France look for redemption in Marseille
New-look side will start after Edinburgh fracas Eight-game run without win is worst since 1960s
Perhaps a change of scenery is just what France need. Switching tonight’s home fixture against Italy to Marseille was originally planned by the French Rugby Federation as a move to take Natwest Six Nations rugby to a new audience on the south coast, not as a remedy to snap the national side out of their slump.
A win at the Stade Velodrome tonight would therefore have multiple benefits. France’s eight-game run without a win is their worst record going back to the late 1960s, while the last eight matches at their regular Stade de France home in Paris have yielded only two victories.
Granted, the losing streak would have been snapped if Jonathan Sexton had not pulled off one of the game’s greatest dropped goals. But France are in a long-term malaise, not suffering a short-term blip.
Spare a thought too for head coach Jacques Brunel; giving his players permission to blow off some steam in Edinburgh after coming off second best against Scotland, only to wake up the next morning surrounded by a public relations storm involving a number of his players. A team implosion rather than team bonding.
In-form wing Teddy Thomas is ruled out due to the resulting disciplinary action, denying the local Marseille crowd the chance to watch the tournament’s top try scorer attempt to add to his tally.
Still, the Velodrome itself is a remarkable setting following a recent renovation ahead of Euro 2016. A worthy addition to the Six Nations circuit that will host 67,000 supporters tonight.
FFR president Bernard Laporte reiterated the importance of taking rugby to the people when the fixture was first announced last year. France in the past have defeated New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and England at the venue, a run of four wins in four years. Recent suggestions that the Rugby Football Union should follow a similar lead by taking England matches to the north have been rejected, with