Yet full of inexperienced players at the international level, the bench of the XV of France was of great importance to the success achieved by the XV of France in Scotland (16-20).
This 6 Nations Tournament, which marks a second era in Fabien Galthié’s mandate, is an opportunity to discover new players in the French XV jersey. Against Scotland this Saturday, we were able to follow the debut of Alexandre Roumat in blue, but also the second selection of Nolann Le Garrec and Posolo Tuilagi. Without forgetting that Sébastien Taofifenua (4 selections) or even Paul Boudehent (8 selections) are still far from being qualified as experienced players in the selection. However, it is thanks to these blues that the Blues won on the wire at Murrayfield (16-20). Trailing for almost the entire game, Fabien Galthié’s men were able to count on the enthusiasm of the newcomers to make the difference.
Led for more than an hour against Scotland, punished by high balls and disturbed in touch, the XV of France relied on an individual exploit from Louis Bielle-Biarrey and a heroic defense to hold on to this precious victory. .
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The coach also said he was satisfied with the collective performance of his replacements: “The finishers have the responsibility to win the match, as you can see. Yoram Moefana Julien Marchand, Alexandre Roumat and the others won the match”. Disappointing for several meetings, notably during the famous quarter-final of the World Cup, where it was largely dominated by the South African bomb squad, the French bench this time proved to be conquerors thanks to a certain power. Like the giant Posolo Tuilagi, the substitutes pushed the Blues forward.
The premieres of Roumat, The decisive Garrec
The Perpignan player also stood out on several rucks and on carried balls, where his size clearly made the difference. Yoram Moefana and Julien Marchand also symbolize this new power at the end of the game. For Alexandre Roumat and Nolann Le Garrec, it was a little more different. The first was used very early (49th) in the second row, although he has never started a match in this position professionally. However, in addition to bringing his knowledge and his almost two meters in touch, the Toulouse player had great activity throughout the last half hour. Le Garrec brought a lot of speed to the game and above all managed to fix the defense on several occasions to create a gap. He was also the decisive passer on the winning try, scored by Louis Bielle-Biarrey.
Tuilagi’s power was evident against Scotland
The UBB winger admitted: “The finishers brought their power and that’s what helped us swing this match.” With the new disappointing performance of Maxime Lucu and the probable withdrawals of Grégory Alldritt, Emmanuel Meafou and Thibaud Flament against Italywould it be heresy to imagine Le Garrec, Roumat or even Tuilagi starting in two weeks?