Oita (Japan) (AFP)
The World Cup 2023 is already tomorrow: the XV of France is four years ahead of him to capitalize on the promises born in Japan, under the leadership of Fabien Galthie, current assistant and future coach who will face the same challenges as his predecessors.
Once is not custom, the Blues will be able to work in continuity to try, at the next World Cup organized in France, to rally at least the last square after failing for the second time rank before this stage, Sunday in Oita (South of Japan) facing Wales (20-19).
Galthié, in charge of the offensive animation during the World Cup, will be supported by two members of the current staff, who accompanied him to strengthen the management this summer, Laurent Labit (back) and Thibault Giroud (director of performance).
They will be joined by William Servat (forward), Karim Ghezal (key) while waiting for the blur around the arrival of the Englishman Shaun Edwards (defense) to be cleared up.
The future of the XV of France, him, seems a little less gloomy after that before this World Cup.
- A base and structures -
He has Jefferson Poirot (26), Antoine Dupont (22), Romain Ntamack (20), Grégory Alldritt (22), Damian Penaud (23), Camille Chat (23), Charles Ollivon (26) ) or Virimi Vakatawa (27), who contested their first World Cup, with a solid base on which to build.
Which should be reinforced by other promising young shoots (Bamba, Barassi, Carbonel, Jalibert, Julien Marchand, Couilloud, Lambey ...), for some of the under-20 world champions in 2018 and 2019.
Moreover, in just four months under Galthie, the Blues have progressed. "We have touched a high-level preparation, physically and in our structures (game) .We are much cleaner," said Poirot, whose name circulates to take captaincy after the international retirement of Guilhem Guirado.
They must continue in this way. "I am convinced that if the whole group adheres to the game plan, stays in our structures, is precise and surgical, then the future of the France team will be positive. do at this World Cup but you have to go further.There is a lot of work to be more consistent, precise and rigorous for 80 minutes, "said Camille Lopez.
- Same challenges -
The players have touched the high level, consisting of a sum of details and "marginal gains" that can be acquired only through work and repetition of the famous "skills" (workshops of individual technique).
"If there is one lesson to be learned, for our young boys, it's every day, in their club and for their club, to train a little harder," said Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, coach of the backs .
Poirot is aware of this: "I think it may be worth doing a lot more effort on a daily basis, 10-15 minutes in addition to + rab + (after training), I do not think I'm the only one (to think so). "
A chorus already heard, in other mouths, after the Mondial-2015. From a collective point of view, Galthie's challenge will also be the same as that of his predecessors: working in continuity, by his choices (Brunel has tested ten hinges in 23 games) and despite the injuries that will inevitably amputate its workforce.
The fault partly to a schedule (Top 14 and European competitions) energy-consuming and destructive, snake sea French rugby that try to bury the Federation and the League definitively: they signed a new convention for the period 2018-2023 to improve even more the conditions of preparation of the internationals with a view to the great objective 2023.
"Tomorrow, we must put these young people who have a lot of talent, such as Antoine (Dupont) or Romain (Ntamack), in the best conditions.You must protect them, they can not play thirty games per season" Yoann Huget advance.
The future will tell if the good intentions will resist, finally, the tests of the seasons and the relations between frameworks of the clubs and the XV of France.
© 2019 AFP