“As for the organization of the federation and the training we have a lot left”
MADRID, 6 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The player of the national team Lourdes Alameda asks that “the Six Nations be opened” and allow Spain, European champion, the second rung of rugby, to compete on nine occasions -six of them consecutively-, since she believes that they are ” one or two steps above” the level of their rivals in said competition.
“The inertia in this tournament is clear, we recognize the efforts of the other teams, but it is clear that we are one or two steps above and we do not recognize ourselves in this competition. For this reason, we ask that the Six Nations be opened, because in the end We have shown that we are capable of beating teams like Ireland or Scotland, which are at our level or we are at their level,” Alameda demanded in an interview with Europa Press after an Iberdrola act in support of women’s sport.
And for the veteran player “the key” is “in the offices”. “Our job has to be to continue doing our best, day by day, to try to boost the level of the national league, put pressure on the media and through the results. And from the federation continue putting pressure on the offices or on what have to do,” he explained.
Being a tournament with inferior rivals, one of the challenges when facing the European Championship is the mental aspect. “The key is to pay attention to your game, maintain 100 percent intensity and not let yourself be carried away by what the rival’s level is. We always have to go out at 100 percent and the coaches have to demand that level of us, whatever the team that whatever. And we characterize ourselves for that,” she said.
Regarding the level of women’s rugby in Spain, Alameda points to training as the main issue to improve. “When we go away we find everything. There are teams with much more deployment of media and resources, but then they are not much better than you at the level of the game,” she said.
“I spent two years in France and I realized that in terms of the organization of the federation and the training we have a lot left, they have a league for girls, for cadets, and that is amazing. The girls there reach the national team with an evolution of rugby that we lack here. We have to win as trainers, so that they learn rugby well”, added the international.
On the other hand, he confesses that it is “sad”, but “exciting”, the generational change that the selection is experiencing. “It’s a bit sad because you’ve been sharing the national team with some of them for a long time, a lot of experiences, feelings… But I’m very happy and it’s exciting, because I’m an experienced player who’s already wondering whether to continue or leave, see what Such young players arrive and with that energy, it drives you and fills you up, it encourages you to continue in the new project”, he celebrated.
Finally, Alameda applauds the support of large companies such as Ibredrola in their professional careers. “Their work in visibility is super important, so that the girls know the sport and the players who practice it. It is a great support, it is incredible that they double their efforts,” she concluded.