At the Stade de France
What feeling after this victory which does not allow you to win the Tournament?
Fabien Galthié:
We are satisfied because we follow up with a convincing victory with the offensive bonus.
Against the Irish, whom we had beaten only once in the last nine meetings, it's positive.
We are satisfied because we finish tied for first with England and we are only ahead in the goal average.
We are a little disappointed too.
In our time, we would have been first because it was the particular goal average (
France had beaten England 24-17, Editor's note
) which prevailed.
It's a shame the rule has since changed.
»
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In the end, what assessment do you draw since your appointment as coach?
Our goal was to win matches.
It's done since we won 5 out of 6. We also wanted to start winning titles, that we did not do.
But I am very satisfied with what we went through.
But this is only the beginning of the story.
Just the start.
What do you take away from the performance against Ireland?
First of all, the chance to play rugby in a particular context.
We have a responsibility towards all the amateurs, all the children who can no longer play rugby.
We were on a mission tonight.
And this new team was there.
She answered present.
We are a young team but we managed to put 35 points to a very competitive Irish team for years.
"We end this competition with a feeling of progress and success
"
The new deal with the League only allows a maximum of three match sheets. 23 Blues already have two. Are you going to renew this group or modify it to face Fiji on November 15 in Vannes?
There is a meeting with the staff this Sunday morning to reflect on the future, on the new competition.
We will validate Monday a group of 31 players for Fiji.
You will then have a vision of our strategy for this fall campaign ...
»
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A word about your once again sparkling Dupont-Ntamack hinge?
You talk about it a lot, I won't add (
laughs
)… It is important for us that the players accumulate collective experience.
They, like the whole team, had different issues to overcome in this Tournament.
I find them very comfortable in animation.
They have matured a lot in this competition, this experience has made them denser, like the whole team.
We end this competition with a feeling of progress, success, joy even at times.
And yes, we are very satisfied with our hinge (
smile
).
Interview at a press conference
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