It was necessary to respect “the time of mourning” after the elimination in the quarter-finals of the 2023 World Cup, assured the Blues coach Fabien Galthié on Wednesday, for his first speech since the defeat against the Springboks on October 15. “For us, it was a time of mourning. It’s a huge disappointment after four years of hard work, four years of successful work with 80% victories and all these records… Our goal was to to be world champions”, explained Galthié before speaking of a “scar that remains for life”.
“The disappointment is enormous”
Favorites for the World Cup at home, the Blues fell in the quarter-finals against South Africa (29-28). The Boks then won the competition for the fourth time, also beating New Zealand (12-11) in the final after having painfully dominated England (16-15) in the half. “On a tactical and strategic level, if I had to do it again, I would do the same thing,” insisted Galthié, who spoke more than three weeks after the defeat.
“The only goal we wanted to achieve was to be world champions. There was no other. The disappointment would have been the same if we had lost in the semi-final by one point. The disappointment would have been the same if we had lost in the final by one point. The difference is that we would have lived an extra week. The difference is huge because we wanted to experience these moments for which we have been working for four years. So, the disappointment is enormous,” he repeated, his face marked.
After this early exit, the Blues had a few weeks of vacation before returning to their clubs and the Top 14. Some, like Toulouse hooker Peato Mauvaka or Toulon third row Charles Ollivon even played again. Others, like La Rochelle third row Grégory Alldritt, will experience a longer break. The French XV, which won the Grand Slam in 2022, will open the next Six Nations Tournament on February 2 in Marseille, against Ireland.
“Requirement”
Fabien Galthié and the XV of France have a little more than two months to move on before the next deadline: a clash of revenge against Ireland, on February 2 in Marseille, in the 2024 Six Nations Tournament. After the international retirements of pillar Uini Atonio or second line Romain Taofifenua, new faces are expected, driven by the generation of U20 world champions (Tuilagi, Jauneau, Gazzotti…) and the naturalization of the colossal Australian second line from Toulouse Emmanuel Meafou (2.03 m for 145 kg).
The staff will also be renewed since attack coach Laurent Labit and sideline coach Karim Ghezal left for Stade Français while performance director Thibault Giroud joined Bordeaux-Bègles. They will be respectively replaced by Patrick Arlettaz, from Perpignan, Laurent Sempéré, from Stade français, and Nicolas Jeanjean (internal promotion).
“The lesson to learn from this experience is that there is no limit to the demands. There is no limit to the demands for French rugby players and to have the as strong a French team as possible. Let’s be demanding collectively, let’s be demanding individually, let’s all try to raise our level another notch. And it’s at this price that we will be even more efficient.”