Deans expects fearless French press

Updated November 08, 2012 22:42:29

Australia is preparing for France to come out firing in Sunday's (AEDT) Armistice Day Test in Paris to kick off the Wallabies' spring tour of Europe.

Coach Robbie Deans named his starting side on Thursday, having made just a handful of changes to the squad which drew with the All Blacks 18-18 in Brisbane last month.

Waratahs forwards Sekope Kepu and Kane Douglas were promoted to the run-on XV, while Rob Simmons takes Sitaleki Timani's spot on the bench and Berrick Barnes returns from injury as a reserve.

The Test kicks off just 14 hours before one of the country's major commemorations, in which France remembers the cease-fire at the end of World War I.

Deans said he expects nothing less than the best from the French, who have historically risen to the occasion in the corresponding Test.

"There is no doubt that the French will feed off that; they are a young group, and a relatively new group in the formative stages of their development," he said.

"That means they will have no fear, no pre-conceptions about what has gone before, and no doubts about their ability.

"It is a powerful cocktail, and one that we are preparing for."

New IRB trial rules for the Spring Tour allowed Deans to bulk up his bench with two additional props, meaning Reds duo James Slipper and Paddy Ryan will get their chance against France.

Should he make his debut off the bench at the Stade de France, Ryan will become the 13th new Wallaby in 12 Tests this year.

Deans' side arrived in Paris last Sunday afternoon and has had three training runs since then, but the Wallabies coach said a busy schedule meant specific preparation for Les Bleus was difficult.

"Obviously you adjust things a little bit to cater for a particular opposition but we have had the benefit of some continuity leading into this match, which hasn't always been the case for us this year," he said.

"There was a lot of good stuff to come out of our last outing, but there were also plenty of things that we could have done better.

"While the effort of the players couldn't be faulted [on that occasion], the accuracy of our execution failed us at times, and will need to be better for the challenges ahead if we are to achieve the consistency of performance we are seeking."

With injured stars Digby Ioane (knee), David Pocock (knee), Ben Alexander (wrist) and Timani (lower back) all training with the squad this week, Deans said he will soon be spoilt for choice.

"Certainly we have more competition for places now than we have had at times previously, and that's only going to help drive standards and performance," he said.

"The playing group are excited and they are looking forward to the game this weekend.

"The atmosphere at the Stade de France is always fantastic and the crowd vociferous: it's a great place to play the game, and a magnificent experience that none of the players who are fortunate enough to put on a jersey on the weekend will ever forget."

Wallabies side (15-1): Mike Harris, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Ben Tapuai, Pat McCabe, Nick Cummins, Kurtley Beale, Nick Phipps, Wycliff Palu, Michael Hooper, Dave Dennis, Nathan Sharpe (c), Kane Douglas, Sekope Kepu, Tatafu Polota Nau, Benn Robinson

Reserves: Stephen Moore, James Slipper, Paddy Ryan, Rob Simmons, Radike Samo, Liam Gill, Brett Sheehan, Berrick Barnes.

Tags: rugby-union, sport, france, australia

First posted November 08, 2012 19:18:45

View the original article here

England wins thriller against French

Updated March 12, 2012 08:32:11

England stunned hosts France with a thrilling 24-22 away victory to erase any hopes the French had of winning the Six Nations title.

The visitors outscored the French by three tries to one as they became the first team to win at Stade de France in the Six Nations since their compatriots prevailed in 2008.

England had an early chance to go over but it fell short when South African-born lock Mouritz Botha knocked on and France cleared.

The hosts too had an early chance to break the deadlock but Lionel Beauxis, starting for the first time since 2009, saw his drop goal effort fall woefully short of the target.

His half-back partner Julien Dupuy had another chance to put the French ahead in the eighth minute after England was penalised, but the Stade Francais half-back's penalty drifted wide of the post.

But this French dominance came to nothing as a loose pass by Dimitry Szarzewski was picked up by Manu Tuilagi, who sped down the left and outpaced Aurelien Rougerie to touch down in the corner for his fifth try.

Owen Farrell converted brilliantly from the touchline to make it 7-0.

Beauxis got France on the board with a penalty in the 17th minute but it was barely able to enjoy that when it conceded another try.

A brilliant run by England number eight Ben Morgan carved open the French defence and a superb off-load with the back of his hand to Ben Foden saw the full-back tackled by Vincent Clerc but his momentum carried him over the line.

Farrell converted for 14-3.

France was all at sea especially Beauxis and fortunate not to go further behind when the previously foot-perfect Farrell saw a penalty from in front of the posts cannon back off one of them.

The home side reduced the deficit with a Dupuy penalty just after the half-hour mark, as Foden was penalised for not calling for a mark inside his 22 when tackled by Rougerie and then failing to release the ball.

But the French were hit by a further blow in the 37th minute as Clerc had to go off with his lower left arm strapped and was replaced by Maxime Mermoz.

Despite the apparent superiority of the English it was France who went off for half-time boosted by Beauxis landing a long-range penalty to leave it only five points adrift at 9-14.

Farrell made it 17-9 in the 50th minute for a deliberate knock-on and at that point coach Philippe Saint-Andre decided it was time to make sweeping changes sending on three replacements, including Morgan Parra for the struggling Dupuy.

Referee Alain Rolland was not so lenient when England was penalised for a deliberate knock on as he sin-binned Charlie Sharples, who had only come in for his first start on Saturday when David Strettle failed to recover from a chest injury.

Even with the one man advantage the French were unable to make any inroads into the England lead, though, just after Sharples returned, Parra converted a penalty to make it 17-12.

English nerves frayed further when Beauxis landed a long-range penalty from just inside England territory to leave France just two points adrift with near on 10 minutes remaining.

But England hit back in style with its third try as Tom Croft sent Rougerie the wrong way and broke one tackle to touch down. Farrell converted to make it 24-15.

Finally France crossed the try line to make it a tension-filled last five minutes as Wesley Fofana went over in the corner for his fourth try in as many matches after being fed by Parra, who then converted from the touchline.

The French went roaring back into the English half spearheaded by Rougerie but replacement Francois Trinh-Duc's effort at a drop goal fell short and England had held on by the skin of its teeth.

AFP

Tags: sport, rugby-union, france

First posted March 12, 2012 08:05:23

View the original article here

French Rugby Coach Plans to Copy All Blacks

French rugby player's father joins brawl

Updated November 30, 2011 12:44:19

The father of French international Imanol Harinordoquy brought the Top 14 Basque derby between Biarritz and Bayonne to a halt after running onto the pitch to defend his son.

Harinordoquy's father came down from the stands in the sixth minute of the clash and faced up to Bayonne flanker Jean-Jo Marmouyet after his son got involved in a punch-up behind the play.

Harinordoquy senior's admirable sense of family loyalty was brought to an abrupt end by Bayonne fly half Benjamin Boyet, who tackled him to the ground before Biarritz hooker Benoit August stepped in to restore order.

Christian Gajan, Bayonne's director of rugby, was outraged by Harinordoquy's father's behaviour.

"I find his behaviour deplorable that he came onto the pitch to defend his son by boxing with (Jean-Jo) Marmouyet at the beginning of the match," he said.

"You could have been mistaken for believing it was a youth match between two local villages, it was a scandalous episode."

Harinordoquy junior - who is known as one of the tougher customers in the sport and a veteran of three World Cups - opted not to comment.

AFP

Tags: rugby-union, sport, france, australia

First posted November 30, 2011 12:37:21

View the original article here

French let NZ wear black

Updated October 21, 2011 22:12:58

French rugby fans may have to tweak traditional chants of 'Allez Les Bleus' at Eden Park on Sunday after their team manager, in a magnanimous gesture towards New Zealand, opted to play in white to allow their World Cup final opponent to wear the traditional black.

France won the toss for the final but team manager Jo Maser opted not to ruffle the All Blacks' feathers, though the decision raised a few eyebrows within the team, which has taken a pummelling from local media.

In a match between the two sides at the 2007 World Cup, France won the toss and decided to play in blue, forcing New Zealand to wear grey shirts.

France won the quarter-final 20-18 before being knocked out by England in the semi-finals.

"That's Jo Maso's elegance," France coach Marc Lievremont said.

"Some players regret it and they would have wanted to deprive them of their preferred colour.

"But we will keep the same spirit whether we play in blue or white.

"We could have played in pink or purple, it would have been France v New Zealand just the same."

Hooker William Servat said he would rather Maso had made New Zealand change.

"I would have preferred to play in blue, that's for sure. These are the colours of my country," Servat said.

France has been heavily criticised by the local media, the latest punch coming from The New Zealand Herald.

In a column, former All Blacks forward Wayne Shelford wrote that New Zealand should "beware French skullduggery" such as eye-gouging.

"Maybe we would have preferred to play in blue after the digs they have been making at us," flanker Julien Bonnaire said.

Reuters

Tags: rugby-union-world-cup, rugby-union, sport, new-zealand, france

First posted October 21, 2011 22:04:52

View the original article here

All Blacks wary of unpredictable French

Updated October 21, 2011 18:25:34

The All Blacks remain wary of an inconsistent France side finding its form when the two sides lock horns in Sunday's World Cup final in Auckland.

New Zealand was eliminated from the 1999 and 2007 World Cups by French sides not fancied to topple the then-favourite, and coach Graham Henry has vowed that there will be no complacency this time around.

"This French team, we're not sure who's going to turn up, quite frankly," Henry said in reference to France's patchy form after it was beaten twice in the pool stage, by the All Blacks and Tonga.

"So we've got to prepare that they're going to be the best in the world. They've certainly got the individuals to do that, it's just whether they can produce that as a side.

"All the word is that they've prepared well and they're very focused and they're enjoying the underdog tag.

"They feel that they're not being considered in this final by a lot of people. We don't think that.

"We think they're a very good rugby team."

Henry has named an unchanged starting XV from the one that comprehensively beat Australia 20-6 in the semi-final, with the only change in the matchday 22 seeing Adam Thomson come in for Victor Vito on the replacements' bench.

France coach Marc Lievremont, whose authority was undermined when it was announced in August that Philippe Saint-Andre would take over as coach at the end of the World Cup, has had to battle to get his team to the final.

Public criticism of his players for their on-field failings matched Lievremont's equally outspoken condemnation of certain squad members for their off-field partying after their difficult 9-8 victory over 14-man Wales in the semi-final.

Sandwiched in between was an impressive quarter-final victory over Six Nations rival England, in which the French clicked and built up a 16-0 lead at half-time that might just have sent more than a few shudders down New Zealand spines.

"We are feeling how much of a challenge this will be," France forwards coach Didier Retiere said.

"We saw the match against Australia and we know they (New Zealand) will be strong in their scrummaging and it will be a great challenge.

"I don't think we have put our best foot forward and we hope to do that this weekend.

"But we also know what to expect.

"We know it will be a huge match.

"We must remain aggressive.

"That is really the size of the challenge we are facing.

"We need to put in our best performance and it is an issue of working together as a team in different areas."

All Blacks centre Ma'a Nonu insisted, however, that tags of favourites or underdogs would count for little come Sunday.

"History tells about the French side that's played the All Blacks in the last 24 years, so it's whoever turns up on the night," Nonu said.

"They've been slammed, been underrated and that's when the French play their best rugby, when their backs are against the wall.

However, Nonu added: "I think this is probably our best chance (to win the World Cup) and we want to take it."

AFP

Tags: rugby-union-world-cup, rugby-union, sport, new-zealand, france

First posted October 21, 2011 12:52:53

View the original article here