Paris (AFP)
Hell of Cardiff. The young Blues will take a personality test on Saturday in a Millennium Stadium where they have not won in ten years. An enclosure that is as stuffy as it is noisy with a breathtaking ceremony.
The last French victory in Wales dates back to February 26, 2010. It was on the 3rd day and, on the road to their ninth and last Grand Slam, the Blues of Marc Lièvremont had won 26-20 thanks to two interceptions of Alexis Palisson and François Trinh-Duc in the first period then success at the foot of Morgan Para (three penalties, two transformations).
Of this success, there is obviously no one left. Only the hooker of the time, William Servat, is still in Blue. Now co-trainer of conquest and specific tasks, in charge of the fray, he will no doubt have some advice to give to his protégés.
Because, the XV of France version 2020 knows it: it is not easy to win the Millennium (officially called the Principality Stadium since 2016), the most beautiful enclosure of Europe which therefore frustrates for a decade the blue ambitions.
- The bad memory of Le Roux -
"I have already played it twice, including once against the All Blacks ... It was not a very good memory (62-13 defeat in quarterfinals of the World Cup 2015, note) The other, i was a substitute against Wales so I know this stadium a little, with this atmosphere. But we haven't thought about it too much, we stay focused. We will discuss it among ourselves, the atmosphere, the noise .. . "admitted Bernard Le Roux.
The second line will find this stadium with the closed roof of almost 75,000 seats, which can transform into an incredible sounding board. A spectacle that makes even the most ferocious colossi tremble.
The pressure begins, moreover, even before entering the lawn. To get to Principality, take Westgate Street. A narrow road from Castle Street to the stadium past Arms Park, the heart of Welsh rugby.
An obligatory passage, above all, which turns into a Stations of the Cross under the chants of supporters dressed in red.
"You pass in the middle of Cardiff. You know these stories of aggression, insults ... and it happens. I saw old ladies get up and give me arms of honor," remembers the half English melee Danny Care.
"I remember, once, we were booed and there was a guy who ran out in the middle of the street and kicked the bus!", He added.
- The blow of a supporter -
The men of Fabien Galthié should not expect such a moment of animosity but the coach of the Blues will have in mind the ceremonial which, in 2014, had shaken the Blues.
In the pressure cooker of the Welsh capital, the French found themselves, in the dark, with spinning lasers, flames as tall as buildings, alone, in the midst of the din.
Not quite hell. Rather the anteroom. Hell, the Blues of 2014 lived it on the lawn, sinking 27-6 in front of the Red Devils.
"I don't know if we can prepare for it. We are trying, in any case. Fabien Galthié communicates a lot about this stage, so that we are not surprised on the day of the match. being able to train the day before on the ground, we will discover this atmosphere. The installation on the lawn will be interesting to take bearings ", tempers François Cros.
A lawn where the deafening noise sometimes prevents the instructions to pass and where the English, still them, had lost their match of 2013 (30-3) and this, from the first songs.
"It was incredible. Completely timeless. From the hymns, when I heard the fans sing, I knew we couldn't lose," said Welsh hooker Richard Hibbard.
It is still necessary to reach the lawn. In 2006, the All Blacks were thus forced to perform their famous haka in the spans of the stadium, the Welsh Federation arguing that it had to take place before the hymns to avoid giving an advantage to the teammates of Richie McCaw.
The New Zealanders had refused and finally did so in their locker room before going to crush the Welsh 45-10. An example to follow.
© 2020 AFP