‘I was very low but they really supported me’ – Ireland star Linda Djougang on her France adventure

Djougang wanted a year off to focus on rugby after a harrowing spell as a nurse during the pandemic at Tallaght hospital. She quit her job and rented an apartment on her own in downtown Clermont-Ferrand. Speaking fluent French, she knew neither the city nor the club and arrived a few months into the Elite 1st Division season while grappling with the destabilizing loss of a dream. She spent a career nursing and caring for others, but she was surprised by the care her new French teammates showed her.

“I was very low. But they really understood me and really supported me. They held my hand through. Of course it was very hard because that was never the plan. To prepare for the World Cup – that was the plan,” said Djougang Irish Independent this week. “I had a conversation with the French internationals, they gave me a lot of support. Even the French coach (Annick Hayraud) came up to me and we talked about it. They just really listened and helped me really move on from this page and start a new chapter.”

The new environment soon gave Djougang new energy. She trains with her club almost every day of the week, sometimes twice a day. She remembers her first home game and the atmosphere outside. The food stalls. The beer counters. The music. The color. The crowds. Djougang wondered if they were there for something else.

“I thought something was going to happen before the game. I thought, ‘Are the men playing before we play?’ Because there were so many supporters. But they (their teammates) said: “No, this is for us, we play”. I was really moved by it.

“So far I’ve just loved it. It’s something fresh, it’s something new. We play all over France, so of course you can play against everyone, but at different clubs, which is very nice for me because I can compete against them. These French women, their game is incredible and I think we can see that on Saturday.”

If one of Ireland’s best male players were to move to a top club in France, the euro signs would turn. But the men’s game is so far removed from the women’s. Sure, she still gets to represent Ireland, but Djougang doesn’t get paid a penny for playing with ASM Romagnat. She does not receive any subsistence allowances or subsidies for accommodation. She pays her own rent, drives to training with her teammates and takes the bus to work. She works part-time as a translator (she translates meetings and documents for a company). This is a move fully funded by Djougang itself.

“I’m not getting paid at all, so I wouldn’t consider it a full-time job because I’m not getting paid. I live off my savings and I live off what I get for my four hours (as a translator), which isn’t that much, so I pretty much live off my savings,” says Djougang. “I think every player on this pitch wants to do their best. And if you get that opportunity and play the sport you love so much, you would take that opportunity. I was really happy that IRFU supported me in this decision and I hope to be able to show how much I’ve learned on the pitch.”

The benefits were shown at RDS last Saturday. She recalls screaming at Sam Monaghan that the offload was on when she saw space open up in the Welsh defense after 29 minutes. Monaghan delivered the great offload and Djougang sprinted and kicked under the post on their third Six Nations attempt.

The Djougang role also came with 17 tackles, two dominant tackles, 41 yards made, one turnover, the full 80 minutes and unpredictable heart. She made her first loosehead start for Ireland (she finished the game in tighthead) after Irish management asked her to move in the front row.

“They said I was a very versatile, dynamic player and it would give me more space to play my game. It took me a while to settle into the loosehead position, but once I settled in I just played my game. It’s also given me this massive advantage on loosehead because I know exactly what the tighthead wants to do with the loosehead.”

Djougang saw a difference in the Welsh team’s fitness and ‘aura’ compared to last year’s 12 players who now have full-time professional contracts and others with retainers. She believes Irish 15-player Pro contracts should be looked into.

“That’s something we definitely need to look at because we’re moving in the right direction, we’re moving with that vision, but if we don’t really train every day and build that confidence, I think that will only benefit us will. To be honest we can only do that if we are contract players. As a player, you don’t always want to lag behind. Playing with professional players, every game is a challenge. You want to be on the same level as everyone else, so it’s a fair game.”

Ireland started this Six Nations with a loss and the second week is also the second time Ireland have played against a team of professionals. Djougang agrees that there is no level playing field.

“No it’s not. But we’ve got to work really hard with what we’ve got – that’s something IRFU really needs to look at. As a player, I’m just trying to put my head down. And then, hopefully, when we start proving that As we’re really testing ourselves here, hopefully the IRFU will definitely help us with that. But for now, it’s not going to happen tomorrow or anything. For now, we just have to work with what we have and give it 100pcs. And when we do result, I’m sure everyone will have our back.”

Djougang, who turns 26 next month, felt that support from the record crowd at the RDS last Saturday, although she says no one from her family was there. She is still waiting for the day when she can return to Cameroon to see her mother, Julienne Koubeu, whom she has not seen since she left her native country 17 years ago. It’s unlikely to happen this year as she’s already living on her savings to play rugby.

“Well, I was hoping for this summer, but it’ll probably be next summer because I’ve run out of savings. It has been an incredible journey for me as a person. I don’t think anyone in my family can really understand the journey I’ve been through. I think I met my family through rugby.”

That includes her new French club with teammate Jessy Tremouliere on the bench for France in Toulouse. Djougang says she doesn’t need to give her Ireland teammates any inside information because their style of play “speaks for itself”.

“They’re definitely bigger and heavier too, but with the right technique that we have, we’re definitely able to break that maw.” I just think we have to be really disciplined and not give them those penalties,” says Djougang. “They love to keep the ball alive and if we can prevent that then I think we have a good chance. We have nothing to lose, we just have to go out and play our game. I don’t think we can ask for more.”

And nobody asks more of Djougang than they ask of themselves.