At the final whistle, the staff of the XV of France exulted in the stands.

The English Shaun Edwards, yet so little expressive in normal times, hugged his colleagues: his defense science, so precious throughout the competition, was one of the keys to tricolor success.

That the pressure was enormous!

As expected, the last Grand Slam dating back to 2010.

After the improved victory of Ireland against Scotland (26-5), the XV of Clover had temporarily taken the lead in the standings, with three points ahead of the Blues.

No more convoluted scenario held together: it was absolutely necessary to win.

And for the title, and for the tenth Grand Slam.

The tone was set from the kick-off, with an opening "ceremony" of this long-awaited "final" of the Tournament against the best enemies of the French, with a sold-out Stade de France (79,176 spectators), heated to white, with flags of the two nations, strong fireworks, "Marseillaise" a capella and loud applause.

Lifetime Slams

It must be said that the expectation of the public was enormous: all the tickets for the meeting had been sold the day after the historic victory of the Blues against the All Blacks on November 20 (40-25).

The joy of the French who won the Grand Slam by beating England on March 19, 2022 at the Stade de France FRANCK FIFE AFP

That is to say if the public wanted it.

Seeing the victory against New Zealand had given him an appetite, an impatience of which the Blues were aware, insisting all week on the pleasure of having the support of their supporters again.

"We are happy that there is expectation. Before, we grumbled because we were not supported, because we were criticized a lot. There, we feel supported by our supporters, with an atmosphere quite incredible so as long as it lasts", had confided in the week the center Gaël Fickou, author of an essay on Saturday evening.

Public pressure but also pressure of the result.

The Blues of Fabien Galthié, after having finished their two previous tournaments, could not be satisfied with finishing once again in this place, so frustrating.

"These players have collective experience now, they have grown over the past two years. Our defeats have taught us, our second places in the competition have taught us a lot", launched Fabien Galthié on Thursday, when the composition of the club was announced. team that was going to face the XV of the Rose.

We had to win, at all costs, and without being "overwhelmed by pressure", warned Antoine Dupont on Friday, after the captain's training.

"We are well aware of that but we, me in any case, we want to write our history," added the scrum-half, eager to add the name of his country to the bottom of the Tournament trophy.

And history, they wrote it!

They are now Slamards, just like their glorious predecessors: their coach but also the manager Raphaël Ibanez and the forwards coach William Servat or even Émile Ntamack, Fabien Pelous, Olivier Magne, Guy Cambérabéro, Serge Blanco, Jacques Fouroux, Jean-Pierre Rives, Mathieu Bastareaud, Jo Maso, Abdelatif Benazzi, Pierre Berbizier...

And this title, they have it for life.

© 2022 AFP