France captain vows to restore honour against Scotland

FRANCE captain Guilhem Guirado admits his side will be playing for “honour” when they take on Gregor Townsend’s Scotland at the Stade de France today.

Les Bleus will be looking to salvage what has been a dismal Guinness Six Nations campaign so far when they host Gregor Townsend’s side in Paris.

Everything looked to be going so smoothly for Jacques Brunel and his team as they raced to a 16-point lead against world No.3 ranked nation Wales in their championship opener.

But costly blunders from Yoann Huget and Sebastien Vahaamahina contributed to a second-half collapse at the Stade de France which saw the hosts somehow emerge with a mortifying defeat.

There was more pain to follow as England dished out a 44-8 hammering in week two, meaning hopes of a first title since 2010 are already over for another year.

Now Guirado says his men will be looking to salvage pride when they take on the Scots in Saint-Denis.

He said: “Tomorrow’s game is a match to save our honour because we were given a lesson two weeks ago.

“It’s a home game and the stadium will be pretty much full. We are really focused on our rugby because we have corrected a lot of things this week compared to our last match.

“We know there’s pressure on us, there’s always pressure on the French national team even if the results had been positive we would still be under pressure.”

The humiliating six-try loss to Eddie Jones’ Red Rose outfit at Twickenham a fortnight ago was followed by reports suggesting Brunel could race a revolt from his disillusioned squad.

But Guirado insists the only thing being revolutionised is the level of performance his team put on.

He said: “There will definitely be a revolt compared to our last match. What I don’t want is personal revolt but a collective and communal revolt.”