2023-10-10 19:49:34
He entered among the others. Finally. He put on a blue chasuble, the color which designates the starters, confirming that he was well anticipated to be part of the starting XV, this Sunday (9 p.m.) during the quarter-final against South Africa at the Stade de France . Antoine Dupont, the captain of the Blues, therefore set foot with his teammates on the lawn of the Parc stadium in Rueil-Malmaison (Hauts-de-Seine) this Tuesday at 5:35 p.m., where the Tricolores returned to their habits after three weeks spent in Aix- in Provence (Bouches-du-Rhône) then in Lyon (Rhône).
The Toulouse scrum half, who received the green light Monday morning in Toulouse from the surgeon who operated on him on September 22 for a facial fracture, now has little time to be ready. Two training sessions with contacts to be honest, this Tuesday, which consisted of an opposition against the Espoirs of Racing 92, then the next day. Thursday will be a day off for his teammates. The set-up will take place on Friday at the Stade de France, and Saturday, the day before the clash, will be reduced to a weight training session.
Without a helmet on his head at the start of training, Antoine Dupont did not wear gloves. From the rather muscular warm-up, he pushed a charge with ball in hand, rushed straight at the opener Matthieu Jalibert and the two players collided chest to chest. The Bordeaux player remained on the ground for a short while before getting up. The Toulouse man did not flinch, standing on his two legs under the exclamations of the staff at the edge of the field. There is no doubt, in the minds of coach Fabien Galthié and his deputies, that Antoine Dupont is already capable of holding his place.
Dupont tested a helmet
The Blues scrum half then put on a helmet: “He wanted to test to see if it didn’t bother him in terms of vision,” explained attack coach Laurent Labit at a press conference. Hearing too, even if there is no noise or atmosphere like at the Stade de France. We’ll see at the end of the week. »
Shaun Edwards, the coach in charge of the Blues’ defense, spoke in his column for the Daily Mail. “What’s important is that he hasn’t lost weight,” said Shaun Edwards. He was able to have yogurt and protein shakes the day after his injury, which was vital because he is very muscular and muscle disintegrates if not fed. He doesn’t have an ounce of fat on him. »
The player was also able to work on his ground by increasing the number of races throughout last week, thus erasing the negative effects of his forced ten-day rest. Antoine Dupont should be the only change among the starters who won Italy on Friday October 6 (60-7). Hooker Julien Marchand, injured in the left thigh during the opening match against New Zealand (27-13 victory) has still not trained with the group. He stayed at the edge of the field and just stretched. The team composition will be announced this Friday at 11:30 a.m.
The probable French team against South Africa: Ramos – Penaud, Fickou, Danty, Bielle-Biarrey – (o) Jalibert, (m) Dupont (cap.) – Ollivon, Alldritt, Jelonch – Flament, Woki – Atonio , Mauvaka, Yawn.
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