the XV of France is still looking for its offensive strength before facing Italy

Victorious in their first two matches, the Tricolores have not yet managed to fully exploit their potential in attack, before facing Italy in Paris on Sunday.

For the second Six Nations Tournament contested under the leadership of the duo composed of Gaëlle Mignot and David Ortiz, the French women’s XV is preparing to face Italy, at the Jean-Bouin stadium in Paris, Sunday April 14, at 1:30 p.m. , on the occasion of the third day. A Squadra Azzurra that he had difficulty beating last year, in complicated weather conditions. For now, the Sunday weather looks more favorable for the Blues. More than in Parma then, where the heavy rains had hampered the players at least as much as the Scottish wind two weeks ago. Freed from atmospheric hazards, the French must now shift gears in attack.

In line with their defensive performances in 2023 (11 points conceded on average in two matches compared to 13.4 last year in five matches), and even if they had only conceded three cumulative points against Ireland and Scotland last year, it is mainly with the ball in hand that the Blues are fishing in this new year. And if they are one point behind at the top of the ranking (second with nine points, against 10 for England), it is because they failed to return from Edinburgh with the offensive bonus in their pocket.

An unusual inefficiency

A bonus that the Transalpines won in Dublin, something to follow the French women in the ranking and dream of overtaking them in the event of an improved victory in Paris. A success that would be considered an achievement, since the Italians have only won two of the last ten confrontations between the two nations (in 2019 in the Tournament and in 2022 in a friendly match), and none on French soil.

To avoid unpleasant surprises, the Blues will be able to rely on a well-established collective, which has barely changed since the start of the Tournament. In the wake of captain Manae Feleu, the French team will especially have to improve its offensive performances, while it started on a much lower basis than those of the 2023 Tournament, which it finished with 40.4 points average (26.5 this year). Last year, Ireland then Scotland respectively conceded 53 and 55 units for 18 tries conceded against the Blues. But France currently seems to be floundering its rugby as it approaches the scoring zone. As proof, his 29 cumulative entries into the opposing 22 meters only resulted in a total of seven tries.

A lot of desire, maybe too much

However, statistics show that the French women play opposing defenses with ease. Against Ireland, they beat 17 defenders, then 24 against Scotland, the peak of their lack of finishing. Against Italy, against whom England beat 30 defenders, spaces should be created again. But be careful for the Blues not to get drunk in the face of a porous defensive line.

Lucid, Romane Ménager, who spoke in the columns of the Team, knows that playing excessively will not bring Les Bleues the hoped-for success. “We won’t be able to have a full Tournament if we only play.”, thus explained the third center line. Because, for the French, “playing” means offloads (36, best total entered), but also taking risks (55 hand faults), which did not pay off during the first two outings.

So, Romane Ménager made no secret of the fact that the Bleues had worked in this area during the rest period, to be more precise when it was time to play the game against Italy. “We are really focusing on that. We gained a lot of confidence by playing a lot. Now we must try to make it a reality“, she said.

And if the third places in the last World Cup are aware of their mistakes so far, they were already keen to correct them after Scotland, while Gaëlle Hermet highlighted these shortcomings: “We must materialize our returns in the brand areas. We don’t score in our highlights.” Response from Sunday on the synthetic pitch of Jean-Bouin, favorable to a fast and lively game.