. Is a bottle of beer better than a bottle of Coke? I don’t know, ask the nutritionists.
“But fifteen bottles of beer after a match, that’s in the past. That was my generation. But it’s always a challenge, when the players are alone. You can’t watch them 24/7. There are traps everywhere, threats, we need to accept it and live differently. We are able to have fun without alcohol, that’s important for the future.”
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Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/they-are-not-robots-ronan-ogara-highlights-mental-health-awareness-after-la-rochelle-star-survives-rape-accusation
