Latest news with #Galthie
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Record-breaking Six Nations puts France at Springboks' door
France's crowning as this season's Six Nations champions underlined their status as genuine contenders to South Africa's global supremacy thanks to an efficient gameplan, generational individual talents and some record-setting performances. The French produced a 20-minute second-half burst to cruise past Scotland in Paris on Saturday for their second championship since the head coach Fabien Galthie took over in late 2019. After thrashing Wales in their opener, Les Bleus overcame a one-point loss at England in round two to trounce Italy and sweep past holders Ireland in Dublin to set up the decider at the Stade de France. France's success was mastered thanks to a best-ever try count in the tournament, Thomas Ramos' accurate goal-kicking and the unorthodox use of seven forwards on the substitutes' bench balancing brutal power and lightning speed out wide. "The game in Ireland was, I feel, the stand-out match from the past six years," Galthie told reporters. "They were on to a Grand Slam, we were on our journey, everything was possible. "This (Scotland) game was a final and now we're building." The title was secured even in the absence of scrum-half Antoine Dupont, who suffered a serious knee injury after just half an hour of the victory in Dublin and was in crutches in the stand for the win over Scotland. Maxime Lucu stood in for the talisman at half-back while No 8 Gregory Alldritt captained the team against Scotland. Alldritt was part of a dominant pack, as Galthie chose to name almost a whole new set of forwards on the bench, as first done so by the Springboks in 2023. "We'll still work hard to win, not just leave our mark on history, but leave our mark on ourselves," Alldritt said. "We have a long-term vision as players," he added. - 'Stacked' - France scored a record 30 touchdowns during the tournament, winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey crossing eight times in five games and full-back Ramos leapfrogging Frederic Michalak as his country's all-time leading points scorer. "We can still improve, that's for sure, mainly to recycle ball quicker," Ramos said. "If we score so many tries, so many points, everyone enjoys it and we players, too," the 29-year-old added. Next up for Galthie's squad is a three-Test series in New Zealand in July, although the former France scrum-half and captain is likely to take a second-string side to the southern hemisphere. Players involved in June 28's Top 14 final will not be involved and Galthie has hinted at resting a string of first-choice players, including Alldritt and Ramos. Centre Yoram Moefana played all of the five games in the Six Nations success, but could miss the tour as his Bordeaux-Begles side are contenders for the French league title. Moefana grew up on the French Polynesian territory of Wallis and Futuna in the south Pacific, a four-hour flight from New Zealand. "The future will tell," Moefana said. "If I'm lucky enough to go, we know New Zealand are a great team, every player wants to play big teams. "But for the end of this season I'll concentrate more on Bordeaux-Begles." After the trip south, France host three November internationals including a chance of revenge for the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to double champions South Africa and an opportunity for a bragging rights two years out from the showpiece event in Australia. "We have a stacked year," Alldritt said. "With a tour in New Zealand and a big November. "The team are already motivated to win more games and more titles." iwd/lp
Japan Times
16-03-2025
- Sport
- Japan Times
Record-breaking France clinches Six Nations title with Scotland win
France claimed its seventh Six Nations trophy in a record-strewn 35-16 victory over Scotland on Saturday, shaking off the runner-up tag on a crisp evening at the Stade de France. Les Bleus matched England's number of titles since Italy joined the championship in 2000 and did so in style, scoring 30 tries in a pulsating campaign to make sure they would not end up as runners-up for the fifth time in six years. Their only defeat came against England at Twickenham, but Fabien Galthie's men put that 26-25 loss behind them by humiliating Italy before crushing Ireland despite losing their talismanic captain Antoine Dupont through injury. The hosts turned on the gas after the interval on Saturday, and prevailed through tries by Yoram Moefana (2), Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Thomas Ramos, who kicked the other points to become came France's all-time top points scorer. Scotland made a game of it and scored a try through Darcy Graham with Finn Russell kicking the side's other points. France, which gave Galthie his second title after the 2022 Six Nations since he took charge in 2020, finished on 21 points with England second. Les Bleus, who lost in the 2023 World Cup quarterfinals against South Africa 29-28 on home soil, were relieved after two years without a title despite playing some of their best rugby for years. "It's a relief to win after two years seeing the others lift trophies," said Ramos. "There was a lot of stress at the beginning of the game. The halftime break did us good." Galthie said France was not expecting such a challenge from Scotland. "It was a very difficult game, it's not a scenario we had anticipated. But the team reacted well and we won scoring four tries again," he said. Scotland coach Gregor Townsend believes his team has a better future after this year's campaign. "We created things and the effort was there until the 80th minute," he said. "There's a lot to be proud of and lot to build on, our best moments came in defeats, against England and France." It was party time at the Stade de France, but Les Bleus only really got into their groove after the break, relying again on forward power to finish off a combative but limited Scotland team. Dupont, who ruptured his ACL against Ireland, stayed with the squad and the mercurial scrumhalf received the loudest cheers as he watched from the stands. France started well. Gael Fickou tore through the middle and set up fellow center Moefana for a try between the posts while Scotland was down to 14 after Jamie Ritchie was shown a yellow card. France, however, suffered a blow when Peato Mauvaka was sin-binned for head-butting Ben White and the hooker looked relieved when he heard the sanction was not upgraded to a red card. Ramos slotted a penalty from under the sticks to beat Frederic Michalak's record of 436 points scored for France and give the team a 13-3 lead. He now has 450 to his name. The visitors reduced the arrears when Graham touched down after collecting Russell's inside ball. The flyhalf converted and added a penalty to level the scores as French prop Jean-Baptiste Gros was sent off for 10 minutes. Ramos, however, restored a slim advantage with a penalty on the stroke of halftime before giving away possession with a poor kick. Scotland's Tom Jordan went over after a superb Blair Kinghorn break but the try was ruled out by the TMO as the fullback was ruled to be in touch. Bielle-Biarrey scored a championship record eighth try in a single campaign after being set up by Romain Ntamack who had sprinted through the defense. Then came the bomb squad as Galthie sent five forwards on from the bench and Scotland cracked. Ramos crossed the whitewash after another devastating rolling maul and Moefana, who bulldozed past Russell after Fickou's offload, claimed the bonus-point try.
Reuters
16-03-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Heartbreaks shaped France's Six Nations triumph, says coach Galthie
PARIS, March 16 (Reuters) - France's heartbreaking defeat in the 2023 World Cup quarter-finals and last year's Six Nations runners-up spot shaped their success in this year's tournament, head coach Fabien Galthie said on Saturday. Les Bleus turned on the power after a shaky first half to beat Scotland 35-16 and wrap up their first Six Nations title since 2022, beating several records on a festive Parisian night. "I don't know if it makes up for the World Cup (elimination), but we're very happy to win this trophy," centre Yoram Moefana said, referring to France's 29-28 defeat against South Africa on home soil at the last World Cup. Moefana scored two tries with Thomas Ramos and Louis Bielle-Biarrey adding one each as France prevailed with a bonus point to finish one point ahead of England with a much better points difference and a record 30 tries in the campaign. Galthie, who has transformed the squad since taking over in 2020, believes that tough times have helped them grow. "We are not putting anything behind, we're keeping the good, and the bad memories," the former France captain told a press conference. "This team are much better than in 2023, and better than last year." France had finished second in the Six Nations four times in five years and they could have come up just short once again after losing 26-25 to England at Twickenham after wasting a string of try chances in the first half. Les Bleus, however, bounced back by destroying Italy before a pivotal game against Grand Slam chasing Ireland, who they beat 42-27 at the Aviva Stadium despite losing the talisman Antoine Dupont to a season-ending knee injury. "We have been building a squad who are able to react in chaotic situations like they did after the England game and during the Ireland match," said Galthie. "The game against Ireland was pivotal because they were playing for the Grand Slam and we were playing to stay in contention." France kept their composure and with a 7-1 bench, reminiscent of South Africa's in their World Cup triumph two years ago, they used their forward power to crush Ireland and set up a decider against Scotland. On Saturday, they overcame the pressure on them to deliver in a fine second half. "The pressure crept up on us," Galthie said. "We prepared without pressure but then we got tense and Scotland were playing freely, with nothing in mind but playing good rugby." It all went France's way eventually, and they are now hungry for more. "All we wanted was to see Antoine Dupont lift the trophy," said captain Gregory Alldritt. "It's done. We've had difficult moments in the past. To say that it's behind us we'll have to wait for (the) 2027 (World Cup). See you next year, we want more."
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Three takeaways after France beat Scotland for the Six Nations title
France beat Scotland 35-16 at the Stade de France on Saturday to become Six Nations champions. AFP Sport looks at three takeaways from the French team's decisive win that sealed a first championship title since 2022. - Record setters - Thomas Ramos scored a try and kicked three penalties and three conversions to take his Test match tally from 430 points to 450. It installed Ramos as France's record point scorer, the Toulouse full-back surpassing Frederic Michalak's previous France best of 436. Winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey has been directly involved in 13 tries overall in this Six Nations (eight tries, five assists), becoming the first player to reach double figures for try involvements in a single edition of the championship. Bielle-Biarrey's record eighth try against the Scots moved him ahead of Ireland's Jacob Stockdale, who scored seven tries in the 2018 championship. He becomes only the third player to have scored in all five rounds of a campaign after France's Philippe Bernat-Salles in 2001 and England's Tommy Freeman in this edition. There was no such luck for fellow winger Damian Penaud, however, who is still level with Serge Blanco as Les Bleus' all-time top try scorer in Test rugby (38). France also went into the match having scored 26 tries. The four touchdowns on Saturday saw them finish on 30, bettering England's best of 29 scored when they won the 2001 Six Nations title. - 7-1 split, the new bench - Coach Fabien Galthie gave his 'Bomb Squad' a successful run-out against Italy (73-23), something that was confirmed in a record score over Ireland (42-27). Echoing Rassie Erasmus' tactic with the two-time world champion Springboks, Galthie plumped for a split of seven forwards and just one back on the bench. When skipper Antoine Dupont went off injured in the first-half against Ireland, Maxime Lucu took his place, but flanker Oscar Jegou was forced to play -- very successfully -- in the centre. "It's simply a performance-based team selection," Galthie said. Against Scotland, Galthie made six forward changes within the first five minutes of the second-half, and the replacements made their game time count, the giant Emmanuel Meafou at the heart of a maul that rolled 15 metres into Scottish territory and eventually saw Ramos cross for a try. - Lions contenders - Full-back Blair Kinghorn and fly-half Finn Russell underlined their credentials as likely shoo-ins for inclusion in the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia in the summer. Kinghorn has been in consummate form for Toulouse and has carried that over to the international arena. A gifted attacker, he enjoyed one scything run to split a ragged French defence. He ends the tournament in the knowledge that he carried more than any other Scotland player in an edition of the Six Nations. Russell provided a perfect inside pass for Darcy Graham's try and was instrumental in trying to get his side back into the game as it slipped away in the second-half. Russell is many pundits' choice as starting Lions fly-half and coach Andy Farrell will no doubt have him on the plane, with competition expected from the Ireland pair of Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley, and English veteran George Ford. lp/iwd
The Independent
14-03-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Ireland and England must avoid Six Nations trap to set up thrilling finale
Spare a thought for the logistics team at the Six Nations, for which this has not been an easy week. In their pre-tournament plotting and planning, this would surely have been both a dream and nightmare scenario: a 'Super Saturday' where each and every game contains a title contender, the 2025 men's champions not known until the Bells of Notre-Dame chime 11 times. The smart money would be of a straightforward Stade de France lifting of the trophy after France dispatch Scotland in Paris, but things are seldom that simple in this championship. Take care of business themselves and Ireland and England could face an anxious wait, the Principality Stadium on hold to host a hoisting if required, while an Irish three-peat would see an 'opulent palazzo' employed to give a sense of ceremony to the medal presentation. With simultaneous kick-offs commercially unpalatable given the television revenue that would be missed out on, this is about as good as it gets. It will take some going to match the denouement of a decade ago, when points difference played a significant part in generating an average tally of 73 points per game, but with Ireland and England in all likelihood needing bonus points, a day of thrills could well be in store. One dare not get ahead of oneself but the pressure will most certainly be piled on France if England, Ireland or both nudge ahead earlier in the day. Already, a side that has not won as much as they should have over the last half-a-decade will be feeling a weight of expectation. One title and a desperately disappointing – for many reasons – last-eight exit from their home tournament are scant reward for their ability. But Fabien Galthie's side have dealt with the burden before. In a pumping Paris in 2022, they stayed with a frisky and fighting England's flurry and then landed a couple of heavy blows to land a grand slam; even in their quarter-final defeat to South Africa a year-and-a-half later, one could not accuse the hosts of failing to produce their best. 'Basically, nothing has changed since the win in Ireland. We've had the same dynamic for the last six years, we've had great successes and losses that hurt," Galthie said on Thursday. "We're still committed to developing our players and being ambitious. We have great ambition and high standards to take the French team to the top no matter what happens. Last weekend's result made that a reality but our challenge this weekend calls that achievement into question." The champions-elect will take the field without their star and skipper, with the recriminations of the Antoine Dupont incident likely only to add extra edge to future meetings between the competition's heavyweight pair. One hopes that the table toppers will be able to cope with his absence given the rich talent and tactical ingenuity with which they are able to play. The French have made a habit of slipping up against Scotland – remember Brice Dulin and that kick in 2021 – but if they again flex their physical prowess and flash their fancy feet as they did so devastatingly in Dublin, one fears that the visiting side will be unable to match them. Perhaps the task for the remaining pretenders to the throne is made simpler given they have plenty to play for otherwise. For Ireland, the intoxicating thought of a history-making triumph may now appear distant but nobody would want this era to end with a whimper as they begin to look more seriously towards the future. This has not been a week without anger and attention on the squad, a smooth mask of serenity peeled back by defeat to France to show developing, familiar pockmarks of provincial squabbles. A start for Jack Crowley feels deserved given what he did last year but neither he nor Sam Prendergast should feel diminished by their treatment of late; a tricky situation has generally been handled reasonably with both surely live options in British and Irish Lions red or, if let out, green shirts if touring together come the summer. "Regardless of the result last week we were looking at making changes,' Simon Easterby explained with rumours rife about the future of this week's No 10. 'Jack's been brilliant, working away, supporting Sam in his first experiences of the Six Nations. Jack had that last year and we just felt like it was the right thing to do for Jack, to get in to lead the week. 'Jack knows how important he is to us.' Inflicting more pain on Italy – who really have been dealt a rough landing having taken off smoothly enough in this tournament – could yet force the Azzurri back into familiar position as competition bottom feeders. That relies, however, on a Welsh resurrection in Cardiff of the kind that all but the most ardent of English supporters would surely love to see. Whatever one's national allegiances nobody really wants to see any side dwelling in the doldrums for as long as Wales have. Striding about in Cardiff over the last couple of days, though, the excitement and energy has been palpable. This wonderful old spring construct may throw up a great many special fixtures but there are plenty who feel that an English trip across the border creates a spike of atmosphere and attention that no other encounter can match; the roof will be closed on Saturday but if Wales end their 16-match wallow in woe against their favourite enemy and, in the process, deny England a title, it will be bits of the canopy that they are fishing out of the Taff on Sunday along with the drunken detritus and debris. By then, we will have our 2025 champion and a clearer picture of so much which is to become. Lions selection looms large, both for those eyeing a trip Down Under and those spying opportunity in the absence of those selected. The television rights situation, too, is still to be sorted – Six Nations bosses were said to be operating in top gear last week on a number of fronts. Potential suitors do not need another reminder of this competition's considerable charm but this could yet be a spectacular grand finale.
