JAMES HARRINGTON
FRENCH COLUMN

Of the three words in Arnauld Mela’s week-old job title ‘interim head coach’ at Top 14 side Brive, the first one is by far the most important. The 42-year-old former lock, a popular figure in the Brive dressing room, has been handed the position on a temporary basis following the effective dismissal last Saturday evening of Jeremy Davidson.
Word is, meanwhile, that Racing 92’s director of rugby Laurent Travers – a European champion with Brive back in 1997 – has politely rejected an approach, preferring to stick with his impending move to become chairman of ...