All Blacks countdown: The French Connection
Photo:All Blacks v France
Kick-off: 7:05pm Saturday 5 July
Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Live blog updates on RNZ
Analysis - Ever since it was announced that France would be the All Blacks' first opponents of the season, there's been plenty chat about whether they'll be a threat or a classic French Farce. One thing is for certain: no one in this part of the world really knows much about them. That's due to the fact that while coach Fabien Galthié's side is missing players from the Top 14 final, we can't watch the competition on TV here anyway.
Galthié has acknowledged just how much of an uphill battle this will be, telling Midi Olympique that "This tour is the toughest we've ever played with this French team. So I sent this message to each of the selected players: 'We have a challenge that seems impossible. Do you want to be part of it?'."
Rugby writer James Harrington is based in Castres, one of France's rugby hotbeds, agrees with Galthié's assessment but says that the squad that has arrived in New Zealand isn't a complete bunch of scrubs.
"Only three players have 50 plus caps, and another two have more than 20," said Harrington, who highlighted the Antoine Dupont-less halfback group as ones to watch.
Nolan Le Garrec celebrates his try during the Guinness Six Nations 2024 match between France and England.
Photo:"Nolan Le Garrec (who scored the World Rugby Try of the Year in 2024) has just finished a big season with Racing 92, scoring 269 points with 14 tries. Baptiste Jauneau is stocky and feisty like Dupont and works so hard. Kicking's not his strongest suit, but it's developing."
Up front there's a couple of interesting stories, with Paul Mallez the first ever player from ProD2 side Provence to be called up to the national squad and Georgian-born fellow prop from Perpignan Giorgi Beria capped last year on a similarly understrength tour of Argentina.
"The French second tier is a notoriously tough scrum school, especially for front rows, while Beria was in the 2019 France U20 squad that won the WR U20 Championship." said Harrington.
"I reckon NZ fans will like Lyon's Mickaël Guillard. Mostly plays second row after stepping up as cover for the injured Emmanuel Meafou but pops up across the loose forwards from time to time. He hauled in English winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (who scored against the All Blacks last year), who's no slouch."
The backs provide the easiest to find highlights, particularly Pau wing Theo Attissogbe. The 20-year-old was part of France' 2023 U-20 side that convincingly beat New Zealand and went on to hammer Ireland in that year's championship final. Attissogbe also scored three tries in two games in this year's Six Nations, but another one to watch is a midfielder who was also eligible to represent England.
Emilien Gailleton.
Photo:"Emilien Gailleton is a seriously rapid 21-year-old, born in Croydon, just south of London to a French dad and English mum. He's currently with Pau - but will be an early target for recruiters from July 1, when he officially enters the last year of his current deal and they can legally talk to him. Toulouse, La Rochelle and Toulon are all reportedly very interested. He's scored eight tries in his last six outings for Pau."
While there were high hopes that the weekend's dramatic Top 14 final concluding the French domestic season would result in the release of some big name players, unfortunately that's not the case. Toulouse's Pierre-Louis Barassi and Joshua Brennan, and Bordeleau-Begles' Pierre Bochaton, Nicolas Depoortere, and Bastien Vergnes-Taillefer are all joining the squad. But while they are all solid club players, it's a far cry from the likes of Romain Ntamack, Gregory Aldritt, Thomas Ramos and Damian Penaud.
It's those players, along with Dupont, who have tormented the All Blacks into three straight losses over the last four seasons. Their absence, along with many others, are why it'll be a minor miracle if that streak continues this weekend.
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