Why the Wallabies are well-equipped to deal with French chaos

The Wallabies are walking towards an entirely new challenge against the French in Brisbane this weekend, and it will seriously test the resolve and trust within the group.

While the Wallabies matched up pretty evenly in size and weight to the Irish in Sydney, France has fielded a side with a couple of giants in it.

This weight and height disparity between the two packs in particular will test the Wallabies’ mettle in defence, and the speed and chaos the French play with in attack will challenge the Aussies’ trust in each other and their system.

While the difficulty in opposition has gone up a level with the Wallabies staring down the Six Nations champions, the Wallabies must remember that this is not a full-strength French side, and so they must truly rise and meet this challenge.

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has put his faith in the same eight forwards that he selected in Sydney for this clash in Brisbane, and that is a great show of confidence in both the players and the game plan.

Just as it was at Allianz, the plan is to outwork, outenthuse, and overrun the French at Suncorp.

A premium will be set on big energy and skill execution in Brisbane, which were vital to the Wallabies’ early success in the Ireland match.

The Wallabies’ podwork was exceptional, and rookies like Josh Canham set the tone early with his immaculate pull-pass and deft hands to help set up the Dylan Peitsch try and Jock Campbell’s five-pointer.

Canham 1

Canham 2

This skill will be crucial against the big pack that France have picked, because with 142kg and 203cm Emmanuel Meafou, and 130kg and 187cm Moses Alo-Emile, the Wallabies do not want to be carrying without deception.

Ironically, these two, along with Tom Staniforth on the bench, are all Australian-born and bred, go figure.

Nevertheless, there is a risk with picking such lumbering players alongside the elite athleticism of the likes of Yoram Moefana and Theo Attissogbe.

In defence, the French heaped a bunch of pressure on the All Blacks with lightning-quick line speed at times, and this left the likes of Staniforth adrift at sea in the midfield.

This also shows the disconnect not only in the ability of the players but also in the application of the game plan amongst players from different club teams.

That is a five-metre gap presented there between Moefana and Staniforth, an opportunity badly missed by the All Blacks.

The Wallabies must keep all their pod members aware and attentive to these disconnections to capitalise on them accordingly.

Should the likes of Moefana slow his footspeed to close that gap, the Wallabies should make easy gainline metres off a lineout as it was in this instance.

Either way, the French are limited by their own selection in defence.

While it may seem a big deal to make out of just three selections, these are often the type of tiny cracks in sides that teams must look for, because at the top, the opportunities are scant.

While the French selections may hamper their defensive efforts, in attack, giants like Meafou and Staniforth will definitely help the French get over the gainline.

In attack, the French have seemingly done away with the normal three-man-pod system and have implemented a flat line as in the image below

This structure means that with the halfbacks’ long pass, Maxime Lucu can hit any of those players in the front line, which makes the attack very unpredictable.

Not only must the Wallabies number up according to the front line, but they must also keep an eye on the playmaker out the back, as he can receive a pull-pass from any of the players in the front line.

This flat structure takes the sting out of almost any rush defence, forcing them to hold their footspeed.

It also benefits the French greatly should one of the players in the frontline make a line break, as there are more players flooding through the space in close proximity, ready for an offload, pop off the deck, or to set a quick ruck.

The Wallabies cannot afford to switch off and merely look to realign; every ball is live until it has been trapped and sealed in a ruck.

Power runners like Meafou, Staniforth, and Alo-Emile will certainly aid this effort to disrupt the Wallabies’ line integrity and to create chaos for Romain Ntamack, Matthieu Jalibert, and Attissogbe to thrive off.

Yes indeed, the Wallabies must deal with the two best flyhalves in France in the same backline, which means that the backfield will never be able to switch off, even for a second.

We saw France get pay with their long and short kicking game against the All Blacks, and with those two playmakers at the helm, France will never be short on territory or trickery.

If the Wallabies hope to succeed and nab a win at Suncorp, they must continue their great podwork to maintain structure in their own attack, exceed last weekend’s intensity in defence, and capitalise on their line breaks, unlike last weekend against the Irish.

France poses a different and more explosive threat than the Irish. The Wallabies must not get sucked into the helter-skelter power game of the French; they have neither the heft nor the game plan to win that way.

The Wallabies must be elite in their pod work and finish those opportunities when they make their line breaks.

The set piece will also be challenged with the French being better scrummagers and having quicker lineout jumpers than the Irish.

A lot rests on the shoulders of young Josh Canham and Queensland Reds rake Josh Nassser, for the Wallabies to nail their A-zone execution.

But the pressure sits squarely with Declan Meredith, the debutant flyhalf, who dons the legendary No.10 jersey ahead of schedule.

Meredith possesses both the raw athleticism and brains to have a stable and impactful performance. However, he must involve himself and cannot shy away from this contest.

Supported on either side by his ACT Brumbies teammates, the rookie playmaker could make a storied beginning to his Test career on Saturday night, in a Test the Wallabies are desperate to win.