Le Crunch will have some bite to it after all on Saturday when a rejuvenated France and a fired-up England close the Six Nations in Lyon.
Both teams head into the clash buoyed by morale-boosting wins which surprised many rugby observers.
England rolled back the years to beat and even rattle Ireland, which took some doing. France again showed world rugby how deep its talent pool is with a swashbuckling win in Wales despite making eight changes and fielding fresh faces.
France coach Fabien Galthié rewarded his young players by naming an unchanged lineup for the annual contest affectionately called “Le Crunch,” though there’s no affection between the teams on the field.
“The intensity of combat from England will be enormous,” Galthié said. “We’re going to be up against an explosive and powerful England team. They’re coming off the back of a huge performance against Ireland, a World Cup semifinal lost to South Africa by one point. They’re full of confidence and starting to become a great England side again.”
He thinks he knows what to expect from coach Steve Borthwick’s side.
“Midfield is an area where they are going to come looking for us. It’s going to be hard-hitting all the time in midfield,” Galthié predicted. “They’ve chosen to copy South Africa’s rush defense, and it won’t be any less suffocating for us. They take your space, take time away from you. You have to keep moving forward; in the scrums, with your kicks, in the contact areas.”
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After upsetting Ireland 23-22 last Sunday, England had to make one change. Wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso revealed concussion symptoms on Monday after his first test start.
Elliot Daly replaced him as expected. Daly was replaced in the reserves by Manu Tuilagi, who has recovered from a groin sprain in December to make the test team for the first time since the Rugby World Cup bronze final in Paris in October.
Back-rower Ethan Roots also has come in for Chandler Cunningham-Smith, who injured a calf against Ireland.
Beating Ireland lifted England back into the title race. England will win the Six Nations if Ireland loses without a bonus point, and England beats France with a bonus point. Although finishing second is more realistic, France has a mathematical chance at the title.
“After such a hard-fought win against Ireland last week, we realize how important it is to back that performance up with a similar display in Lyon on Saturday,” Borthwick said. “France remain one of the very top sides in the world, and will pose a great challenge for us. We’ve had a great preparation and there is a genuine sense of anticipation and determination around the camp.”
Scrumhalf Nolann Le Garrec is again preferred by France to Maxime Lucu, while center Nicolas Depoortere, fullback Léo Barré and imposing lock Emmanuel Meafou also keep their slots following convincing test debuts against Wales.
“If you want to talk about energy, they brought lots and lots of energy,” Galthié said.
Few, however, have shown as much energy as England No. 8 Ben Earl. Earl made his name at the Rugby World Cup and has prospered again with regular starts in this Six Nations.
He earned his second man-of-the-match award of this championship against Ireland by carrying 20 times for 140 meters and a try. After four rounds, Earl has more carries than anyone, and epitomizes England’s renewed energy.
“The players weren’t perfect against Ireland, but at Murrayfield (where England lost) I thought we made a mistake and then went into ourselves, played a little bit small,” Borthwick said. “Against Ireland, they made errors and got into the next battle. If there is anything I can encourage the players to do, it is go into the next battle.”
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Lineups:
France: Léo Barré, Damian Penaud, Gaël Fickou, Nicolas Depoortere, Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Thomas Ramos, Nolann Le Garrec; Grégory Alldritt (captain), Charles Ollivon, François Cros, Emmanuel Meafou, Thibaud Flament, Uini Atonio, Julien Marchand, Cyril Baille. Reserves: Peato Mauvaka, Sebastien Taofifenua, Georges-Henri Colombe, Romain Taofifenua, Alexandre Roumat, Paul Boudehent, Maxime Lucu, Yoram Moefana.
England: George Furbank, Tommy Freeman, Henry Slade, Ollie Lawrence, Elliot Daly, George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Ben Earl, Sam Underhill, Ollie Chessum, George Martin, Maro Itoje, Dan Cole, Jamie George (captain), Ellis Genge. Reserves: Theo Dan, Joe Marler, Will Stuart, Ethan Roots, Alex Dombrandt, Danny Care, Marcus Smith, Manu Tuilagi.
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AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby