2023-09-21 11:36:01
As we approach the third group match against modest Namibia, this Thursday, September 21 at the Vélodrome stadium in Marseille, Fabien Galthié recalled his executives. The French coach recognized it: a week earlier, a French XV largely composed of substitutes failed to control the match against the rough Uruguayans, Thursday September 14, the Blues having to settle for a messy victory ( 27 -12) and without an offensive bonus point. “It was difficult nervously and psychologically,” confided Lotois at a press conference.
Enough to redistribute the cards. Faced with the Namibian “Welwitschias”, exit the substitutes, make way for the starters who impressed against the All Blacks, during the opening match (27 to 13). Only winger Gabin Villière and left pillar Jean-Baptiste Gros, respectively starter and substitute against the New Zealanders, are not in the group.
The first is preferred by the young Louis Bielle-Biarrey (20 years old, 4 caps), while the second is paying the price for the return of Cyril Baille, indisputable starter returning from injury after missing the first matches, just like center Jonathan Danty . The only notable absentee is third row Grégory Alldritt, best Blue against the Blacks, who was slightly injured in training on Monday September 18.
A justified sanction?
Fabien Galthié swears: the composition of the team was “posed” the day after the match against Uruguay, and “there is no reaction, no change of course”. “We adapt and read according to deadlines. » But the coach can assure that his team is not “not here to demonstrate” in “to make clean copies”the fact of not having collected the offensive bonus point against Uruguay is a mess.
The return of the executives does indeed have the air of sanction for the replacements who see the opportunity to scrounge up playing time against a team considered to be one of the weakest in the world, 21st in the World Rugby rankings, slip away.
“Everyone realized that the match was messy. They must have taken a blower in the locker room”laughs Julien Pierre, former second line of the XV of France. “The players who were on the field probably missed their chance,” confirms the ex-Bleu, now head of the environmental label Fair Play For Planet.
“The room for maneuver is not that huge”
An observation which leads to a more worrying question: is the France group really equipped to aim for the world title? “We imagined that the France team was much more than 15 players and that the replacements were at an equal level, but the lessons from the match against Uruguay suggest that the room for maneuver is not as enormous as That “worries Julien Pierre, who was at the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.
“It’s often like that in so-called easy matches”on the contrary reassures Philippe Saint-André, former player and coach of the French XV from 2011 to 2015. “The players want to shine individually to show that they aspire to a starting place, forgetting that playing without the ball or working in the rucks are essential elements. »
For the man with 69 caps in Blue, the fact that “everyone tried to be a little too greedy” explains the disappointing result against Uruguay. “Curiously, the only time the French team kept the ball while moving forward, with guys who were clean in the attacking areas. ruckit gave a nicely conducted test (concluded by Louis Bielle-Biarrey in the 73rd minute) he observes. So everyone in the group is capable. »
Risk of injury vs peak form
Calling on the “bosses” against Namibia also means taking the risk of injuries that could compromise the rest of the competition. Conversely, keeping them resting for too long means exposing yourself to a lack of form.
“After the Namibia match, we will have two weeks before the last group match against Italy. It’s obvious that a month without competition is not ideal,” explained Laurent Labit, attack coach of the XV of France, at a press conference on Sunday September 17. “What is certain is that the players need to play, agrees Julien Pierre. Injuries are part of the game, but reaching the quarter-finals without having played is unthinkable. »
An observation shared by Philippe Saint-André. For the former coach, a month between two matches is « more than enough to lose automatisms, especially at the forward level, in the scrum.” In this regard, nothing replaces a high-intensity match.
Send a message
Faced with these choices, can the possible frustration of certain replacements threaten the harmony of a group of 33 players who must live through two months of competition? “If players are demobilized while they are playing a World Cup at home, it is because they have nothing to do in the groupsays Julien Pierre. The reality is that in professional rugby, many players are used to this kind of situation. Some play little on weekends in the league but are just as useful to their team in training to provide effective opposition against the starters. »
For Philippe Saint-André, group life remains the key to success. “Galthié gave them the opportunity to play this World Cup at home. He took guys who were positive and aware of how lucky they were to be there. Everyone played (apart from Cyril Baille and Jonathan Danty who will start against Namibia, Editor’s note), so no one seems to be left out. »
Against the Namibians, the French staff will also have the possibility of making changes quickly so as not to risk demobilization. The key is the desire for the Blues to send a message to the other teams in their group and to their future opponents, after the convincing performances of the Italians (52-8) and the New Zealanders (71-3), against this same adversary.
“The All Blacks had a good matchthey scored eleven tries but it is not the objective to score more”, specifies the opening half of the XV of France Matthieu Jalibert, propelled into the starting position after the withdrawal of Romain Ntamack during the preparation phase. “ We want to play a complete match, in attack and defense, and do well what we work on in training. We are not in the comparison. We have respect for Namibia and take the match seriously. »
One thing is certain, while a quarter-final is logically looming against Ireland or South Africa, respectively first and second nations in the World Rugby rankings, the France group will need to be united and confident . The match against Namibia must serve that purpose. On the bench as on the field, everyone will have their role to play.
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France-Namibia, one-way meetings
In five matches against Namibia, the XV of France has always won. First during three test matches, in 1990, then twice in the group stage of a world championship, in 1999 and 2007.
During the 2007 match, the Blues broke their record for points at a world championship by crushing the modest “Welwitschias” in Toulouse (87-10). That day, France equaled its record for tries in a match (13). The precedent dated from a success against another African selection, Zimbabwe, in 1987 (70-12).
Poor relation of world rugby, Namibia has never won a match at a World Cup, despite six participations since 1999. France, on the contrary, has always passed the group stages, in nine participations.
#starters #replacements #delicate #management #Blues