Marcoussis (France) (AFP)

A test match or a test match?

More than seven months after their last match, the Blues found Marcoussis to prepare for the match against Wales on Saturday, at the heart of an early season thwarted by the pandemic and internal quarrels.

Laurent Labit, coach of the attack of the XV of France, assures it: this meeting against the Welsh is not "a preparation match" but the pandemic has passed there to cut off the blue momentum, stopped by a defeat in Scotland (28-17) in March.

But what face will the Blues show on the lawn of the Stade de France, 230 days later?

"The truth will be on the pitch on Saturday. I hope I'm ready. We're a team, we're building confidence. I think we're ready for the challenge on Saturday. We had a good preparation, we'll see, "said hooker Julien Marchand.

While waiting for an answer, "there is no fog in Marcoussis, everything is clear for us", promised coach Fabien Galthié.

The pandemic has however put a big kick in the 2020 calendar, putting the Six Nations Tournament on hiatus before canceling the summer tours.

Result: the autumnal window has been extended and the LNR and the FFR have sunk into a conflict over the number of matches and the release of internationals.

Not ideal for preparing a mini-World Cup of six matches and seven weeks since, after Wales, the Blues will face Ireland, to complete the Tournament, and will embark on the Autumn Nations Cup with the Scotland, Italy and Fiji.

Before ending this marathon with a classification match, against a team from the pool of England, Ireland ... and Wales.

- "No fog in Marcoussis" -

"It's tricky, it's been seven months, casually, we haven't met. But the game plans haven't changed too much. We just have to re-imbibe it", a recognized the third Toulouse line François Cros.

Wales has been together for two weeks to prepare for this recovery.

The Blues, who had only one collective session "at high intensity", Wednesday on the eve of the announcement of the list of 28, they arrived with disparate levels of form.

"The performance unit sends us weekly data on what they do in the club. We follow them. We know that some have played in the final stages of the European Cup or European Challenge, the finals. We see that they are work well. And the training on Wednesday showed us that they were in great shape. Frankly, I had the impression to find them only one week after leaving them ", assured Karim Ghezal, co-trainer of the conquest.

The Parisian Gaël Fickou (3 matches, 240 minutes) however saw his preparation disrupted by the pandemic, the French Stadium having had two meetings postponed after more than twenty positive cases in the workforce.

With seven matches each, Toulouse's Romain Ntamack (524 minutes) and Antoine Dupont (478 minutes), European semi-finalists, have played a lot.

Unlike the Racing 92 winger Teddy Thomas who, between a tear in a thigh and poor shape, had to settle for two matches (160 minutes).

"We have GPS data so it's easy to quantify it and see where we are. The reports are very good, neither too much above nor too much below. We are really good, like during the Tournament, I think. We think we are ready, we train to be physically ready ", tempers the center of Montpellier Arthur Vincent.

Answer Saturday.

© 2020 AFP