Lovers of the France team, you will be happy: the Blues return on Saturday evening, against Japan. But as a good French supporter, do you know who is the most successful Frenchman?
Fans of blue will respond straight to Fabien Pelous, and his 118 capes. Moreover, the former 2nd row is, with Philippe Sella (111), the only tricolor to have passed the mythical bar of 100 capes, even if Gaël Fickou (30 years old, 90 caps), could follow by 2025 .
XV OF FRANCE. Gaël Fickou continues to become a legend by getting closer to Fabien Pelous and Philippe SellaSo, as the November tour approached, Sud-Ouest took advantage of the meeting with Pelous to ask him why France only had two centurions, when other nations like New Zealand, England, or South Africa and Wales have them in spades.
To this, the former Toulouse player logically points to different systems and the golden age of certain nations such as the All Blacks between 2010 and 2016 and the Springboks since 2019.
If it also obscures the lack of competition among certain Welsh, Irish or Australian generations, it on the other hand emphasizes the infernal pace of French rugby. “We cannot be efficient 10 and a half months a year,” he says.
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And, to support his words, mentions the case of Romain Ntamack, injured in the Crusaders just before the 2023 World Cup and then injured again in the calf, just before the international deadline in November. Thus, the 25-year-old fly-half has not worn the blue jersey for 15 months, blocking his tally at 38 selections, for now.
“The injuries of Romain Ntamack raise questions. We can't say it's not a nugget. He is perhaps the first number 10 in France who could aim for 100 caps. This is a profile that should be protected.“
But I find that Antoine Dupont for example was rather well managed last year. As a result, he performed well in the moments that counted. This is certainly what Fabien Galthié wants.
But isn't this already the case for Romain Ntamack, who had benefited from 2 games off in 5 days, before injuring his muscle after 30 minutes against Clermont? Ditto last season, when after his return from injury, he played “only” 8 matches (7 starts) between the end of March and the end of June with Toulouse, before being excused from the summer tour.
Elements which suggest that Romain Ntamack is now rather one of the “protected” players, as far as possible, after his extended 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 seasons. So, is it bad luck?
