Les Bleus drafts, why is it perfect before the All Blacks?

The staff of the XV of France could have warned us before the kick-off against Georgia. As well as the spectators who had seen Ireland – New Zealand on Saturday afternoon. A “think about putting water on the back of your neck” would not have been too much. Because, sometimes, this Sunday, the difference in level has sharpened a little between the two meetings. The Blues have made a new scramble copy to the
Matmut Atlantic despite the final score (41-15). The second in two weeks after Argentina. And all this six days to challenge the All Blacks at the Stade de France.

We could therefore very seriously start to shake the stumps. Even more with New Zealanders, who will land in the capital, touched in their pride after their defeat in Dublin. Well no ! Why ? Because the French are never as good as in this position of outsider! In the one where you have to create the feat that nobody expects. So you know what, we will do as Fabien Galthié, quickly evacuate this very average copy against the Georgians, retain “the victory, the score and a few sequences”, says the boss of the Blues, and quickly dive into this match: “We can now talk about it, go ahead ”, as the coach of the XV of France would say.

Still the best in the game …

Already, rugbyly, the French will have one more week together. As Galthié recalled, it will not be too much for a team which “has played two games in nine months”. For him, the summer tour was quite another thing. And he is not wrong. “There is still a lot to review, admits the captain Antoine Dupont, I think we lose too many balls when we could have come off the score faster ”against Georgia. “We know that we will have to be more precise in our game because today, we had difficulty finding ourselves where we wanted to be and we did not manage to keep the right tempo throughout the match”, admits Fabien Galthié. Result of the races after two matches in this autumn tour, France “does not master its rugby as well as in previous years”, according to scrum half Maxime Lucu.

But, there was all the same better already compared to Argentina. First, the famous Jalibert-Ntamack pair. The Bordelais scored a try in the middle of a sober performance but without a big mistake while the Toulousain managed a very good match after his premature exit against the Pumas. Available, valiant, sharp and fair to the foot and hand, he has shown that he can hold the road in the center. He even finished the match at the opening with the repositioning of Jalibert at the back in the last half hour. Then, Fabien Galthié can also remember the performance of his “big” and when we see the match of the Irish pack to shake the All Blacks, it will seriously help him in a few days.

Galthié is already preparing the heads

But of course, the manager of the Blues knows that it will be necessary above all to be ready in the heads vis-a-vis “the best team in the world”. Moreover, he did not fail to talk about it this Sunday:

“The word worried (referring to a question from a journalist) is not the right one when you are about to play such a game. You have to have confidence. You know when you have a team with an average age of 25, I think you are quickly moved when it comes to challenging New Zealand. You have only one desire, it is to put yourself in front of you and to sublimate yourself! “

Well, of course, it’s always easier said than done, even if he knows better than everyone that it’s possible. And his speech already seems to have effect: “Yes, we are ready to play them”, launches François Cros.

We will know very quickly anyway if the promise is followed by action next Saturday at the Stade de France. In any case, “it’s super motivating” for Antoine Dupont. The captain of the Blues, will “really give everything in this match” that he is so “anxious” to play. For the rest, and as usual when the French face the All Blacks, we will trust 300% to the french flair. Even if he is sometimes missing. The Blues are convinced, if they can be more precise, “they have players with enormous qualities” to win, says Maxime Lucu. But hey, the best argument is Fabien Galthié who has it: “There is everything to gain in this nice challenge! “And it is always in this position that the French are the best …


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