It’s a Friday afternoon at Franklin’s Gardens, and Anthony Belleau is sitting in the corporate box, still a little dazed from the morning.
“Tooth hurty?” I say, and his reply comes with a nasally laugh: “Yes, perfect timing.”
The joke is lost on him, but then, English is still a work in progress for the Northampton fly-half.
What isn’t lost, however, is his determination.
The morning after the flying boot
Two weeks ago, Belleau suffered one of rugby’s most gruesome injuries when tackling Harlequins full-back Nick David.
A stray boot caught him in the mouth, knocking out three lower incisors.
The aftermath? A morning at the dentist, some teeth back in temporary limbo, and a decision to get implants.
“I won’t have teeth for the next couple of weeks,” he says with a shrug.
“Then I’m going to have fake teeth!”
Playing through pain and stitches
Even with the dentist’s warning to avoid contact, Belleau answered the call when Fin Smith was ruled out against Bordeaux.
Sporting a splint and a double gumshield, he stepped onto the Stade Chaban-Delmas pitch.
“I had so many stitches in my mouth, I stopped counting,” he laughs.
Seventeen on his chin, layers inside, a bit of blood—he took it all in stride.
The scar will last a lifetime, a badge of honor from his time in England.
Life in Northampton beyond the pitch
Belleau’s move on a one-year contract has been a learning curve, both on and off the field.
He and his fiancée have settled just west of Northampton, exploring the culture and lifestyle between games.
Sunday roasts, coffee shops, trips into the city—they’re soaking up England slowly, subtitles and all.
“Our next challenge is the cinema,” he says, still practicing English with French subtitles.
Following the footsteps of French rugby greats
Belleau is part of a select group of French players to make the jump to England, joining the likes of Chabal, Picamoles, and Mermoz.
Higher taxes and lower salary caps make the move rare, but Belleau embraced the challenge.
“English rugby is more structured,” he explains.
“French rugby is more emotional… sometimes it works beautifully, sometimes it doesn’t. Here, the Premiership is a race. In France, it’s a marathon.”
International ambitions still alive
Despite not being capped for France since 2019, Belleau hasn’t given up on representing his country again.
“If my time comes, I’ll be the happiest rugby player,” he says.
He keeps a close eye on Top 14 talent like Matthieu Jalibert and is realistic about the competition: England is back, injuries hit France, but talent is everywhere. “Le Crunch is the game to watch!”
A season of highs, lows, and humor
Broken noses, missing teeth, dozens of stitches—Belleau has endured it all halfway through the season.
Yet his humor and passion have endeared him to Northampton fans. “It’s been very enriching here,” he says, smiling despite the dental chaos.
By the time the Six Nations rolls around, Belleau will be smiling fully—on and off the pitch.
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