Fabien Galthié repeated it. He wants "A strong conquest", he wants "Strong men". And the day after the victory of his XV of France against the English (24-17), successful baptism of fire for his group largely renewed, the coach of the Blues did not show off. If the overall performance of his men, especially defensive, found favor with his eyes, the Lotois found fault with one essential aspect of the game: conquest. Sunday, February 9, opposed to Italy at the Stade de France for the second match of their campaign, the French will be expected on these static phases – melee and hit -, supposed to put the attackers in orbit.
"Our goal is to win fast. And for that, our forwards must acquire confidence ", Fabien Galthié, coach of the XV of France
"The first part of our scrum match is solid, debriefed Fabien Galthié after the crunch. It was when we coached that we were destabilized. " Confused by the scrum changes during the match, the Blues then tangle the brushes. "And as soon as we weaken at this level, everything becomes more complicated, our game has deteriorated, has been shorter, theirs have lengthened, put us in difficulty, the duels have been easier to manage for them ", continued the coach, without targeting players. Faced with an Italy, largely beaten in Wales on Saturday (0-42) but effective on these fundamental phases of rugby, the coach chose to trust the same pack of forwards – starting with the first line Cyril Baille, Julien Marchand and Mohamed Haouas. "These players need confidence", underlined Galthié, insisting on setting up a typical team. While admitting that "The touch is also a part of our rugby to improve".
"The French conquest has been weakened by the English cons on touch, abounds former international hooker Mathieu Blin. By following the jump zones, the English pushed the hookers either to force the throw or to hold it back; which removes ammunition to start the game. " And even if the Blues have lost only three balls in touch, they have only rarely managed to get out of this phase of play properly to put the scrum half Antoine Dupont in condition to start the game. de facto the French offensives. Facing the English, "We were unable to launch the game on the conquest", regretted Raphaël Ibanez, the general manager of the Blues.
