Scots are going to be France’s worst nightmare. We could run them ragged

PICTURE the scene, if you will. An attackminded, fast-paced Scotland team set to be unleashed on a hulkingly big French forward pack that tired against England in their Six Nations opener.

‘No wonder we are going to be France’s worst nightmare come Sunday,’ declared former Scotland back-row star Alasdair Strokosch yesterday. ‘The boys could run them ragged.’

This Sunday in Paris is an occasion the 33-year-old would have relished playing in. One of the most ferocious and proud men to ever pull on a dark blue jersey, Strokosch has spent the last five years playing for Perpignan and observing our Gallic cousins at close quarters.

This past week, he can report that his French pals are anticipating the visit of Vern Cotter’s men with something approaching trepidation.

‘France have a big pack that can’t last a full game,’ said the 47-timescapped flanker. ‘A team like us will run for 80 minutes.

‘Get up in their faces and put in a lot of important big tackles on their forwards early on. Work them from the first whistle. Get them on the ground, make them get up again, get them tired.

‘If France don’t build up a lead with their big pack early on, then they could struggle further down the road because Scotland will keep going at it. Running hard, playing high tempo. That’s why I’m going for a Scotland victory.’

The message simply could not be clearer. Scotland have a great opportunity to build on last weekend’s opening victory over Ireland with their first win in Paris since our Five Nations triumph in 1999.

Strokosch, who retired from international rugby after the 2015 World Cup, has played with or against 14 of the 15 men who were beaten 19-16 at Twickenham last weekend. All of them are expected to face the Scots.

‘The French pack may be very good at the set-piece but, as they showed against England, they aren’t going to be able to last the pace,’ added Strokosch.

‘Their loose-head, Uini Atonio of La Rochelle, is enormous and will be the biggest guy in either front row come Sunday.

‘Their hooker, Guilhem Guirado, is someone I played with at Perpignan and his game is all about physicality.

‘At tighthead, it’s Cyril Baille of Toulouse, who is being looked on as the next top-quality prop for them.

‘I am not doubting the rugby ability of the front row, or the rest of their pack, but have some of their players the stamina to perform at full pelt during the second half?

‘In open play, if Scotland have been hammering them from the start, how will they react? Whoever Scotland pick in their pack could get the better of them as they have some top-quality players to pick from.’

If Scotland do butter up the French forwards, Strokosch is confident the likes of centre Huw Jones, and the Glasgow Warriors pair of winger Tommy Seymour and full-back Stuart Hogg are the type of flyers who can out-pace the home defence.

‘Scotland have the players who can do damage and the French know and are worried about that,’ added Strokosch. ‘The French have always had respect for Scottish rugby and it grew even further this year when Glasgow beat Racing 92 over two matches.

‘They were impressed by the quality of Glasgow’s attacking play and saw that continuing in Scotland’s game against Ireland, where the Warriors supplied most of the players.

‘What happened in that opening Six Nations weekend shook them up a bit. France did well against England and ran them close but, on the same day, Scotland were running in three quick tries against Ireland.

‘We are their worst nightmare as the French forward pack know they’ll have to cope with a high-tempo game from first whistle to last, maybe even faster than the England match.’

Les Bleus are going through a transitional period under head coach Guy Noves as new players are blooded.

‘Noves has come in and had a bit of a clear out,’ said the former Edinburgh and Gloucester star. ‘France now play in a similar way to Toulouse when Noves was in charge and they were winning the European Cup.

‘You have an intelligent player at ten and out wide you have players with flair. ‘In the pack, they are a group of big men with good skillset. The question is, are they too big? We will find out on Sunday.’

France’s one truly worldclass player is No8 Louis Picamoles and stopping him is vital for Scotland. The Northampton Saints back row made two runs against England last Saturday that almost led to tries, and it was generally acknowledged that he was the best performer on either team.

‘He is one of the greats,’ nodded Strokosch. ‘He’s a better player now than he ever was as he has even more athleticism and fitness to go with his size. He is the main guy in the quality back row which is one of the best areas of their team.

‘They have Kevin Gourdon at openside. He is their most mobile player and also very good at the breakdown. At blindside, they have Damien Chouly, who has lots of experience.’

In the back division, Wesley Fofana was ruled out before the start of the tournament through injury, with his place in the centre taken by 22-year-old Gaël Fickou of Toulouse, who Strokosch rates highly.

‘The kid first played for Toulouse when he was just 18 and he is a top talent that Scotland have to watch,’ added Strokosch. ‘I played against him when he made his French debut in 2013 and he’s getting better and better.

‘He is really highly rated in France and they think he can make an impact on the global game.

‘In saying that, for all the great players that France have, Scotland have the likes of Hogg, the Gray brothers (Richie and Jonny), Alex Dunbar, Hamish Watson, John Barclay. Zander Fagerson, he did well at tighthead.

‘This is a team that can go to Paris and come back with a win that I can celebrate at home in France.’