Oita (Japan) (AFP)

The suspense was thin: even before the victory of Wales against Uruguay Sunday (35-13), the XV of France began to prepare to face the XV Leek in the quarterfinals of the World Cup, Sunday in Oita.

After a day of rest with their loved ones on Saturday, the Blues have resumed training under a blue sky and in a city completely spared by the typhoon Hagibis, which sowed death and desolation in the center of the country.

The opportunity for the coach Jacques Brunel to pay tribute to the "insurance" of the Japanese face natural hazards, and turn the page of the canceled match against England for the same reason.

"I would have liked to play (England), because it's one of the big teams in the competition, it would have been nice to face them before the quarter-finals to find out where we were. at the end of this group, I am sure that the imperfections on these first matches would have been less, "said the technician.

The "imperfections", even serious deficiencies (indiscipline, defective conquest, lack of discernment in the choices of game), displayed during the successes snatched against Argentina (23-21), the United States (33-9) and Tonga (23-21) are somehow erased: a new competition begins with the quarters.

"Not many people saw us, we are still there, we have always believed in. It is a team certainly young but capable of many things, even with our imperfections," said Brunel.

- England-Wales, same fight? -

Who can somehow console themselves for the game trapped against the XV of the Rose since Wales, England's cousin with similar DNA in terms of play (disciplined defense, lethal foot play) , will disembark at Oita.

The Welsh team "has a similar profile in the sense that it plays in areas identical to those of England," admits Brunel who emphasizes however that she knew how to make the difference offensively to beat Australia (29-25 ) and Fiji (29-17). "We made it a very defensive team but it scored a lot."

Notably thanks to the boot of the opener Dan Biggar, for foot passes millimeter, wedge, for three quarters. But the French wingers (Damian Penaud, Yoann Huget, Alivereti Raka) work these high risk receptions in the "daily", ensures Brunel.

- Watch out for camp exits -

Disappointing for years, the XV of France will he make up for lost time against the winner of the last tournament of six nations - awarded the Grand Slam - and recent N.1 world?

"We have been fickle for 2 years, or 5 years, or 10 years, I do not know ... the last 2 confrontations against the Welsh, we lost 14-13 in Cardiff (in 2018) and the way we know in Paris (24-19 early February after leading 16-0) and we were not better structured than today, "argues Brunel.

The last setback at the Stade de France left a bitter taste to the French, sealed by a ball released in the end by Huget and a pass by Sebastien Vahaamahina. "We sin for lack of control," Brunel recalls. "We're at 16-0 at the half-time, Wales does not change its strategy, keeps coming out of the camp the same way except we make mistakes in our side that gives them control of the game" he regrets.

The XV of France hopes to have progressed in this area since the arrival of Fabien Galthié in the summer. Above all, he enjoyed two weeks without a match, while the Welsh had to chain two meetings in four days, including a hard battle against the Fijians who left traces.

On the other hand, the French could suffer from a lack of pace ... "Penalized (by the canceled match) or cooler, no one can say," relativizes Brunel, who planned to compensate "training that s 'match in intensity to a match'. Starting with an internal opposition on Monday.

© 2019 AFP