Cédric Chasseur // Photo credits: Shaun Botterill / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / Getty Images via AFP
modified to
9:14 a.m., March 18, 2024
An almost unexpected second place. The XV of France concluded the VI Nations Tournament with a success this weekend in Lyon, 33 to 31, thanks in particular to a penalty from Thomas Ramos at the last minute. The Blues, who started the competition very badly, finished runner-up to Ireland, who retained their title.
By beating England to the wire (33-31), thanks to a penalty from Thomas Ramos at the last minute, the French XV partly made us forget its poor start to the Six Nations Tournament, won for the second time in a row by Ireland. “We had a hell of a tournament… literally and figuratively,” reported Fabien Galthié after the match. This tournament gave him no respite, five months after his elimination in the quarter-finals of the World Cup. A bad memory which will ultimately have been useful according to the coach.
“It’s not the end of a competition”
“We don’t end a tournament, it’s not the end of a competition. I wanted, and I told the players before the match, that this would be the continuation of our story. And, it may be that in this victory, there is learning from what happened a few months ago,” reported the coach of the France team. Despite the slap inflicted by Ireland (17-38), despite the taste of defeat against Italy (13-13), the Blues never gave up, like the victory snatched from the last minute Saturday evening (33-31).
“Personally, I am extremely proud of the group. We were mishandled at certain times. We were rightly criticized. But no one gave up. Everyone showed character,” declared Grégory Alldritt, the captain of the French selection. A state of mind that will have to be maintained for the Blues’ next three-match tour, at the beginning of July, in South America. A tour where the players who participated in the last World Cup will be left to rest.