For French rugby, the famine looks like a "dixette".
The Blues have in fact not won the Six Nations Tournament since their grand slam in 2010. A feat that marked the beginning of an inexorable decline of the XV of France in this prestigious annual competition, France even finishing in the sixth and last position in 2013.
The French rugby players clearly raised their heads during the last edition since they finished first tied with the English, crowned winners of the Tournament thanks to a better difference between the points scored and conceded.
An improvement which coincided with the arrival, at the head of the Blues, of the new sports staff led by Fabien Galthié, followed by a significant renewal of the group of players, largely rejuvenated.
The recipe worked since the Blues signed, in 2020, a record of 8 wins and 2 losses which allowed them to climb back to 4th place in the world rankings, behind South Africa, England and New Zealand. .
Now they want those results to translate into a title in the Six Nations Tournament.
And the first stage is on Saturday February 6 against Italy, a team in poor shape which is currently in 14th place in the world ranking.
"Our goal is to win matches and titles. It's an immediate and permanent goal. At each meeting, we have the same goal: to win the match that is proposed to us, then to win the series of matches that awaits us. ", Fabien Galthié explained last week at a press conference.
The Six Nations Tournament formula means that the number of home and away matches changes every year.
The French had played three games at home last year, for as many victories, and had made two trips.
The 2021 edition is proving to be more difficult because they will play three times away: after Italy on Saturday February 6, in Rome, they will challenge two formidable opponents, Ireland and then England.
Called "the crunch", the shock against the English, scheduled for March 13 for the 4th day of the Tournament, promises to be particularly crisp this year.
The Blues had beaten last year England (24-17), vice-champion of the world, in Paris.
And they came very close to victory last December in London in the Fall Cup final, losing just 19-22 on a "golden penalty" scored by England opener Owen Farrell. during extra time.
A very strict health protocol
This great performance of the Blues in this new competition, created to compensate for the cancellation in 2020 of the spring and autumn tours due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was all the more noticed as the French group included many new players.
Most of the team's executives, forced to stay with their respective clubs, were unable to compete in the final against England.
Their absences had also inspired sarcastic comments to several English journalists, who did not believe too much in this "B team" and spoke of a "French farce".
After the short defeat of the Blues, the French third line Cameron Woki had proudly responded to them by highlighting "French strength".
These selection constraints were not repeated for this edition of the Tournament.
Fabien Galthié prepared this meeting with a group of players in which Charles Ollivon, captain of the Blues, the sparkling scrum half Antoine Dupont or the precious second row Bernard Le Roux are back.
Two important injuries are still missing, the opener Romain Ntamack and the three-quarter center Virimi Vakatawa.
🚨 𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐑𝐄 𝐗𝐕 𝐃𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 🚨
🇮🇹🇫🇷 Discover the first composition of #XVdeFrance in 2021!
The Blues of @FGalthie & @ibanez_raphael face Italy (@Federugby) in the opening of @SixNationsRugby!
See you on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. on @ France2tv! #NeFaisonsXV pic.twitter.com/tPEv6BpEhD
- France Rugby (@FranceRugby) February 4, 2021
In the space of a year, the coach of the Blues has already succeeded in his bet to improve the image of the France team, greatly tarnished during the previous decade.
In an interview with Figaro, Bernard Laporte, president of the French Rugby Federation (FFR), is delighted with the state of mind displayed by "a passionate team, who is hungry, who wets the jersey. The young people are not very experienced but they throw themselves into the battle with a lot of enthusiasm. That's what we want, quite simply. Continue to applaud a French team that gives us satisfaction. They want to write their history, to win the Six Nations Tournament. So I tell them 'go ahead, it's time…' "
Beyond the final result, the holding of this edition of the Tournament is a relief for the FFR and the five other federations which, despite empty stadiums, will be able to count on essential television rights for their finances.
The federations have long feared a postponement or cancellation due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last season already, matches had been postponed to the fall, France notably playing at the end of October a meeting with Ireland initially scheduled for March 8.
To try to prevent this scenario from repeating itself, a very strict sanitary protocol must be followed by the participating teams.
And the France group has thus been reduced to 31 players, instead of 42, in order to limit the risks of contamination during this competition which lasts for six weeks.
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