Several players, notably some who were considered executives, are missing when the 2025 Tournament begins.
Since taking office for the 2020 Tournament, Fabien Galthié has called 176 players to Marcoussis and 108 of them made their international debut. During his first mandate, which ended with an elimination by South Africa in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in France, the French coach had favored continuity and had mainly relied on what he had then called its “premium players”. Since the last World Cup, the evolution is significant: the France group is more open and the statuses are called into question. “It’s not a break, but a natural evolution. There is no comfort zone in the French team. the French coach justified himself during the last tour in November.
The figures don’t lie: in 2024, 75 players started in blue and 22 of them made their international debut. Others, on the other hand, are missing at the moment when the XV of France is about to embark on its campaign in the Six Nations Tournament. Among them, certain players who were considered executives until recently such as the second row Cameron Woki (Racing 92) and the center Jonathan Danty (La Rochelle, currently injured), both starters during the 2022 Grand Slam and not called up at the start of the November tour.
Others suffer from competition in their position: this is the case for scrum-halves Baptiste Serin (Toulon), captain during the last tour in Argentina, or Baptiste Couilloud (Lyon), who nevertheless produced remarkable performances at club level. . The case of Melvyn Jaminet, guilty of racist remarks broadcast on social networks, is more clear-cut since the president of the FFR, Florian Grill, opposed his return to blue. “When we wear the rooster, when we represent France, there are things we are not allowed to do. From my point of view, it will be very complicated. And for me, it’s no, he indicated on RMC.
-The absence of other internationals can logically be explained by the decline in their sporting performances. We think of the fly-half Antoine Hastoy (La Rochelle) and the versatile Sekou Macalou (Stade Français), who participated in the last World Cup, or the winger Ethan Dumortier (Lyon), who played the entirety of the matches of the 2023 Tournament for his debut in the blue jersey. Injuries have otherwise slowed down center Arthur Vincent (Montpellier), a regular in the France group since Fabien Galthié took office.
The absent XV:
15. Melvyn Jaminet – 14. Mathis Lebel, 13. Arthur Vincent, 12. Jonathan Danty, 11. Ethan Dumortier – 10. Antoine Hastoy, 9. Baptiste Serin – 8. Alexandre Bécognée, 7. Tanga, Sekou-Macalou 5. Felix Lambey, 4. Cameron Woki – 3. Mohamed Haouas, 2. Gaëtan Barlot, 1. Étienne Falgoux
Remplaçants : 16. Camille Chat, 17. Quentin Walcker, 18. Demba Bamba, 19. Killian Geraci, 20. Ibrahim Diallo, 21. Baptiste Couilloud, 22. Louis Carbonel, 23. Brice Dulin
DR
