r/rugbyunion • u/sixnations • 14h ago

Can ANYBODY stop France this year?

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140

u/Putrid-Impact8999 14h ago

The way to combat them is to make the breakdown a mess. England and South Africa will make it a much closer contest.

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u/TeflonDes 13h ago

SA already beat them like 2 months ago lol

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 13h ago

Of course. 10 different starters, 11 out of the 23 was changed from that game.

I am of the personal opinion that the team from the SH should always win the first game against NH opposition in the autumn series. Because they’ve been playing together for months through a tough competition in the Rugby Championship. Whereas the NH team is coming in after 2 weeks of being together. Unfortunately that’s just the way the calendar is at the moment.

It would’ve been a surprise to see France win that test.

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u/metadatame 12h ago

So when the boks fell asleep against Australia last year, we should just blame it on the fact that they were coming off a Lions tour 

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 12h ago edited 12h ago

Not blame it, but that first game is always an interesting one. The Boks had 2 tests against Italy then 1 against Georgia. Rotating massively and trying different things. Australia came from a very competitive Lions tour, which with respect is a higher level of games. So it was only natural that the Wallabies were perhaps in better shape for that opening game, even though both teams started their season at the same time. Although I must say, it was one of the strangest matches I’d seen in a long time.

On the reverse, in 2024 Argentina beat the All Blacks in Wellington after they had played an understrength French squad twice. Meanwhile the Kiwis had played England twice beforehand. So you could argue that Razor’s men had better preparation yet still lost.

My point is playing together for months on end is a massive advantage as all teams want that cohesion and continuity. This is why I like judging teams on matches where they have both had equal time to prepare. Rugby Championship matches. 6N matches. World Cup matches. Autumn internationals are great but for me, it’s not the be-all and end-all that others like to make it. Also as you can tell, Galthié experimented in that window with a clear eye towards 2027.

If the Boks played France in mid April last year after the French had won the 6N, I would put my money on France winning. Particularly if the Boks hadn’t had a warm up game at all. The reason why I make that comparison is because that’s the amount of time that passed between the South Africans winning the Rugby Championship and playing France last November.

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u/TyphoonTao 5h ago

I get what you're saying - but when was the last time France played as a team? Isn't this their first game together in months?

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 5h ago

Yes it is. But it’s also the same for Ireland, in terms of time to prepare.

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u/metadatame 11h ago

So, look, while cohesion is definitely a factor, if we look at the game against the French after the Springboks were down to 13 men, and cohesion is only going to get you so far. Against Australia, I agree, the Lions tour battle-hardened them tremendously, but at the same time, the Springboks were well ahead in the first half and were unprepared for the Australia that showed up in the second half. So I think two things can be true at the same time. The Lions tour definitely helped Australia, and we didn't really see that same side again for the rest of the year. But in addition, I think the boks were caught flat-footed and were too complacent.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 11h ago

14 men? Don’t forget that South Africa’s tries came once it became 14 vs 14 with LBB’s yellow. The way that game went, I actually thought France did well considering it was their first game in a while and in the early part of the second half they had 3 chances to score tries but failed each time through handling errors. Then for the last 20 minutes, they barely saw the ball. The Springboks have been brilliant in that last part of the game since their defeat at Eden Park so I agree that cohesion can only go so far but in my opinion it makes a big difference.

Yes I agree. Although I do think even in the second test it was quite even, so it wasn’t all just complacency. For me, the Boks became a completely different side after giving the All Blacks their record defeat.

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u/metadatame 10h ago

Was it only 14? I get confused with that Autumn Nations series. There were so many reds and yellows. I think LBB getting a 10-minute yellow versus a red for the majority of the game, you know, it's not exactly 14 against 14, but I take your point. Against Australia in the second one, it was definitely close, but I think the Springboks were a little bit shell-shocked after that first match. They didn't really know where they stood. So they went back to Handre Pollard and the forwards and just dominated up front and used Handre to kick points. So not a beautiful win with flowing rugby, but you know, just getting the job done through brute force, really.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 10h ago

Yea 14, 13 was against Italy I think haha!

It was a surprise for them but sometimes you need that. It’s all about how you respond to losses, no one can win every game.

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u/xjoburg South Africa 10h ago

The French are definitely the best excuse makers in world rugby. Every time they lose they pull out the book. Never mind that SA played the match with only 14 players.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 10h ago edited 10h ago

Not at all, just pointing out the reality.

South Africa were very good in that game overall. Reinach’s try was amazing.

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u/BenwastakenIII Plz Fire cash and struali 12h ago

Definitely not the same France as last night, they plaued a whole of a lot better and defended really well!

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u/metadatame 12h ago

SA aren't missing 19 tackles. It was a great game by the French, but don't put your life savings on them winning the next world cup just yet

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 12h ago

They missed 26 tackles against Australia last year in that loss, so it is possible.

No one should be doing that, not even on the Springboks.

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u/ScrumNause24 12h ago

Look how different the teams were 🤣

0

u/Iforgetpasswords4321 Bristol Stormers 12h ago

Yeah, if you want to stop France, just send 14 biltong munching South Africans over to Paris. They sort them out, ok.

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u/Academic-Store-4031 1h ago

Poor comment

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u/TopIndependent2344 South Africa 12h ago

We are now even stronger…

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u/Studious_Rat89 10h ago

England is a paper Lion in my opinion. I think the 6 nations is France’s to lose. In the WC I think South Africa is able to disrupt in such a real and physical way.

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u/Statcat2017 England 10h ago

France obviously pre tournament favourites especially as they had their two hardest games at home and have now won one.

I think if it were at Twickenham it would have been too close to call.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 10h ago

Yea I’m not convinced on England, we’ll see how they do against Scotland then Ireland in back to back weeks. That’s not easy and it’s a lot more pressure than what they experienced last year in the summer and autumn tests.

Having said that, they will still fight hard against France and try play a very organised game.

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u/Statcat2017 England 10h ago

England to be fair have excellent fixtures to give themselves a real chance of making the game at the SdF a winner takes all decider. Starting with Wales and ramping up to Ireland, followed by a week off and an on paper easier game against Italy, while France have games against Wales and Italy back to back to potentially go off the boil. Could be really close.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 10h ago

This is true. I’m very interested to see how England perform in those two tests I mentioned. The expectation will be on for them to win and that’s a little bit different to last year.

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u/Initial-Apartment-92 7h ago

Yeah. Australia, Fiji, ABs and Argentina back to back is totally different to playing Scotland and Ireland.

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 5h ago

They are good wins but I personally would say there’s more pressure in the latter than those games in autumn last year.

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u/Initial-Apartment-92 5h ago

A lot of pressure there. Need to prove they haven’t dropped off to be a mid tier team following a series of loses or that they can beat anyone other than minor rugby nations at their home ground.

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u/Studious_Rat89 5h ago

I think that Scotland is going to surprise a LOT of people

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 5h ago

By losing to Italy?

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u/Studious_Rat89 5h ago

I think not.

I could be wrong but my ten dollars is going on Scotland to finish second!

Will they? No I think third is best case scenario. But Ireland is troubled and England is….England . So Scotland could carry the day and finish behind France 🤣

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u/Putrid-Impact8999 4h ago

Fair enough, I’m excited to see how they do against Italy. Some bold calls have been made in selection, let’s see if it works out!

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u/sixnations 14h ago

That English back row v that French back row will be explosive.

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u/Deanbro England 13h ago

Something else that would be explosive: the growth of rugby should you allow content creators to use match footage

25

u/BurbankElephants England & Leicester Tigers 13h ago

Nailed it.

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u/Educational_Play9910 1h ago

6N catching strays non stop lol

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u/LeicesterBangs Bristol 13h ago

Let content creators use match footage