France lose one of their 42-man November squad within 24 hours

France’s Autumn Nations Series preparations have hit an early snag, with back-rower Lenni Nouchi ruled out less than a day after Fabien Galthié named his 42-man squad.

The Montpellier captain was withdrawn by the FFR on Friday morning, with Bordeaux’s Pierre Bochaton drafted in as his replacement.

“Lenni Nouchi (Montpellier HR) is out injured. Pierre Bochaton (Union Bordeaux-Bègles) joins the France XV squad for the 2025 Autumn Tour,” read an FFR statement.

Nouchi had already been ruled out of Saturday’s Top 14 clash with Stade Français. The 21-year-old didn’t train on Thursday and spent the session watching from the stands.

No details have yet emerged on the nature or severity of the issue and for now, it remains unclear whether he will rejoin the France setup later in the November series.

It’s a blow for the former France U20 World Champion, who’s been in excellent form since being named Montpellier captain in February. The 6’4, 108kg back-row has started all six Top 14 games for the club this season, scoring four tries.

He made his senior Test debut for Les Bleus during the Argentina tour in July, winning two caps.

Bochaton, meanwhile, returns to the fold having featured twice on the summer tour to New Zealand. The 24-year-old flanker was left out of the initial 42 but now steps into the void left by Nouchi.

“Obviously, once you’ve had a taste of it, you want to go back,” Bochaton said earlier this week. “You have to keep working, work even harder, to get back there. And then, once you’re in, you have to stay there — and that’s another challenge entirely.”

“It was incredible to play against the All Blacks, in New Zealand. You immediately see that international rugby is another level. It’s faster, it hits harder. There are a lot of things to improve to reach that standard. You really see the difference, and it pushes you to work even more.”

France open their Quilter Nations Series campaign against the Springboks on November 8, followed by meetings with Fiji (Nov 15) and Australia (Nov 22).

The squad includes several new faces. Toulouse duo Benjamin Bertrand and Kalvin Gourgues are called up, while superstars Antoine Dupont, Thomas Ramos, and Charles Ollivon are all absent through injury.

Updated France squad:

Forwards:Dorian Aldegheri (Stade Toulousain), Grégory Alldritt (Stade Rochelais), Hugo Auradou (Section Paloise), Benjamin Bertrand (Stade Toulousain), Paul Boudehent (Stade Rochelais), Pierre Bochaton (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Esteban Capilla (Aviron Bayonnais), Guillaume Cramont (Stade Toulousain), Baptiste Erdocio (Montpellier), Alexandre Fischer (Aviron Bayonnais), Thibaud Flament (Stade Toulousain), Jean-Baptiste Gros (Toulon), Mickaël Guillard (Lyon), Oscar Jegou (Stade Rochelais), Anthony Jelonch (Stade Toulousain), Thomas Laclayat (Section Paloise), Julien Marchand (Stade Toulousain), Barnabé Massa (Clermont), Jimi Maximin (Section Paloise), Emmanuel Meafou (Stade Toulousain), Régis Montagne (Clermont), Emerick Setiano (Aviron Bayonnais), Romain Taofifénua (Racing 92), Cameron Woki (Union Bordeaux-Bègles).

Backs:Pierre-Louis Barassi (Stade Toulousain), Léo Barré (Stade Français), Louis Bielle-Biarrey (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Fabien Brau-Boirie (Section Paloise), Nicolas Depoortere (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Gaël Drean (Toulon), Gaël Fickou (Racing 92), Emilien Gailleton (Section Paloise), Kalvin Gourgues (Stade Toulousain), Aaron Grandidier Nkanang (Section Paloise), Matthieu Jalibert (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Baptiste Jauneau (Clermont), Nolann Le Garrec (Stade Rochelais), Maxime Lucu (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Romain Ntamack (Stade Toulousain), Damian Penaud (Union Bordeaux-Bègles), Joris Segonds (Aviron Bayonnais), Cheick Tiberghien (Aviron Bayonnais).