Jacques Brunel looks for power and pace in attempt to unsettle hosts in the same manner as England did in Dublin
It has been 14 years since France beat England at Twickenham in the Six Nations. “A long time,” says Jacques Brunel with a rueful grin. Brunel has not had a lot to smile about lately but he is hoping this latest incarnation of the French team will fix that. The head coach has made 10 changes to the French 23 that blew a 16-0 lead against Wales last week, six of them to the starting XV. The headline news is that he has recalled Mathieu Bastareaud at outside-centre, in a move that is designed to counter the physical threat posed by Manu Tuilagi.
Bastareaud will partner Geoffrey Doumayrou. Wesley Fofana, who started last week, is out injured, and the 19-year-old Romain Ntamack has dropped to the bench. Yoann Huget has been switched to full-back, where he replaces the injured Maxime Médard, and Gaël Fickou comes in on the wing. Up front, the blindside flanker Yacouba Camara is making his first appearance since last year’s Six Nations, the lock Felix Lambey starts instead of Paul Willemse and Demba Bamba replaces the injured Uini Atonio at tighthead prop.
Written by Andy Bull
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/feb/08/mathieu-bastareaud-back-as-france-opt-for-power-against-england under the title “France recall Mathieu Bastareaud in bid to turn tables on England”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
