France player ratings vs Scotland | Six Nations 2022
France’s hopes of claiming a first Six Nations title in 12 years and a fourth Grand Slam since 2000 are very much alive following their 17-36 round three win at Murrayfield.
Fabien Galthie’s team ended their three-match Six Nations losing streak in Edinburgh in emphatic fashion by claiming six tries and a bonus point which may yet prove to be crucial.
The visitors led 10-19 at the break through Paul Willemse, Yoram Moefana and Gael Fickou touchdowns to which the impressive Rory Darge responded for Scotland.
Jonathan Danty clinched the bonus point soon after the restart before France underlined their superiority with a brace of late Damian Penaud tries.
Injury and illness forced the hosts to make five changes from their round two defeat in Wales with forwards Jonny Gray, Rory Sutherland, Hamish Watson, Matt Fagerson and Jamie Ritchie all missing out, while WP Nel and Zander Fagerson swapped bench and starting roles.
France made just one change following their win over Ireland, with tournament top try-scorer Gabin Villiere ruled out because of a fractured sinus. He was replaced by Jonathan Danty, who wore the no.12 shirt with Yoram Moefana moved to the wing.
15. Melvyn Jaminet – 6
Set the tone for an up-and-down game when he missed an absolute sitter from in front of the posts in the opening minutes before slotting a nerve-settling conversion from wide on the left then expertly landing a 50-22. Missed a high ball completely to give Scotland a good attacking opportunity then compounded the error by conceding a penalty for a high tackle.
14. Damian Penaud – 9
Played his part in creating tries for Moefana and Danty. Posed the home side plenty of defensive questions throughout and earned his reward by strolling over for France’s fifth and sixth tries.
What is Scotland Defence doing here ???????????????. #SCOvFRA pic.twitter.com/rhgwqpe66m
— Brett Igoe (@brettruganalyst) February 26, 2022
13. Gael Fickou – 8
Showed his defensive quality by getting over the ball to end a promising home attack and win a vital penalty on the ground. Scored a superb try on the stroke of half-time with a powerful, arcing burst and controlled finish under pressure before ripping the ball free in a maul to create Penaud’s score.
????????? Cette course magnifique de @FickouG ! ??#ECOFRA #XVdeFrance #NeFaisonsXV pic.twitter.com/9fBRCHFRqV
— France Rugby (@FranceRugby) February 26, 2022
12. Jonathan Danty – 8
The fit-again Danty, who scored France’s fourth try when the beneficiary of a fortuitous bounce, brought plenty of power to the visitors’ midfield in both attack and defence.
11. Yoram Moefana – 7
Twice made early ground down the left wing in the process highlighting a size mis-match by flattening Darcy Graham. Finished his team’s second try following some sublime handling.
10. Romain Ntmack – 9
Got off to the worst possible start when his kick off found the Murrayfield stands but quickly recovered his composure to play a prominent part in his team’s attacking threat. Ran the show in the second half when he enjoyed plenty of possession in broken field.
9. Antoine Dupont – 8.5
Created one of the great Six Nations tries by countering from his own 22 to launch the move which Willemse finished. Awarded the official Man-of-the-Match award for his sustained excellence.
? El contraataque de Dupont !!!
Y luego la continuidad del juego, con ángulos de carrera y pelota siempre viva.#SCOvFRA pic.twitter.com/wvBSIjnEv4
— Fran Capizzi ???? (@Fran_Capizzi) February 26, 2022
1. Cyril Baille – 7
Produced the brilliant offload that sent Moefana over for France’s second score from a seemingly impossible situation. Maybe now the world’s leading loose head?
2. Julien Marchand – 7
Won his team a kickable penalty in the early stages with a well-judged jackal and grabbed another important turnover shortly before departing the field. Always prominent in the loose.
3. Uini Atonio – 6.5
Given a huge scrum battle by the impressive Pierre Schoeman before limping from the field early in the second period.
4. Cameron Woki – 8.5
Scotland entered the contest with a 100 per cent return from their 28 lineout throws against England and Wales but Woki posed plenty of aerial problems for Townsend’s team. Always prominent in the loose in a terrific display.
5. Paul Willemse – 7
Applied the finishing touch that claimed France’s first try to cap a typically powerful display.
Lovey try, Fickou is playing amazing.
However, as a neutral, think Woki should have been penalised for at least one of not rolling or playing the ball on the ground there. pic.twitter.com/WDfvNEdfw2
— EK Rugby Analysis (@ek_rugby) February 26, 2022
6. Francois Cros – 6.5
Got straight into the game by blocking Finn Russell’s 50-22 attempt and went on to make a big defensive contribution.
7. Anthony Jelonch – 6
Steady if unspectacular display as part of another effective French forward performance.
8. Gregory Alldritt – 7.5
Le Bleu’s go-to carrier rarely disappoints and Alldritt again did plenty of hard yards in addition to working hard in defence.
A great moment between Antoine Dupont & Anne, Princess Royal ? #GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/5GtDVZmugh
— Guinness Men's Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) February 26, 2022
REPLACEMENTS –
16. Peato Mauvaka – 6.5
Quickly made his mark in the loose with some tough tackling and good support lines.
17. Jean-Baptiste Gros – 6.5
Like South Africa France now have two outstanding front rows and Gros is every bit as effective as Baille.
18. Demba Bamba – 6.5
Arrived in the 47th minute to provide plenty of ballast.
19. Romain Taofifenua – 6.5
A second-half replacement for Willemse that made a lively contribution in the loose.
20. Thibault Flament – 7
Showcased his handling skills and open-field running in the closing stages as Scotland tired.
21. Dylan Cretin – 6
Replaced the excellent Woki in the closing stages.
22. Maxime Lucu – 6
Earned a cap in the closing minutes when Dupont took a well-earned rest.
23. Thomas Ramos – 6.5
Replaced Jaminet in the closing stages and relished the chance to run at tiring defenders.
Comments on RugbyPass
In the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getitng to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
5 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
7 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
5 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
7 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
54 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
54 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
7 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
54 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
54 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
54 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
18 Go to comments