Now or never for favourites France as Rugby World Cup hosts

PARIS – There used to be a cliche about France claiming “you never knew what French team would turn up”, but in the build-up to this Rugby World Cup, that remark has been consigned to the past.

Since former captain Fabien Galthie took over as head coach after the last edition in Japan four years ago, one thing has been consistent with Les Bleus – they win.

They have tasted defeat just eight times in 40 fixtures during Galthie’s tenure.

They were unbeaten in 2022, including a first Six Nations Grand Slam in more than a decade and statement victories over Australia and World Cup holders South Africa.

France, three-time runners-up, might be below Ireland and the Springboks in the world rankings, but they have seldom been in such good form before a tilt at the Webb Ellis Cup.

“We’ve known for three years that the World Cup starts for us on Sept 8 against the All Blacks,” Galthie said, in reference to his team’s preparations.

When he was first named boss, Galthie said his aim was to increase the number of caps for a host of players, win games and then win titles.

Captain and talisman Antoine Dupont is set to make his 50th test appearance against the All Blacks, more than half of those games coming under Galthie.

“We’ve got close to what we wanted to do,” Galthie added. “Which was to give as much collective experience as possible to players, work as a squad, to allow us to develop a depth of three players in each position.

“The motto was ‘wherever, whoever, whenever’. We prepared with that vision in mind and to start the competition with a lot of ambition.”

France’s build-up to a first home World Cup since 2007 has included camps in Monaco, Capbreton and at their headquarters to the south of Paris, intertwined with two Tests against Scotland – one win apiece – before victories over Fiji and the Wallabies.

“We put in place, with the players and staff, the best preparation possible,” Galthie said. “We left nothing to luck. Often the secret to winning is in the details.

“We’re also lucky to be in France, to be able to recover properly, the players have been able to rest up with their families at home. It was perfect as other teams travelled, spent time in airports, hotels, far from their families with jet lag. It hasn’t been the case for us.”

One cog in the works could be the pressure surrounding the side – France as a nation has caught the World Cup buzz.

Trams in Toulouse have been adorned with tournament posters, a giant photo of scrum half Dupont has appeared near the Louvre museum and tickets for games – including the eagerly anticipated opener with New Zealand – have been sold out for months.

“We’re all thinking about it,” Dupont said over the weekend.

“We’ve all turned our minds to that, we all want to be there.

“But despite the event, we have to be conscious of how lucky we are to play games like that, to play in competitions like that with crowds of that size.” AFP