Six Nations Tournament: France XV makes a successful start by outclassing Wales at the Stade de France

Antoine Dupont a encore été décisif sur les deux premiers essais français. MAXPPP – Olivier CORSAN

Les Gallois n'ont résisté qu'un gros quart d'heure à la pression d'une équipe tricolore supérieure dans tous les compartiments et qui a confirmé son statut de favorite du tournoi.

A smooth start: the French XV outclassed the very tender Welsh on Friday at the Stade de France for the start of the Six Nations Tournament (43-0), with seven tries and plenty of confidence. The rest of the Tournament, starting next week in England, will be more challenging for the Blues, but the Stade de France did not hide its pleasure in seeing that the gap in level anticipated by comparing the match sheets materialized on the pitch.

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The main false note of the evening was the expulsion of the fly-half Romain Ntamack (71st) for his return to the Blues, which should deprive him at least of the “Crunch” in London. Even before half-time, Fabien Galthié's men secured the offensive bonus by scoring four tries, with a double from each of the two wingers Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Théo Attisogbe, including three following assists from Antoine Dupont.

Ramos 2nd scorer in the history of the Blues

The captain also came off in the 50th minute, a sign that everything was already under control. The brilliant passes of Dupont, the skill at the foot of Thomas Ramos, who became the second point scorer of the XV of France by overtaking Christophe “Titou” Lamaison, the speed of Louis Bielle-Biarrey, the devastating tackles of Paul Boudehent: the ingredients of the three successes of November remained the same.

Opposite, the lightness of the forward pack, the inexperience and the lack of confidence of the team, not helped by two exits due to injury before the half-hour mark, showed why the XV du Poireau has just suffered its thirteenth consecutive defeat since the 2023 World Cup. The Welsh only stayed level for 18 minutes but the first French skirmishes (Dupont 3rd, Attissogbe 7th) and the inability of the Reds to hurt the French defensive line already suggested a large gap at the end of the 80 minutes.

Dupont the detonator

He widened with Theo Attissogbe (18th), launched by a well-measured foot pass from Dupont. The French captain, after taking a gaping gap left by the Welsh defense, offered him a second gift (34th). In the meantime, Ramos had done the same for Bielle-Biarrey (24th) before the Union Bordeaux-Bègles winger (18 tries in 16 matches this season) scored a second just before the break (40th), served by his captain.

The second period was played with less rhythm from the French, even if the substitutes also took advantage of it to shine, with the try from Cyril Baille rewarding a collective effort from the French pack (55th), that of Emilien Gailleton after a pass to the foot from Ntamack (68th) and a last one from Grégory Alldritt (78th), named man of the match.