After a summer of disharmony, Les Bleus are back in action with their talisman Antoine Dupont but there are problems from within the ranks
France second-row Posolo Tuilagi has said that his operation went well after suffering a gruesome double leg break on Saturday.
Ex-England midfielder Manu is Posolo’s uncle and while he was unable to play in the opening round league match at Parc des Sports Jean Dauger due to a broken hand suffered in a pre-season game last month against Biarritz, his unavailability on the pitch last Saturday didn’t affect his upbeat post-game mood.
“Jefferson-Lee has come in from Agen and he has been amazing in pre-season. I have always enjoyed competition and Jeff has been electric and I am excited to see him play and learn from him. Sevens is different and his aerial ability is something to admire and we have been picking up things off each. It’s healthy for the squad.
The Top 14 has long been thought of as the land of giants in a rugby union context and here we test the theory with a look at the average physical make-up of a player in each squad.
France, of course, had their dominance in this grade interrupted by the pandemic after their two-in-a-row of 2018 and 2019, but they ensured their methods of producing quality, title-winning players at this level didn’t fall into rack and ruin during the lay-off.
Fabian Galthie's baby-faced assassins put behind them a challenging week off the pitch to push an experienced Argentinean side in Buenos Aires. Snatching the lead early in the second half following a furious comeback, Les Bleus looked set to complete a first series win in Argentina since 1998.
The second match of the U20 World Championship promises to be a do-or-die affair for both teams.
Multiple stars were born, especially from the better performing European teams who had the advantage of having a taxing Six Nations tournament some months earlier which helped to give them an advantage versus their southern hemisphere rivals.