The French have a complimentary saying for players whose rugby thrives on instinct – “Il pue le rugby”. Literally, it translates as “he smells rugby” and it seems particularly apt as Simon Zebo returns to France for the first time since ending his three-year stay with Racing 92 three years ago, when Munster stepped into Toulon’s febrile Stade Felix Mayol for Saturday’s crunch Champions Cup game.
For if any Irish player embodies what the saying implies it is Zebo. He has an innate eye for locating space and has the range of passing, offloading and kicking skills to exploit this. Supporters want to see him on the ball. Few players, if any, appear to enjoy playing rugby as much as he does, and aside from the curmudgeons, few are more enjoyable to watch.
The 33-year-old learned his rugby in his native Cork but plays with a flair befitting the French roots of his Martinique-born father Arthur, himself an 800-metre runner.
“Growing up when I used to watch rugby, obviously Munster was my favourite team. But the style of rugby that I enjoyed the most was always French rugby. I grew up loving the likes of Cédric Heymans, Vincent Clerc, Yannick Jauzion, guys who play with speed, pace and enjoy finishing tries or creating tries by offloading and different things.”
After breaking in to the Munster side as a left winger, Zebo established himself as a fullback before his prolific Parisian sojourn, when again mostly employed at 15. But during his absence, Mike Haley took ownership of the jersey and, understandably given his form, retained it for the last two seasons.
When Zebo made his delayed seasonal return at fullback against Leinster at the Aviva in November, it was the first time he had worn the Munster 15 jersey since the Pro14 final at the RDS in May 2018. It’s his preferred position and his best, and one can’t help but feel that Munster may have missed a trick.
As Zebo has reminded us in his recent outings, fullback affords him the roaming role in which he thrives as well, although he’s quick to stress: “I like the defensive side of things at fullback as well you know, reading [opposition] 10s. That’s like a little game within the game, especially against top-quality 10s. You’re constantly on edge, your backfield cover, trying to read them as best as possible.
“And then obviously in attack you get more of a free role, to roam, to go in and out more as first receiver, to get your hands on the ball a lot more, do a bit of playmaking which I obviously like to do.”
Yet he enjoys the defensive side of the role just as much.
“You’re the boss of the back three. You control the different pictures you give to the kicking options in the attacking side. Playing against the likes of Johnny Sexton and Owen Farrell, you can really mess with their heads based on how you organise your backfield and give them different pictures that they think something else may happen.”
He used to like making eye contact with Sexton.
“Sometimes I’d be smiling at him and he’d be like ‘What the hell is he going to do here?’ Those finer details to the defensive side of fullback, you can’t get them right all the time, but when you do, making a 10 kick a ball when he thinks there’s space but there isn’t, then you regather and exit, just based on body language, they can win you games and it’s won us games in the past.”
Zebo will likely be making eye contact with another experienced, warrior 10 in Dan Biggar at a ground where Zebo has been on the winning side with Racing.
It looks close to a do-or-die tie for both sides after each squandered winning positions in both of their previous pool games.
“For sure, we’ve a lot of work to do to stay alive in the competition. Traditionally, Munster do find a way to do things the hard way,” admitted Zebo with that trademark grin. “So, it will make for a better story hopefully if we can get the result this weekend. And go into Northampton with something to play for.”
Injuries have restricted Zebo’s opportunities to catch Andy Farrell’s eye. Ireland’s Six Nations squad will be announced later next week and at 33 he hasn’t given up hope of a recall.
“That would be great. I would love that. I would love to represent my country again but definitely, I’m just focused on Munster. I just want to play well. I haven’t played consistently, game after game after game, for a while.
“So being able to stay fit and keep putting in good performances, then like always the rest will take care of itself. If it came, it came. And if it didn’t, I’d just keep going, and moving forward and putting my hand up. I know if I keep playing well for Munster things may happen, and if they don’t, the chips will fall where they lay.”
With that in mind, Zebo is the third most prolific try scorer (34) in the history of the Champions Cup, just two behind Vincent Clerc and seven adrift of Chris Ashton, and adding to that tally in Toulon would be timely.
“I play my best games when there’s the most pressure. The brighter the lights, the better I play. Especially in European rugby, it’s my favourite, so we’ll be going for it and looking to create, looking to score and just looking to have no regrets at the end of the 80.
“Obviously, our detail and things will have to be on point. That will be the focal point, but the extra stuff, we’ll be going for it. Hopefully, it comes off.”
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