LONG READ Will Marshall mellow for Galthie's strengthened France?

France play New Zealand on Saturday and so far it’s all quiet on the Marshall front. Perhaps France’s fiercest foe will launch a new offensive between now and Saturday or maybe Justin Marshall is satisfied with the squad selected by Fabien Galthie for the opening match of the Nations Championship.

Twelve months ago Marshall went wild over the under-strength French squad that turned up in New Zealand for a three-Test series; and the former All Black scrum-half was at it again last November, battering the Bleus once more.

Raging against “keyboard warriors”, Marshall crowed that France were “plummeting down the world rankings” as a result of sending an under-strength squad to New Zealand. Was that the same France that won the Six Nations title in March?

The reason that France won the 2026 Six Nations, repeating their 2025 triumph, is partly because they rested several players during the summer tour to New Zealand. One or two players have been stood down from the Nations Championship, notably the flying wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey. “He’s played a lot of matches in quick succession, so we’ve decided to rest him for the rest of the season,” explained Fabien Galthié. Bielle-Biarrey played 31 matches this season, one more than the maximum number stipulated by World Cup. The Bordeaux wing has therefore earned World Rugby’s “dedicated 5 week off season break.”

He would have played even more but for Bordeaux’s shock home defeat to Clermont on the final day of the regular season. That loss meant they failed to qualify for the play-offs, allowing Galthie to cherry pick their squad for France’s three Nations Championship matches, which also include Tests against Australia and Japan.

That means the starting half-backs on Saturday will be Maxime Luca and Matthieu Jalibert, the architects of Bordeaux’s back-to-back European titles.

Defence has been a growing problem for France in the last season or two; they conceded 19 tries in the Six Nations, more than any other country except Wales. As a result Shaun Edwards has been replaced as defensive coach by Gerald Bastide.

The centre pairing are likely to be Nicolas Depoortere and Yoram Moefana, while a fifth Bordeaux back will be Damian Penaud, who this season surpassed Serge Blanco to become France’s top try scorer with 40.

Penaud was a surprise omission from this season’s Six Nations, the word being that his defensive fragilities, particularly under the high ball, were to blame. We’ll discover this month if he’s ironed out these flaws.

More generally, defence has been a growing problem for France in the last season or two; they conceded 19 tries in the Six Nations, more than any other country except Wales. As a result Shaun Edwards has been replaced as defensive coach by Gerald Bastide. “It was necessary to evolve,” explained Galthie, who thanked Edwards for bringing to France since 2020 his knowledge expertise and motivation. Gerald Bastide doesn’t have quite the same pedigree as Edwards, having been Perpignan’s defensive coach for several years. They regularly find themselves fighting a relegation rearguard each season. One suspects, however, that Bastide will be more of a yes-man that Edwards, which will suit a coach of Galthie’s temperament.

There is also likely to be a strong Bordeaux contingent in the pack selected by Galthie for Saturday’s Test in Christchurch. Marko Gazzotti and Pierre Bochaton will start in the back-row while in the front-row Galthie will likely select Maxime Lamothe at hooker and Jefferson Poirot on the loosehead.

The 33-year-old Poirot won the last of his 36 caps in 2020, the year he announced his retirement from international rugby. Citing physical and mental burnout at the time, Poirot said he wanted to spend more time with his family.

His decision to come out of Test retirement is a relief for Galthie and France. They are desperately short of high-class front-rows the retirement earlier this year on medical grounds of Uini Atonio was a terrible blow for the Bleus.

Not eligible for selection for Saturday’s match against the All Blacks are the players who contested the Top 14 final in a roasting Paris, where evening temperatures topped 34 degrees.

That also explains the decision to call up 26-year-old Moses Alo-Emile, the Australian prop of Samoan origin. His big brother, Paul, has represented Samoa, but Moses has opted for France, eight years after arriving in Paris to play for Stade Francais.

On the tighthead, Galthie is expected to select Demba Bamba, who has returned to top form after recovering from a series of injuries. Bamba won his first cap as a 20-year-old in 2018 and this season for Racing has shown his strength in the scrum and his mobility around the park.

Not eligible for selection for Saturday’s match against the All Blacks are the players who contested the Top 14 final in a roasting Paris. In evening temperatures topping 34 degrees, Toulouse withstood a physical challenge from Montpellier to deny them a fourth consecutive Bouclier de Brennus.

Eight players Peato Mauvaka and Emmanuel Meafou – who all played for France when they beat England to win the Six Nations in March- will join the squad this week and should start against the Wallabies on July 11. Romain Ntamack is also among the nine. The Toulouse fly-half has taken time to fully recover from a serious knee injury in 2023 but in recent months he has looked sharp, swift and precise.

The same goes for the rest of the France squad, a point made recently by Maxime Lucu. “Before nobody went to the southern hemisphere for a three-week holiday,” he said. “But now, it’s true, there’s a competition at the end of it. There’s something to win.”

Indeed there is. Not just the Nations Championship title but also the respect of Monsieur Marshall.