For this deficiency not to become prohibitive, it is necessary to understand the cause. And quickly, since it is a trip to Ireland which is looming next Saturday for the defending champions. At the break, Galthié had already pointed out the problem, at the microphone of France Televisions : “We are not fair. You can’t attack rucks. The referee does not tolerate putting your hands in the rucks so we must not do it.” According to him, almost everything lies in the complexity of understanding where the border, tiny, is between a winning scratch and a guilty “contest”.
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Charles Ollivon in the fight with Federico Ruzza, in touch, during Italy-France – 6 Nations Tournament (05/02/2023)
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“It’s the first time that such a disciplinary disaster has happened to us”
“Mastering the rule, whether defensively or offensively, is something that has cost us dearly. This cut us off from a lot of strength in collective performance.“, continues the former coach of the RCT, who has planned to “discuss with the refereeing body“who will officiate in Dublin. He regrets having seen his players make mistakes”especially in areas where normally you should not do it, when there was no danger.” Both cause and consequence of this: Italy had the ball more often than France this Sunday (57% possession).
“If I knew how to explain our indiscipline, we would have been able to manage it live“, note Antoine Dupont. “I don’t know why we made so many mistakes. This is the first time that such a disciplinary disaster has happened to us.” abounds Anthony Jelonch, the most prolific tackler of the game (20 successful tackles, 3 missed). The Toulouse flanker sees this as a life-saving warning: “It will give us a good booster shot for this week. If we want to make a splash in Ireland, we will have to be very disciplined, because if we make so many mistakes, we will pay a lot more for it..”
With the co-favorite of the competition, it will be necessary to find the right compromise, so as not to be inhibited by the fear of reliving such an ordeal. As did Sekou Macalou, who “scratched” an important ball in the 77th minute on Sunday: “The coaches’ instructions, before returning, were not to put their hands together, to be really careful, because the referee was focused on that (…) I saw the opportunity, I was sure to 100% to have the ball, that’s why I went there. If it was 50/50, I would never have gone there.” A permanent dilemma that the Blues have generally poorly managed for their entry into the running.
Anthony Jelonch is leading the charge for France this Sunday in Rome | 02/05/2023
Credit: Getty Images
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