France 43-0 Wales: Les Bleus hammer visitors in Six Nations opener
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Antoine Dupont starred for France as they opened this year's Six Nations in style by crushing Wales 43-0 in Paris on Friday, thereby inflicting a 13th straight defeat on Warren Gatland's side.
Doubles by wingers Theo Attissogbe and Louis Bielle-Biarrey and other tries by Julien Marchand, Emilien Gailleton and Gregory Alldritt saw the hosts sail to a comfortable victory at Stade de France.
Dupont, who made his comeback after winning the Olympic Rugby Sevens tournament, bagged a hat-trick of try assists for Les Bleus before being taken off after 49 minutes.
The captain helped France break the deadlock with a crossfield kick that was collected by Attissogbe for their first try before the scrumhalf also assisted Attissogbe's second of the game.
Dupont then capped off a brilliant night with his third assist from a long pass for Bielle-Biarrey as Romaine Ntamack's red card proved to be the only blemish on France's dominant performance.
Fabien Galthie's side will next face England in Twickenham on 8 February while Wales will travel to take on Italy in Rome the same day.
๐ผ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐จ ๐๐ค๐ง๐ฃ โจ๐ซ๐ท #GuinnessM6N #Fantasy ๐ฎ pic.twitter.com/IZAJ2hgROg
— Guinness Men's Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) January 31, 2025
Data Debrief: Dismal run continues for Wales
In Gatland's 150th game in charge of the nation, Wales futher extended a 12-match winless run that stretches all the way back to October 2023.
He has now recorded 76 wins, 72 defeats and two draws across his two stints with Wales.
It was the first time Wales have failed to score a point in the Six Nations since 1998. That was also incidentally a 51-0 defeat to the French at Wembley.
The defeat was also their biggest in France, surpassing a 36-3 loss in 1991.
France, meanwhile, have now won each of their last seven Test matches against Wales after winning just one in nine against them previously (L8).
