French Flair - Le Crunch.

French rugby has for many a year been associated with a free running spirit that is truly unique and in truth a pleasure to watch, running the ball from all angles, keeping it alive whenever possible, and most importantly.
 
But is it a myth these days or can they still turn it on?
 
IMO they no longer have the ability to play with such freedom at this level, it has been coached out of them or an overseas player stands in their way at club level, this is not only a loss to French rugby but to the NH too.  All too often teams try copy the style that appears to hold all the answers like Warrenball yet most fans find it dull to watch and lacks any real creativity that made us fall in love with the game in the first place, I can only imagine how hard it must be watching this bland style of the game for French fans that grew up watching greats like Lagisquet, Blanco, Sella, Lafond, Camberabero, Sadourny and Saint-Andre.
 
On the eve of the 6 Nations the French and rugby public have no idea how France will fare this year, will it be the dull unattractive run hard and stick it up your jumper style or that mythical French flair that will win through?
 
Your guess is as good as mine!
 
Roll on Le Crunch, It won’t be pretty, but it will be compelling.

French international rugby may have been associated with a free running spirit, but Phillippe St. Andre certainly has not.

Some people are either:

1) Overestimating the French.

Or, worse still:

2) Underestimating the English.

I don't see this game as a contest in the broader sense of the word. England by eleven, and only that low because the weather looks pretty dodgy.

PSA does a great job of ensuring that France continually underachieve. He has them playing a structured, boring style that does not suit their culture at all. If France have their shackles released, or just loosened, then they will be too strong for England. Surely they cannot be as poor as last year?

Notch wrote:French international rugby may have been associated with a free running spirit, but Phillippe St. Andre certainly has not.

French flair died in the early 2000s when Laporte came in and became obsessed with the "English way". think the last time we won the tournament playing running rugby was in 1998.

Scrump wrote:will it be the dull unattractive run hard and stick it up your jumper style

Most likely yes, with the exception of individual flashes of brilliance by the likes of fofana or Dulin. there is no structured back play wich rarely goes past 3 phases nowadays. so unless france overpower their opponents they lose (even if they do , they end up losing anyway most of the time).

Duty281 wrote:Some people are either:

1) Overestimating the French.

Or, worse still:

2) Underestimating the English.

I don't see this game as a contest in the broader sense of the word. England by eleven, and only that low because the weather looks pretty dodgy.

3) French players really need that win so will get it regardless of what England put in front of them.

sorry Duty   

Duty281 wrote:Some people are either:

1) Overestimating the French.

Or, worse still:

2) Underestimating the English.

I don't see this game as a contest in the broader sense of the word. England by eleven, and only that low because the weather looks pretty dodgy.

Or they simply don't agree with you   

The games in Paris - France have every chance

geoff998rugby wrote:

Duty281 wrote:Some people are either:

1) Overestimating the French.

Or, worse still:

2) Underestimating the English.

I don't see this game as a contest in the broader sense of the word. England by eleven, and only that low because the weather looks pretty dodgy.

Or they simply don't agree with you   

The games in Paris - France have every chance

Yes, and why don't they agree with me?

It's either reason 1 or reason 2....or maybe even both.

We'll see either way on Saturday.

Since it's le crunch versus les enfants, it's who throws their toys out of the pram first

I think French flair was bottom of the requirements list when this squad was picked

I have always hated Golden Delicious, give me a Cox's English Pippin every time

WELL-PAST-IT wrote:I have always hated Golden Delicious, give me a Cox's English Pippin every time

Comment aimez vous les pommes?

France haven't really played with flair since the days of Berbizier and Skrela.

You can pick out individual players like Medard but then again England had Jason Robinson... perhaps the greatest flair player of the last 20 years.

Since the days of Laporte et al they have been striving to add consistency by mirroring the English game with mixed results.

Scratch wrote:

WELL-PAST-IT wrote:I have always hated Golden Delicious, give me a Cox's English Pippin every time

Comment aimez vous les pommes?

Fresh sharp and green, just like England's expected backline.

Golden Delicious (Le Crunch), soft tasteless and usually sold past their sell by date

Cox's English Pippin, sharp, tangy, green and full of bite (don't tell Hartley)

The French are mercurial, have plenty of elan and are as mentally fragile as a short hairless dog with a diamond necklace
In other words, I wanted be the first with the clichés this year!

England edging it at present.

Even without the best swallow diving winger in the world

It is looking like it will be one hell of an inexperienced England backline - not just light in caps, but young.  The French backs may also be light in caps, but are generally far more experienced.  On any given day any French team can beat any team in the world.  From an England perspective you just have to hope it isn't one of those days and our backs don't freeze.  I am quite happy with our forwards though.

Stuart Lancaster in a recent interview admitted that now is the time, this years championship, for bringing through new faces. reading between the lines it seemed that he is almost prepared to sacrifice any championship win in favour of blooding new players and getting the squad depth and experience right.

I think that given he has in general improved English rugby quite a bit both in terms of results but also organisation and dicipline I feel he has earned the right to use this championship to take one step back in order to take two forward. Its been a while since an England manager had that luxury.

I predicted an England win by 7 on the predictions thread but the closer we get the more I'm leaning towards France to put the past year behind them and end England's hopes early. About time they fall short against a NH side other than Wales.

Of course the benefit of losing to France is that SL can try out new things/faces in preperation for the world cup next year without the grand slam pressure on the squad.

They still have a little bit of flair left then!!!!!

Well played France

Scrumpy wrote:French rugby has for many a year been associated with a free running spirit that is truly unique and in truth a pleasure to watch, running the ball from all angles, keeping it alive whenever possible, and most importantly.
 
But is it a myth these days or can they still turn it on?
 
IMO they no longer have the ability to play with such freedom at this level, it has been coached out of them or an overseas player stands in their way at club level, this is not only a loss to French rugby but to the NH too.  All too often teams try copy the style that appears to hold all the answers like Warrenball yet most fans find it dull to watch and lacks any real creativity that made us fall in love with the game in the first place, I can only imagine how hard it must be watching this bland style of the game for French fans that grew up watching greats like Lagisquet, Blanco, Sella, Lafond, Camberabero, Sadourny and Saint-Andre.
 
On the eve of the 6 Nations the French and rugby public have no idea how France will fare this year, will it be the dull unattractive run hard and stick it up your jumper style or that mythical French flair that will win through?
 
Your guess is as good as mine!
 
Roll on Le Crunch, It won’t be pretty, but it will be compelling.

Scrumpy, thank you for your compassion . I'm French and old enough to have known not only Blanco/Charvet/Bonneval/Lagisquet/Sella's team, the last one I enjoyed, the last whose backwards prefered avoiding the opponents rather than bumping into a wall, but also the time of "Champagne rugby", whose heralds were the Boniface brothers and Jean Prat . They made me love rugby more than any sport . I prefer a French team who plays like that and loose than a French team who wins boringly . You can imagine my depression in front of modern rugby and my disgust in front of these French teams of now .
Yet the potential, probably due to the spirit that still exists in amateurs or kids teams in the South-West of France, is still there . From 9 to 15 there still are French backs who can create from nothing . Huget was OK,and Clerc always was . Fickou can be one of them, and Fofana in a proper context could too . For 15, the 1987 Bonneval's son, Hugo, plays as if he was in the 60s . At 9/10, I used to appreciate Parra and Trinh-Duc, they proved they could be flashing creators too, even with the heavy coaching and brainwashing French backs have undergone in the last decades . There are others, but what can we hope from an ex 3/4 who in his time already prefered bumping and who still now select a Bastareaud ? I tell you, the French people has always been betraded by his commanders . Let's guillotine the FFR and exile Saint-André in Georgia !