Teddy Durand

He is built almost identically to the Italy international who keeps him out of the side.

Teddy Durand is 1.80m and 102kg. Loris Zarantonello, who hooks for Castres and for Italy, is built to within a couple of kilos of him. They are competing for the same shirt with the same tools.

Durand was born on 14 October 1999, which makes him 26.

Short and compact at just over a hundred kilos is a hooker’s build rather than a prop’s or a lock’s, and the squad data confirms the position.

Beyond the measurements the public record is empty. He has no encyclopedia entry in any language, nothing filed under his name at age-grade level, and no mention in the club’s published season summaries. A youth club and a debut date could be guessed at, and a guess would be worth nothing here.

What the squad list does show is the difficulty. Castres carry three hookers. Zarantonello is capped by Italy, and Pierre Colonna is contracted until 2028 after coming through two academies. That is a settled position with a long-term plan already attached to it, and Durand is the third name on it.

Hooker is also the position where a squad most needs cover it can trust. A team cannot finish a match without a specialist thrower, so clubs keep a third one on the books and hope not to use him. It is a real job, and it is close to invisible.

At 26 with no published senior record, that is the honest reading. It changes when the record does.