Olympic gold medallist reflects on ‘unreal’ two-try France Test debut

Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang fought back tears after a dream debut for France against the Wallabies in the inaugural Nations Championship. The winger scored twice as Les Bleus secured their first win in Brisbane since the early 1970s.

It’s the latest milestone in Grandidier-Nkanang’s remarkable professional career to date, which has included Olympic gold and World Rugby recognition. In a team of Six Nations champions, the 26-year-old looked right at home in the Test arena.

Romain Ntamack put a kick ahead of the debutant to chase about 17 minutes into the contest, while Wallabies fly-half Declan Meredith trailed back. But the bounce of the rugby ball sat up perfectly for the flyer, who placed it down just inside the left sideline.

Grandidier-Nkanang completed a double during France’s second-half point-scoring blitz, as the visitors piled on 30 unanswered. The former HSBC SVNS Series star’s effort was particularly vital though, reducing the half-time deficit to just a single point.

 

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There’s a video online of Grandidier-Nkanang holding a Nations Championship mic after the Test, visibly emotional after realising a lifelong dream. The No. 11 was presented with a debut cap post-game, having become France representative number 1235.

“It’s honestly so fresh and it’s quite difficult for me to really even understand what’s going on. I feel so grateful to not only live the experiences in the first place but to be lucky enough to have so much success,” Grandidier-Nkanang told RugbyPass in Brisbane, immediately after walking out of the changeroom, where celebratory cheers for the debutants had erupted moments earlier.

“I feel very, very lucky, very grateful and it’s just unreal.”

Grandidier-Nkanang was born in England and went to university in Twickenham, but pursued an opportunity across the English Channel. Born to a French mother, the rugby prospect first signed with Top 14 outfit Brive in 2019.

The outside back made seven appearances for the club over two seasons before linking up with the France Sevens program. Grandidier-Nkanang once scored 11 tries across one event at the fan favourite Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, emerging one of the world’s best in the sport.

Grandidier-Nkanang was nominated for the 2024 World Rugby Men’s Sevens Player of the Year honour, but that accolade went to Antoine Dupont. Dupont had scored twice in the Paris Olympics gold medal match win over Fiji, while Grandidier-Nkanang touched down once.

Rieko Ioane, Sonny Bill Williams, Ardie Savea, Michael Hooper and Bryan Habana are just some of the world-renowned rugby greats who have switched between rugby’s formats at some stages, all with varying success.

“It’s not easy,” as Grandidier-Nkanang reflected, making what happened at Suncorp Stadium last weekend even more spectacular. The winger has since joined French side Pau, featuring in 42 matches over two seasons.

“I’m very, very lucky because my club have been absolutely incredible in the way they’ve welcomed me in and just built my confidence and let me express myself and relearn the game again,” the French international reflected.

“I can’t thank my club enough for the effort and the trust because at the start… my performances weren’t great and they never let go of me. Thy just kept filling me with confidence, kept giving me the opportunity to get better.

“If I’m here today, it’s because of the club.”

Grandidier-Nkanang has just walked out of the changeroom at Suncorp Stadium, preparing to speak with a press pack of French media, while sporting the golden debut cap. But the flyer stopped for this interview first, initially asked to reflect on that first five-pointer.

You can genuinely see just how much that moment meant to Grandidier-Nkanang, as the joy and pride of a Test debut continued to sink in  “I couldn’t ask for a better debut in that sense,” he said, before explaining why that score was so important for him personally

 

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“Romain gets the ball, can see that they’re pretty even on numbers, maybe even one up defensively and I saw a little gap behind so I just gave him the call to push it through.

“Honestly, just a quality, quality kick, stopping exactly where it needed to be. I was lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time and dot it down.

“It just filled me with confidence to just keep fighting. Obviously on a debut there’s a lot of different emotions and a bit of stress, a bit of anxiety, a bit of obviously excitement. But a moment like that early on in the game kind of just reminds you that you deserve to be there and to just go and enjoy it.”