A different jersey, a different France
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What a difference 80 minutes can make! France got off the mark in the Six Nations with a 27-10 win over Scotland.
The result is welcoming news for the French faithful and a fantastic turnaround following their embarrassment at Twickenham two weeks ago. The French looked like a well-oiled machine against Scotland and looked to have fixed a number of clear weaknesses.
After 89 minutes of action, France get their first win of 2019!! #GuinnessSixNations #FRAvSCO pic.twitter.com/bxdjfLMwBw
— Ultimate Rugby (@ultimaterugby) February 23, 2019
England punished their backfield coverage but France looked much more secure with rookie Thomas Ramos starting in the #15 jersey while Damian Penaud and Yoann Huget improved in that area of the game as well.
Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack combined brilliantly before the former was taken off in the 69th minute. They cleared well and managed the attack superbly combined to that of Camille Lopez and Morgan Parra.
It wasn't just in the backs where France improved as the French pack were much better in the set pieces maintaining a 100% success rate in both the lineouts and scrums.
The French pack dominated the scrums, especially in the second half of the game leading to two tries for Gregory Alldritt.
There are numerous lessons France head coach Jacques Brunel can take away from this clash. Antoine Dupont is the man for the #9 jersey despite his age and inexperience, Thomas Ramos is ready for test rugby but he may need to work on his goal kicking, Gael Fickou is a centre and is his side needs to learn not to give soft tries away.
