offensive bonuses, scrum, substitutes… The four questions posed by France’s painful victory against Uruguay

We imagined an offensive festival after the show of force against New Zealand, but the Blues offered a performance without much flavor against Uruguay, Thursday September 14, despite the victory (27-12). With 12 changes out of the 15 starters, Fabien Galthié had already chosen a large staff review, which did not provide the hoped-for assurance. Here are the four questions that hang over the XV of France after this second match.

What should the Blues correct?

The lessons of this match with a largely overhauled team must be put into perspective. But France once again sinned in a specific sector like against the Blacks: the starts. Against the New Zealanders, the XV of France conceded a try at the start of the first and second half. It front of Teros, the Blues were again surprised from the start, conceding a try along the sidelines. It was also on a long reverse foot play, which had already hurt the Blues so much during the first match, that the danger came. Two areas to correct quickly.

Overpowering against the New Zealand pack, the French scrum was this time largely dominated. Pushed to make mistakes, often penalized, the first line was under pressure from the Uruguayans all match. The return of executives should resolve this problem, but the bench will have to improve its automation. Finally, the indiscipline was obvious: while they had only been penalized four times against the All Blacks, the French conceded 15 faults on Thursday evening, including a yellow card which could have turned red for Romain Taofifenua. “It’s fortunate to have won this match despite that. The discipline, I thought we were good, that we had done a lot of work on that but today we were undisciplined. It’s really too bad. I think we were a little relaxed given the opponent this evening.”conceded Cameron Woki.

Villière, Bielle-Biarrey, Jelonch: who won points?

Fabien Galthié has a well-established starting XV, but the coach had to be attentive to certain performances on Thursday evening. Gabin Villière, still the holder, was once again generous, and he could have been rewarded with a refused try. But he did not break through the Uruguayan wall where the Blues really needed it. Conversely, the young Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who had very few exploitable balls, was able to convert one, and scored points. Antoine Hastoy, despite his attempt, gradually lost track, and often suffered in his zone. His candle behind the goal could undoubtedly have been better negotiated.

Yoram Moefana, too discreet against the Blacks, took his chance better, but he does not have the percussion of Jonathan Danty. The Rochelais should logically find his place in the center upon his return. Finally, Anthony Jelonch, designated captain for his return, lacked rhythm, and he played a serious match during his 50 minutes. “It was a complicated match, they had a lot of desire and aggression in this match and particularly in the first half. We had difficulty finishing the actions”, admitted the third row. He will undoubtedly have another opportunity to show himself between now and the quarter-finals, but Grégory Aldritt is still well established in number 8.

How to better manage weak times?

It’s almost paradoxical, the French XV seemed more serene with the All Blacks in contact than on Thursday when it was Uruguay, back to within one point (13-12). The absence of Antoine Dupont, Charles Ollivon or Thibaud Flament among the starters was a reminder of the extent to which their presence stabilizes the game but also the emotions of these Blues, capable of overturning everything. “We were surprised and then you had doubts. It was the type of trap match. We mixed everything up a bit, we didn’t make this match easy”analyzed the coach.

Faced with Uruguay, who nevertheless pushed them hard, France came through attrition. “We weren’t able to score when we had the chance. We came out frustrated. We wanted to play well as a team, but we didn’t manage to do so”, lamented Antoine Hastoy. After Namibia, we will have to come up against Italy in a match which could have a lot at stake, before an undoubtedly monumental quarter-final against Ireland or South Africa. If they are behind, the Blues will have to regain their collective and mental solidity. As such, the footwork of Thomas Ramos and Matthieu Jalibert will be very valuable for breathing space in defense, as will the serenity of Antoine Dupont in all circumstances.

The missed offensive bonus, what consequences?

Many saw France beating the Teros easily, with the offensive bonus (four tries scored) at stake. It has not happened. A surprise which is not one, as the Blues never seemed capable of stepping on the accelerator. Without any bonus points on Thursday evening after two matches, the French XV made their task a little more complicated in qualifying for the quarter-finals. “We couldn’t take the bonus point, but nothing to say, it’s just like this match”decided coach Fabien Galthié.

This missed bonus, what does it change for the future? Considering that the All Blacks (0 points) win their last three matches with the offensive bonus, they would accumulate 15 points. If Italy beats Uruguay on Wednesday and France dominates Namibia the next day, both with the offensive bonus, France (13 points) would be obliged to win against the Transalpines (10 points) in the last match to qualify . In this configuration, if she had taken the bonus this Thursday, a defeat without an offensive bonus from the Italians would have been enough to qualify for the quarter-finals, a victory worth four points.